JUST Started Looking Into Truck Driving Career~I Need Truth~Starting Off Intermodal(local)/National?Do I Have A Choice?
Topic 11172 | Page 1
Hi KaSandra, I am also consitering a trucking career. Actually, I made my decision to start CDL school on Jan 4th. I have come to the conclution that driving OTR is nesessary. I don't like the idea of being gone for 2+ weeks at a time. But, I see the reason companies want drivers to do it. I'm married with a grown daughter. The part I dead the most is being couped up with a trainer for several days at a time (I like my privacy & solitude). But, in time I will be driving by myself... and after a year, I will have more options that will keep me at home if thats what I want then. I hope it helps...
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Hi All! I am just researching trucking companies right now. I have a family (as we all do to whatever degree:) and would like to be home at night,(Intermodal ) tho an occasional overnight is understandable. I was told I can NOT be home at night until I do cross country (National) type driving for a certain amount of months - depending on company. I know I will have to go away for school for a certain amount of time,but after that is it required by ALL trucking companies that I go across country for months?? I'm looking to do company sponsored training..I'm just gathering information right now..Thank you for any help! ~KaSandra
try Schneider international. They have company sponsored training. You can probably start regional after Cdl school and training
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
Intermodal:
Transporting freight using two or more transportation modes. An example would be freight that is moved by truck from the shipper's dock to the rail yard, then placed on a train to the next rail yard, and finally returned to a truck for delivery to the receiving customer.
In trucking when you hear someone refer to an intermodal job they're normally talking about hauling shipping containers to and from the shipyards and railyards.
Company Sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.
Welcome KaSandra.
As you're already aware, I'm sure, there are all types of trucking jobs. In regard to time away from home, lots of folks organize these jobs into OTR , Regional , and Local. This is just a basic generalization. Among local jobs (understanding that most folks think 'local' in terms of being home every day), there are further distinctions.
To be home every night, or just about every night, you can have intermodal. You can also go the food service route (think of Sysco). Then you have the LTL sector of trucking (less than truckload) which has P&D and linehaul. That's pretty much sums up the local jobs. Some truckload companies have local gigs, but that's not the norm. Keep in mind that some of these local gigs are more labor intensive than others. Food service can be brutal. Linehaul jobs are about the easiest form of trucking you can do - no handling the freight (depending on the company to an extent), and mostly all drop and hooks. Also, please understand that there's usually a trade-off for going local. Most local gigs are 10-14 hour days. The typical 9-5, eight hour day doesn't really exist in trucking.
Truckload, is basically all the OTR companies, to put it simply. It's basically cramming the freight into one 53' trailer or flatbed rig or reefer unit, and shipping to usually one customer, although you do also have multiple stops at times. With LTL, you almost always have freight that belongs to more than one shipper / receiver on a single trailer.
I go into all this to help you understand your options a little better, and to know how and where to look for jobs that might suit you better. But let me stress this, your opportunity will largely be determined by your location. In fact, location often will trump experience.
So, you have other options besides intermodal in order to be home frequently. But this will largely be determined by where you live.
No, you do not have to go away for months at a time, or go OTR if you don't want to - IF you live in an area that supports local opportunities, especially enough local opportunities where the competition isn't as fierce and enables you to land a local job with minimal or no experience.
I went into a local job right out of trucking school. I'm a linehaul driver. I live in an area that supports this kind of opportunity. Maybe you do too. If you're interested in learning more about LTL with linehaul and P&D, you can check out my thread on my linehaul experience where I also write about LTL.
Shipper:
The customer who is shipping the freight. This is where the driver will pick up a load and then deliver it to the receiver or consignee.
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
LTL:
Less Than Truckload
Refers to carriers that make a lot of smaller pickups and deliveries for multiple customers as opposed to hauling one big load of freight for one customer. This type of hauling is normally done by companies with terminals scattered throughout the country where freight is sorted before being moved on to its destination.
LTL carriers include:
- FedEx Freight
- Con-way
- YRC Freight
- UPS
- Old Dominion
- Estes
- Yellow-Roadway
- ABF Freight
- R+L Carrier
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
P&D:
Pickup & Delivery
Local drivers that stay around their area, usually within 100 mile radius of a terminal, picking up and delivering loads.
LTL (Less Than Truckload) carriers for instance will have Linehaul drivers and P&D drivers. The P&D drivers will deliver loads locally from the terminal and pick up loads returning to the terminal. Linehaul drivers will then run truckloads from terminal to terminal.
Linehaul:
Linehaul drivers will normally run loads from terminal to terminal for LTL (Less than Truckload) companies.
LTL (Less Than Truckload) carriers will have Linehaul drivers and P&D drivers. The P&D drivers will deliver loads locally from the terminal and pick up loads returning them to the terminal. Linehaul drivers will then run truckloads from terminal to terminal.Intermodal:
Transporting freight using two or more transportation modes. An example would be freight that is moved by truck from the shipper's dock to the rail yard, then placed on a train to the next rail yard, and finally returned to a truck for delivery to the receiving customer.
In trucking when you hear someone refer to an intermodal job they're normally talking about hauling shipping containers to and from the shipyards and railyards.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
Wow...This is A LOT of information but VERY welcome!! 
