The number of Federal Rules and Regulations for truck drivers and trucking companies has continuously increased over the years, along with stricter enforcement both on and off the highways. A recent announcement by the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration shows that there will be even greater scrutiny just around the corner.

Recently I heard a story of a truck driving student who was on the road with a trainer and discovered that the trainer was smoking pot in the truck while the student was driving. How did the student handle this? Did it backfire on him? There are some things that everyone needs to understand about the realities of life in the trucking industry.

If you ask drivers what the golden rule of safety is, you’ll get a lot of different answers - and all of them are likely to be important. But let’s boil this topic down to it’s most simplest form - the one golden rule of trucking….

Over the years I’ve seen a million new guys and gals come into the trucking industry with not only the wrong perceptions of what the trucking industry is like, but with the attitude that everyone better treat them like kings and queens and roll out the red carpet or they’re outta here - and I’ve seen a lot of em get outta here in a hurry. It’s tough in the beginning - there’s a lot to learn….

I recently got a question from a visitor asking about finding part time work in the trucking industry with a company that would have to give him the flexibility to run loads according to his schedule and lifestyle. He has a full time job already that he will likely retire from, but thought it might [...]

So the big question these days for most visitors to our site is, “Will I find a job in trucking in today’s economy?” The answer, right now, is a resounding “yes”, but how long will that last? Let’s take a look at a couple of factors that will influence hiring in the trucking industry in the coming months.

We received a letter from Karen Smith, the wife of a long-haul truck driver, and she asked us to publish it for her. She spent some time on the road with her husband and wanted everyone to know what she found out about truck drivers - that they deserve a lot more appreciation than they get for doing such a tough job and living such a demanding lifestyle.

Truck driving is looked upon as the last great hope for many Americans who have either lost their jobs, or are afraid they’re about to. Some families have had to send the second parent to work because of cutbacks in pay, cutbacks in hours, or settling for a lesser job by the first parent. If I were looking for work today, where would I turn? Here’s where….

CDL students are having better luck finding truck driving jobs as we move deeper into 2009 than they were at the beginning of the year and many trucking companies have either begun increasing their hiring numbers or are removing the hiring freezes they’ve had in place in recent weeks. A couple of authors of their [...]

I always appreciate hearing from our site’s visitors. Always. I especially love the thanks we get for putting up positive, honest, and helpful information for those who are considering becoming a truck driver. None of us at TruckingTruth will ever be found guilty of sugar-coating things, or telling anyone that truck driving is nothing but [...]

Passing your written CDL Test is much easier if you use the online practice tests available to help get you ready. The written CDL exam is not very difficult for most to pass. In fact, very few people fail it. The driving portion of the test is a bit trickier, but the written part shouldn’t [...]

In today’s slow economy there are tons of layoffs and more people than ever are considering going to truck driving school and becoming truck drivers - and rightly so. But none of that will matter if you can’t find a job once you get your CDL. So what is the current job outlook for those that are new to the trucking industry?

The month or two you will spend at truck driving school is going to teach you the basics of what you need to know in order to pass your CDL exam. The real training will begin once you get out on the road with a trainer - and the rest you will have to learn on your own. A lot of people coming out of school have the wrong attitude and take the wrong approach to their time with a trainer, so I’m gonna talk a little bit about the right way to handle it.

There are few things in the world that most people will ever do that will test your character more than driving a truck for a living. Everyone and everything from your truck driver training to your CDL examiners, the trucking companies you work for, the challenge of handling a big rig safely, the time away from family and friends, and of course the other drivers on the road will all push you to your limits sometimes - and those that survive and thrive in the trucking industry are the ones that develop the character needed out there to be safe and enjoy their career on the highways.

A bit of startling news today - one of our own authors, TruckerMike, who is currently in CDL training and was pre-hired by the trucking company of his choice, has been informed by the company that they have just put a hiring freeze on until April 1st. This is quite startling because not only had [...]