Comments By James H.

I don' know if the OP is still looking, or how worthwhile these in-person events are, but FWIW, this showed up in my inbox yesterday. Here's the link to the event.

Their website shows 20 openings in Keasbey, and 21 at their location on Jacobus Avenue in Kearny.

Depending on the opportunities where you live, it's entirely possible to get your CDL and begin your driving career local, without ever spending a night away from home. I'm one of many drivers who have done it successfully. And at the age of 57 BTW.

she stays 14 hours a day alone while I work

This is good, because even home-daily jobs tend to be long hours so this ability of hers will be tested. And you'll want a petsitter on standby just in case you have a breakdown a couple hundred miles from home that results in you running out of hours and having to sit for ten hours off-duty before getting back. It happens.

Going OTR for the long haul has been something I've wanted to do for a long, long time

Going the local route can get you out of your current job rut, and might turn out to be something you'd enjoy. But if you have the OTR dream, it's definitely not that. It's more of a routine, doing the same routes to the same places day after day. Many of us have responsibilities at home that preclude hitting the open road for weeks at a time, but that doesn't mean we can't pursue a version of this career. And I'd expect a year or more of satisfactory local Class A driving would shorten the training period at an OTR carrier, but most will still require you to do a few months solo before you can bring along a pet.

It's because Amazon sets unrealistic delivery windows and penalizes them for being late. A guy that used to work here drove for one of their contractors, he said Amazon calculates the minimum run time with zero delay and being able to maintain like 65mph average. According to him and what I've seen online they will load you late then penalize you if you don't make delivery on time.

I'm neither smart nor a lawyer, but I'm sure Amazon has people who are both. I'd like one of their smart lawyers to explain how this doesn't open them to a world of liability. If someone gets killed by an Amazon contractor driving like a lunatic, and it comes out at trial that Amazon effectively penalizes them for being safe, Jeff Bezos better get out his checkbook.

The bottom line, is you must 1) inspect your equipment regularly, at least once each day and 2) log the time you spend inspecting your equipment.

Does the inspection time have to be logged as something other than just 'on duty?' I mostly do meet-and-turn, and take my 30 minute break from driving after swapping trailers and before heading back. If the meet is at a company yard (not accessible to the public), I'll go into Yard Move while dropping my outbound trailer and hooking to the one I'm bringing back. The rest of the 30, while I'm not moving is just On Duty. That's when I do my Vehicle Inspection and complete the DVIR on the ELD. So the completion of the DVIR would line up with >15 minutes of time logged as On Duty (not driving) but the HOS log itself doesn't show any time as specifically inspection. On our ELD, Pre Trip/Post Trip is an option under On Duty - Yard Move but I haven't been selecting it.

Also, if I'm pulling multiple trailers on a single day, should I be logging separate inspections for all of them? These days I typically take one trailer out and bring another back. When I was doing LTL, it was the same except with doubles, and sometimes I'd do what my company called a 'via,' meaning I'd make an additional stop to deliver or get a trailer, so I'd be moving a fifth or even a sixth pup during a single shift. I'll do a walk-around to check lights and tires for every trailer I hook to, but have only been completing the DVIR for the one full inspection where I inspect the power unit too.

Most of the LTL companies have facilities in the Woodbridge/Edison area, as well as closer to NYC around Newark and Elizabeth and up to Carlstadt and Teterboro. My first driving job, at age 57, was doing linehaul, and I think that for those of us who have responsibilities at home and can't go OTR, it's the ideal way to start. The fact that you have dock experience is definitely an asset for these jobs, although it seems you're finding it's a mixed blessing. Your current employer seems to value you too much on the dock to put you in a truck. If that's the case, they're likely to lose you entirely.

I just went on indeed to find a CDL A job, and took it from there. Good luck!

Thing Is Bruce is once one learns how to float gears you don’t use the clutch unless you are coming from a dead stop. You would barely use it as an otr driver most days. Heck as a local driver I barely use it. I simply creep in low gear in traffic or approaching a red light.

I do a lot of driving on very congested routes - such as Tonnelle Avenue a/k/a Truck 1&9 in Jersey City, or the approach to the George Washington Bridge toll plaza - and this is what I do. I make it a game to see how long I can go creeping along floating through the lower gears without touching the clutch to get going from a complete stop. If nothing else, it helps alleviate the tedium of sitting in traffic.

The first time you proficiently float gears, you'll feel like an absolute boss. Why would you want to deny yourself that experience?

I wish there were loaner dogs that could be returned if they didn’t pass a test drive, lol.

To me, having a dog on the truck is a serious responsibility, so I’m gonna take it slow until I can find the right employee. Is there an “Indeed” for dogs?

Any reputable rescue will take back a dog if things don't work out. In fact, they'll include in the adoption contract that if you can't keep the dog, you must return it to them rather than give it to someone else, or surrender it at the pound. They'll work with you to find a dog that's compatible with your lifestyle. You would just have to explain what your days are like. I'd think maybe an older dog who doesn't need or want a whole lot of activity but would appreciate your company while driving.

I don't think I've eve seen Pitbulls and Parolees do an adoption to an OTR trucker, so maybe this is your chance to be a TV star.

I obtained my Class A CDL not too long ago. Due to some personal problems, I couldn't jump into driving full time.

If I were you, I'd act very quickly before that CDL goes stale. This is one situation where Use It or Lose It holds true.

My questions for anybody who has driven or drives part-time: - how consistent are miles working PT? Does the industry generally use PT drivers as spot fillers? - are there issues getting back home on time regardless FT/PT?

I don't claim any knowledge of how 'the industry generally' uses PT drivers. I'm PT/casual (after doing 7+ months full time linehaul) and have a pretty stable two days a week, plus occasional filling in. Driving local, my pay is hourly rather than by mile, and it's not a matter of getting routed back home. However, even with a local job things will come up. As an example, last Friday I got stuck at a RR crossing by a very slow, very long train, then was an hour late getting loaded at my first stop, then hit overnight construction on the GWB. Nothing terrible, or out of the ordinary. But in your situation, getting done driving at 5:30 to get to a 7:00 class isn't something you can really count on.

As far as being short of time, once you're in the truck stop and off public roads, would you be able to switch to 'On Duty - Yard Move' and then take as long as you need to get parked safely without worrying about your 11 hour or 14 hour clock?