I am a single Mom (my kids are grown/or near grown) so I am not concerned so much about leaving for the day ..but not leaving for DAYS/weeks..I know the hours are long but from what I know you can get on the clock pretty early. I wake daily pretty early so this is not a problem..I will definitely read what has been written and keep researching!!
I'll say one more thing. LTL jobs in general are some of the highest-paying trucking jobs you can get. For anybody that wants to maximize hometime and income, LTL is an excellent opportunity. It's common for a rookie OTR driver to earn 30-40k their first year. It's common for the first year LTL driver to earn 50-80k their first year. Some experienced OTR drivers will never see more than 65k, even with years of experience. Some experienced linehaul drivers in LTL surpass 100k a year. Something to consider.
Some people want the adventure and lifestyle that goes with OTR - it's not for everybody. But again, at the risk of sounding redundant, your choices will be determined by your location, for local jobs that is. You can get an OTR gig and live pretty much anywhere in the lower 48.
LTL:
Less Than Truckload
Refers to carriers that make a lot of smaller pickups and deliveries for multiple customers as opposed to hauling one big load of freight for one customer. This type of hauling is normally done by companies with terminals scattered throughout the country where freight is sorted before being moved on to its destination.
LTL carriers include:
- FedEx Freight
- Con-way
- YRC Freight
- UPS
- Old Dominion
- Estes
- Yellow-Roadway
- ABF Freight
- R+L Carrier
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
Linehaul:
Linehaul drivers will normally run loads from terminal to terminal for LTL (Less than Truckload) companies.
LTL (Less Than Truckload) carriers will have Linehaul drivers and P&D drivers. The P&D drivers will deliver loads locally from the terminal and pick up loads returning them to the terminal. Linehaul drivers will then run truckloads from terminal to terminal.
Wow...This is A LOT of information but VERY welcome!!
There's a lot of information to be had! You don't want to jump into this blindly. You might miss a great opportunity for you and your family. I researched trucking with my wife for 2 years before making the commitment. Lots of knowledgeable folks on this forum. Most of us like to pay it forward. I do, especially when it comes to the topic of going local.
Best wishes to you.
You guys are awesome!! I'm Googling,etc like Crazzyyy!! lol..umm, so did you all learn on the job (like company based training-then work for that company for like 6-10 months or whatever?) OR did you go to one of the trucking schools?? It SEEMS that if you go to a school (which costs out of pocket..unless there are scholarships?? financial help of some sort??) that maybe you have more of a choice right off what kind of job you want?..Since I desire more hometime..well, depending on the area you live...I live in approx. the wine country/bay area...I'm in Santa Rosa,Ca rt now but gonna relocate to Napa..but there is a lot of opportunity it seems somewhat around here..I DEFINITELY am NOT a big wine person so don't wanna limit myself..I don't mind commuting to nearby Vallejo,American Canyon,..etc..etc...
I went to private trucking school and shelled out 5k. I made my deposit of $500 in cash per the school's requirement to get started with enrollment, and then put the rest on a newly-opened credit card with the intent of paying it off before the interest started, just making the minimal payments. I wouldn't recommend that to everybody. You gotta have the means and discipline to pay it off before the interest starts. I took advantage of our good credit and got a great credit card deal with the sole purpose of just using the card as a type of loan. The interest wasn't supposed to start for about a year, I can't recall now, but I had it paid off within a few months.
There are other ways of financing private CDL school, we put ours on a credit card.
When you go to CDL school, they get you through to basically just get that CDL. That goes for any school. You'll learn on the job, no matter where you work.
Yes, private CDL school will give you more opportunities off the bat. Flip side is that a company-sponsored school will pretty much guarantee you the job as long as you make it through their program.
I don't the opportunities for your location. That's where you'll have to do the legwork.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
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Hi All! I am just researching trucking companies right now. I have a family (as we all do to whatever degree:) and would like to be home at night,(Intermodal ) tho an occasional overnight is understandable. I was told I can NOT be home at night until I do cross country (National) type driving for a certain amount of months - depending on company. I know I will have to go away for school for a certain amount of time,but after that is it required by ALL trucking companies that I go across country for months?? I'm looking to do company sponsored training..I'm just gathering information right now..Thank you for any help! ~KaSandra
Intermodal:
Transporting freight using two or more transportation modes. An example would be freight that is moved by truck from the shipper's dock to the rail yard, then placed on a train to the next rail yard, and finally returned to a truck for delivery to the receiving customer.
In trucking when you hear someone refer to an intermodal job they're normally talking about hauling shipping containers to and from the shipyards and railyards.
Company Sponsored Training:
A Company-Sponsored Training Program is a school that is owned and operated by a trucking company.
The schooling often requires little or no money up front. Instead of paying up-front tuition you will sign an agreement to work for the company for a specified amount of time after graduation, usually around a year, at a slightly lower rate of pay in order to pay for the training.
If you choose to quit working for the company before your year is up, they will normally require you to pay back a prorated amount of money for the schooling. The amount you pay back will be comparable to what you would have paid if you went to an independently owned school.
Company-sponsored training can be an excellent way to get your career underway if you can't afford the tuition up front for private schooling.