- Based on 2025 NS commercial driver's licence manual
- Updated for April 2025
FREE NS Air Brake Practice Test 1
In Nova Scotia, applicants for a Class 3 or 4 commercial driver’s licence must be at least 18 years of age; applicants for a Class 1 or 2 licence must be at least 19 years of age. All these applicants must have held a Class 5 licence for at least one year, and they must pass a vision exam and a medical exam. Then you must also pass a general knowledge test on the theory of commercial driving. Once you pass, you’ll be issued a commercial learner’s permit, which will allow you to practice commercial driving under supervision as you prepare for your road test. (Exception: You don’t have to pass a knowledge test or road test if you’ll be operating Class 4 passenger vehicles with eight or fewer occupants, including yourself.) If you’re applying for an Air Brake endorsement (usually unavailable for Class 4), you must also pass a separate Air Brake knowledge test.
At that point, if you’re applying for a Class 1 licence, you must enroll in a Mandatory Entry-Level Training (MELT) course. (The Air Brake endorsement is mandatory for Class 1 licences because virtually all Class 1 vehicles in Nova Scotia have air brakes.) The Air Brake knowledge test is based on the official Nova Scotia Air Brake Manual.
When you’re ready, you should schedule a road test for your commercial driver’s licence (unless you fall under the exception stated earlier). The road test includes a pre-trip inspection test. However, if you’re applying for a Class 1 licence, you must complete the MELT course before taking the road and pre-trip inspection tests. You must take these tests in a vehicle that’s representative of the class of licence you’re applying for. If you’re applying for an air brake endorsement for Class 1 or Class 3, you must take these tests in a vehicle equipped with air brakes.
This is the first of our nine Nova Scotia Air Brakes Practice Tests. It includes 35 multiple-choice questions on air brakes. All questions are up to date as of April 2025 and based on the official Nova Scotia Air Brake Manual.
If you get stuck on a practice question, you can ask our AI Assistant to discuss the question further, give you a hint, or answer your own questions about operating commercial vehicles. If you still miss the question, you’ll be shown the correct answer and an explanation.
We have eight more Nova Scotia Air Brakes practice tests for you. Check them out!
- Perfect for first-time and renewal commercial applicants, and those adding endorsements
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More resources
- Should you pump (keep pressing and releasing) air brakes?
- It is important to keep compressed air as dry as possible because
- What does the low air pressure warning device warn you about?
- If the low air pressure warning signal comes on, what should you do?
- The effectiveness of the spring brakes for emergencies or parking
- During normal driving, what keeps the spring brakes released?
- Assuming good traction and constant vehicle weight, if you double your speed, your vehicle's braking distance will be
- If drum brakes overheat, the vehicle's stopping distance will increase. What is the reason for this?
- Air braking systems tend to react slower than hydraulic braking systems because
- While travelling downhill, you notice that each time you want to brake, you must press the brake pedal farther down than the last time to achieve the same braking force. What could be causing this?
- The maximum air pressure available for braking is determined by
- The foot (treadle) valve
- Which of the following can impair braking effectiveness?
- After you apply the service brakes, what happens to that compressed air?
- What does an alcohol evaporator do?
- When you test the system air-loss rate, the maximum acceptable leakage rates per minute after the initial drop are
- You're driving a vehicle equipped with a dual air brake system. The low air pressure warning signal comes on, but one system still has normal pressure. What should you do?
- How should you test your vehicle's low air pressure warning signal?
- An application pressure gauge shows the air pressure
- All vehicles equipped with air brakes must have
- What is the colour coding that is often used for the supply and service lines to the trailer?
- The hand valve of a tractor-trailer
- In a vehicle equipped with air brakes, what does the governor control?
- Polarized gladhands on a tractor
- ln vehicles with three dash-mounted push-pull valve knobs, how are the valve knobs usually coloured?
- Which of the following are major components of the air supply circuit?
- Wedge brakes are designed to be
- Where are the air brake chambers located?
- What does an ABS system do?
- When you are going at twice the speed, your service brakes will need to work _________ to stop your vehicle.
- Which of these significantly decreases the braking force produced at the wheel?
- Which type of trailer can be towed before the service tanks are full?
- In determining how well your air brake system works, which is NOT a significant factor?
- In large commercial vehicles, most air brake systems use automatic valves to
- Where are a vehicle's air tanks located?
- What is the "cut-in" level?
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