Motor Carrier Safety
What is the Motor Carrier Safety Section?
Colorado State Patrol’s Motor Carrier Safety Section is responsible for commercial motor vehicle (CMV) enforcement across the state. Our mission is to ensure compliance with federal and state CMV and hazardous materials transportation regulations, reduce CMV-related crashes, and address criminal interdiction activities involving CMVs.
What is Commerce?
Interstate commerce means trade, traffic, or transportation in the United States:
- Between a place in a State and a place outside of such State (including a place outside of the United States); or
- Between two places in a State through another State or a place outside of the United States; or
- Between two places in a State as part of trade, traffic, or transportation originating or terminating outside the State or the United States.
Intrastate commerce (for a Colorado-based company) means trade, traffic, or transportation that occurs entirely within Colorado.
What is a Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV)?
- Has a gross vehicle weight rating or gross combination weight rating, or gross vehicle weight or gross combination weight, of 4,536 kg (10,001 pounds) or more, whichever is greater; or
- Is designed or used to transport more than 8 passengers (including the driver) for compensation; or
- Is designed or used to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver, and is not used to transport passengers for compensation; or
- Is used in transporting material found by the Secretary of Transportation to be hazardous and transported in a quantity requiring placarding.
AND is driven on public roadways used in commerce (i.e. used in the furtherance of a business or organization)
- Bearing an Apportioned Plate
- Having a gross vehicle weight rating or gross combination weight rating of at least 16,001 lbs.; or
- Having a gross vehicle weight rating or gross combination weight rating of at least 16,001 lbs. and used to transport 16 or more passengers (including the driver), unless the vehicle is a school bus (operated in accordance with C.R.S. 42-4-1904); or
- Owned or Operated by a school district which does not have a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 lbs. or more so long as the school district does not receive remuneration other than reimbursement of the actual costs of operating the vehicle.
Looking for information concerning the safe transportation of hazardous materials?
Looking for information concerning the safe operation of commercial motor vehicles?
Compliance, Safety and Accountability (CSA)
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicles. To learn more about the program and how it affects you as a carrier or driver, log onto the CSA Website.
