Late stage career change..got a Class A CDL...

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I'm a semi mech at UPS and talk to drivers on occasion. The days of driving from coast to coast is a thing of the past because of intermodal. The very few drivers that still do such long hauls are paid very poorly to compete against the trailer being put on rail. Trucking companies lie to get you in the door. The industry is cut throat, the lowest bidder wins and the wages suck. Most otr is regional today because of intermodal
 
I have 4 drivers and they all like the job. We deliver locally though no over night work. I have a sister company that is strictly long haul trucking and they have many 20 year employees, I don't hear any complaints when they bring in loads either. I think it's highly dependent on who you work for like any job.
 
Congrats. Definitely not for everyone. Stay away from the East Coast....
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The truck might have it already, but MAKE SURE you have a dash cam running. It could save your job.

I think it is a neat profession, but you definitely need the right mindset for it. Stay safe and congrats on the new job!
 
I have had my CDL-A for 10 years.

I have never been over the road, but have 10 or so friends that are.

I was an owner operator with a small fleet of dump trucks. I did not want to be gone overnight so I chose this. We hauled mostly asphalt, gravel and sand. Pay was good but the headaches involved with owning trucks proved to be one of the hardest things I have ever done.

My buddies jobs are as follows-
1) Beer Truck Driver- Loves his job, but took him years to get a 'good route'
2) Soda Truck Driver- Loves the money but he is on a bad route.
3) Several over the road- I think each one has switched companies at least 5 times or more. I hear alot about the home time lying. I guess it takes awhile to find the right companies that dont lie.
4) Milk Truck Driver- His wages arent very good but his job is easy.
5) Coal Truck Driver- A few that do this.. all hate it with a passion.
6) Several friends that drive either concrete mixers or dump trucks- all hate it
7) Fed Ex Freight- Best job ive heard of yet. Pay is great. He has a dedicated run that pays hourly. Terminal to Terminal.


So in talking to all of them thru the years, the hourly jobs are the way to go for me. The mileage horror stories of not getting paid for sitting for days kinda ruins it for me.

I may end up driving a truck again one day..hoping not but if i do I will work for a Fortune 500 company and only drive trucks without a sleeper attached or a dolly.
 
Some trucking companies are terrible and others are fairly decent to work for. You just have to find the right one for you.

Indiana Jack is my favorite YouTube trucker, love his videos of OTR driving.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
Some trucking companies are terrible and others are fairly decent to work for. You just have to find the right one for you.

Indiana Jack is my favorite YouTube trucker, love his videos of OTR driving.


Hooray another Indiana Jack fan! He doesn't sugar coat what he does but he still tries to make his movies into "films" in the traditional sense.
 
Mack tri-plex and quadra-plex. Mack DMs and A Cars. I went to New England Tractor Trailer Trng to get a class 1 license. Never used it. Dithered about maintaining license when CDL came out. For about 3 seconds. The CDL just put more responsibility on the driver for logs and safety and off the company. If electric trucks are the future, autonomous trucks will dispense the need for drivers.
 
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Originally Posted By: dblshock
Originally Posted By: Chris142
What kind of transmission did you learn on? I drove this till 2012.
Yes thats me driving.
https://youtu.be/4a8SNT3uy-4



Whoa, [censored]? I learned on a Eaton/Meritor 10
This is what we had before air shift transmissions came about. This was a little window ,butterfly hood 62 Pete just like the one in Duel.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice
Some trucking companies are terrible and others are fairly decent to work for. You just have to find the right one for you.



This is a big part of it. A friend of mine has his CDL and just recently got a job with a local town. He drives a backhoe, road grader, and a town dump truck. He has great benefits, good pay, and gets a ton of well paying overtime when he plows snow.
 
Originally Posted By: andyd
Mack tri-plex and quadra-plex. Mack DMs and A Cars. I went to New England Tractor Trailer Trng to get a class 1 license. Never used it. Dithered about maintaining license when CDL came out. For about 3 seconds. The CDL just put more responsibility on the driver for logs and safety and off the company. If electric trucks are the future, autonomous trucks will dispense the need for drivers.


electric maybe in ten years other than novelty proto types..autonomous much further out imo.
 
You betcha
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5+4, 4+4, 5+3, 13 speed, 15 speed, pretty much you name it ...

Have had my CDL for over 45 years now and still counting. But don't drive much anymore ... As my sig says, ran petro tanks for years. Then got back into boats and marine waterfront services.

Rather drive a boat any day. Trucks are not bad if you have right company to work for.

If doing any urban work anymore, it'd have to be Allison for me. No more clutch leg. That's for the young guys. Stop and go city traffic is awful now for hours at a time
frown.gif


I think about building a truck again, just for the heck of it. But all the new 'puter controlled engines take the joy out. And w/o one, you can't even get into some urban areas ...

I think if I were going to do OTR again as a career, I'd be looking to drive for house/building movers, or super heavy equipment (cranes, etc), or Hazmat tanking. Those will not be automated anytime soon as they are very special jobs. The permits are not fun, but the work is good and so is the pay
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Be very careful who you drive for , I have driven on and off between sales jobs as you know in sales it's what have you done for me today ,

with the new ELD rules its forcing drivers to stay moving even when they should be parked as once you start your 14 hour clock you cant stop it ,,,TICK TOC TICK TOC , I dont know said 500 bucks a day , must be on drugs as most carriers only pay 45-48 cents a mile and on a good day 550 to 600 miles is all your is all your going to clock on a good day , so trip planning is essential as a skill ,

just a few insights as I am ready to get out of the truck and go back to sales it has been a tough year and I worked hard, and came up short of what I was told I could make working for a carrier that services a meat packer and we haul to our own customers

JUST SAY'N ,,, food for thought , and yes do run a video camera to cover your backside
 
Some drivers like driving at night to maximize their legal driving hours and avoid rush hour traffic.

Even if a driver moves his truck at truck stop to get to a quieter area of a truck stop at night.... it might accidentally trigger the ELD and officially your day has begun even if you wanted to get 8 hours of sleep.
 
Originally Posted By: Mr Nice

Even if a driver moves his truck at truck stop to get to a quieter area of a truck stop at night.... it might accidentally trigger the ELD and officially your day has begun even if you wanted to get 8 hours of sleep.


That SUCKS!!!
 
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