For workers who operate or ride in vehicle-mounted aerial lifts such as boom platforms and bucket trucks: recognize the lift types, test the controls and set up, work from the basket safely while tied off, and move the lift safely.
Based on OSHA 29 CFR 1926.453 (construction) and 29 CFR 1910.67 (general industry), vehicle-mounted aerial lifts · about 4 min read
Need proof of training? The full course (15 min) adds practice questions, a job scenario, the final quiz and a certificate your employer can verify.
Aerial lifts are vehicle-mounted devices used to raise people to work above ground. They can be metal, wood or fiberglass, powered or manual, and they count as aerial lifts whether or not they rotate. The platform is the basket or bucket you stand in.
Telescoping boom
Extensible boom platformAn aerial device (except ladders) with a telescopic or extensible boom.
Hinged boom
Articulating boom platformAn aerial device with two or more hinged boom sections.
Ladder
Aerial ladderA single- or multiple-section extensible ladder.
Straight up
Vertical towerRaises a platform in a substantially vertical axis.
On construction sites, only authorized persons may operate an aerial lift. In general industry, only trained persons may.
Test the controls
Test the lift controls each day before use to make sure they are in safe working condition.
Set up
Set the brakes.
When outriggers are used, place them on pads or a solid surface.
On an incline, install wheel chocks before using the lift. (The construction rule adds: provided they can be safely installed.)
Do not change the lift
Never alter the insulated portion of a lift in any way that might reduce its insulating value.
A lift may be field modified for other uses only when the modification is certified in writing by the manufacturer or an equivalent entity as conforming and at least as safe as before.
Always stand firmly on the floor of the basket. Do not sit or climb on the edge of the basket, and do not use planks, ladders or other devices for a work position.
Tie off to the boom or basket
Construction: wear a body belt with a lanyard attached to the boom or basket. Body belts are not acceptable for personal fall arrest, but are acceptable in a restraint or tethering system. General industry: wear a personal fall arrest or travel restraint system that meets the requirements in subpart I of part 1910, attached to the boom or basket.
Do not belt off to something else
Belting off to an adjacent pole, structure or equipment while working from an aerial lift is not permitted.
Stay within the load limit
Boom and basket load limits specified by the manufacturer must not be exceeded. A good practice is to count people, tools and materials against the limit.
No climbers
Climbers (pole-climbing spurs) must not be worn while performing work from an aerial lift.
Boom platforms designed mainly to carry people have upper controls in or beside the platform, within easy reach, and lower controls that can override them. All controls are plainly marked.
Ask first. The lower controls must not be operated unless permission has been obtained from the employee in the lift, except in case of emergency.
Moving the truck
Do not move an aerial lift truck when the boom is elevated in a working position with people in the basket, unless the equipment is specifically designed for that.
Before moving the lift for travel, check that the boom is properly cradled and the outriggers are stowed.
Before highway travel, aerial ladders are secured in the lower traveling position. Construction: by the locking device on top of the truck cab and the manually operated device at the base of the ladder. General industry: by the locking device above the truck cab and the manually operated device at the base of the ladder, or by other equally effective means (e.g., cradles which prevent rotation of the ladder in combination with positive acting linear actuators).
Fact-checked against the regulation text on October 09, 2026. This certificate records completion of awareness training based on OSHA 29 CFR 1926.453 and 1910.67. It is not an OSHA card or license, and it does not authorize anyone to operate an aerial lift. 29 CFR 1926.453 has no training paragraph of its own, and this certificate does not by itself meet the training requirements of 29 CFR 1926.454, which OSHA applies to aerial lifts covered by 1926.453 (letter of interpretation, February 23, 2000). In construction, your employer must still have each employee who works from the lift trained by a person qualified in the subject matter to recognize the hazards and understand the procedures to control or minimize them, have each employee who is involved in erecting, disassembling, moving, operating, repairing, maintaining, or inspecting it trained by a competent person, retrain when 1926.454(c) requires it, and allow only authorized persons to operate it (1926.453(b)(2)(ii)). In general industry, 1910.67 has no separate training paragraph; it allows only trained persons to operate an aerial lift (1910.67(c)(2)(ii)), so your employer must make sure you are trained before you operate one.
This guide explains the rule in plain words. Always read the regulation itself and your employer's site-specific procedures.