A Day In The Life Of A Walmart Dedicated Driver

Appreciate the awesome write up! I stopped driving several months ago but just got an offer to drive on a local Walmart dedicated account. I am seriously considering it. I have delivered to Walmart Dcs before in the SE but that was OTR. The local gig sounds like more of a grind but coming home daily sounds like it could make it worth it.

G-Town, that is a pretty good read. I run out of DC 6019 in Loveland, CO on and off through a contract Knight has with Wal-Mart.

All they do out of the DC is the GM side, I've only done one two-store load and everything other than that has been to a single store and back, sometimes with a vendor or pallets thrown in as a detour.

I can usually make about three stores a day, takes about 12 hours a day because of how they dispatch from this DC. It's fun stuff though, I actually like every occasion I get to visit a new store.

Thanks Keith and Rock.

Walmart Dedicated is a great gig. It’s not for everyone; and usually the “love it” or “hate it” occurs rather quickly.

So yes Keith, I happened to see a newer Wally reefer at the DC yesterday marked in red for “6019”. Let me know if you ever see one in your neck of the woods marked for 7030...worlds apart.

G-Town-that was an awesome read. You broke it down perfectly. Its nice to see that even a dedicated can be fun. Your input has greatly given a new perspective of Refer/Dry Van loads. I know I will have to get used to them after driving fuel tankers before. But it what challenges us to do this. I hope you have many more good days like this!

Never saw this post. I'm glad people commented on it and brought it back. Great imagery in your words. G-TOWN. I grew up in that area. Lived in Sunbury, Milton, and Watsontown. Someone told me that Walmart company drivers make a ton of money, ever think about working directly for them?

Thanks Rob. I appreciate that.

Sure I’ve thought of driving for WMPF , but not lately. I have it really good with Swift. For example I was asked this past Friday afternoon; “where do you want to run tomorrow?” So basically, the planner and I reviewed all of the 375-400 mile 3 stop dry runs with a backhaul. I selected Hamilton NJ, Toms River NJ and of course Nestle’ Water. You can’t put a price on that...it’s something I earned and I won’t willingly give it up.

I have built great relationships with the Swift terminal management team; especially the planners and driver leaders. I have incredible flexibility, tremendous support and the ability to choose and be dispatched on the best available runs.

Yes, but what about the money? I’ll answer that with a question...

“How much do you think the top performing Swift drivers make running Dedicated Walmart at the DC I am assigned to?”

I think the actual answer will surprise you.

LOL, not sure if that is a rhetorical question, but I will guess, 95K

LOL, not sure if that is a rhetorical question, but I will guess, 95K

No, not a rhetorical question. 95k is high though.

Thank you GTown, this was a great read. I have a friend that I went to the Academy with who trained for Walmart Dedicated. I was curious about the life of dedicated, as opposed to otr. I think they both have their advantages and disadvantages. I don't believe that I am built for dedicated myself. It's just, hard work, to me. Buttttt, on the other hand, otr is hard work as well. ☺️ My clock is ticking tick ticking away as I type this. It seems like I've been cutting it really close on my clock here lately. So, ha ha.... another day in the life of otr, and dedicated.

Greg wrote:

I was curious about the life of dedicated, as opposed to otr. I think they both have their advantages and disadvantages. I don't believe that I am built for dedicated myself. It's just, hard work, to me. Buttttt, on the other hand, otr is hard work as well.

It all depends on the type of Dedicated Account a driver is assigned to. Many are OTR but only handle freight for a single customer. Old School is a Knight Dedicated driver to SAPA. He is effectively OTR. Me on the other hand, draw a 250 mile radius circle around the DC and that’s the extent of our territory. On occasion we’ll venture into an adjacent territory like Johnstown NY or in a blue moon Bedford PA.

80% of the drivers assigned to the DC I drive from sleep in their trucks, usually at the DC or at a nearby Walmart that at times serves as an overflow lot for drivers (5 miles from the DC) The other 20% live nearby and slip-seat in daycabs or 42” LW sleepers. The sleepers allow the option to take the 10 hour break if a longer run requires it. Overall the goal for all of us is to make it back to the DC before the 14 expires for the 10 hour break so we begin the next shift with a fresh clock.

With Walmart Dedicated. I think the major difference is length of run. Most of our dispatched runs are between 300-400 miles with multiple store stops (up to 5) and frequently a backhaul along the way. It requires a lot of hustle, minimizing wasted time, constantly managing the 14 hour block, as opposed to most OTR gigs focus on the drive clock. Backing up to 7 times per shift, close quarter maneuvering is the norm for the Walmart gig.

The other difference is consistent pay, not much variance when driving 5.5-6 days in a 7 day week, week to week. It’s rare to wait for an outbound store load or to get unloaded at a store or Sam’s. Occasionally a vendor backhaul will hold us up, but usually the exception. Always moving...

It’s love - hate. For those on the forum who know me, they’ll confirm that I love running Walmart Dedicated.