New Truck Driver Home Daily?
Topic 18779 | Page 1
I am 57 years old and I am brand new to truck driving. I graduated truck driving school 3/2/17, I have tanker, hazmat , double/triple endorsements and I am looking for the best company in the Chicago or Northwest Indiana area. I would like to retire from the company I decide to start working for. Are there any great companies in this area that hire inexperienced drivers, offer training and have runs close enough to get home daily?
Welcome Richard! Most local jobs require 1 year of OTR , although there are exceptions. I went to school last April and drove OTR for Swift for 9 months. I just landed a local job as a Driver/ Merchandiser for Coca Cola. My OTR experience was invaluable for this job. City Driving and Close Quarter situations, ( C- Stores, Gas Stations, Dollar Stores, etc. ), present a whole different set of circumstances. Learning to maneuver a 73 foot Beast OTR certainly makes local much more comfortable.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.
Thanks Tractor Man! I know I need more experience and I am looking forward to going over the road , I would like to find a top of the line company that I can get my over the road experience and then get a regional or dedicated run that would get me home daily or more often than once a week or every 2-3 weeks. Really looking for suggestions on the best company to work for long term. I have been looking at company reviews and a lot of people rate companies as good for newbies but no place to work long term.
Dedicated Run:
A driver or carrier who transports cargo between regular, prescribed routes. Normally it means a driver will be dedicated to working for one particular customer like Walmart or Home Depot and they will only haul freight for that customer. You'll often hear drivers say something like, "I'm on the Walmart dedicated account."
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.
Over The Road:
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.
Tractor Man had some good suggestions. I heartily agree with the approach of going OTR first. But there are other options.
Chicagoland has lots of opportunity for intermodal work. I'm not sure I'd recommend that for a rookie though. That might be something to pursue after getting some experience under your belt.
Another career option is LTL. But again, I wouldn't necessarily recommend P&D in LTL for a rookie, but I'd definitely recommend linehaul. You could start and finish your career as a linehaul driver for one company. I've taken that career path myself, and intend to finish my career as a linehaul driver for the same company I started with. I have an older thread where I talk about my linehaul job, which I took right out of trucking school. In the thread you'll find terminology basic to LTL, as well as companies to look at and a glimpse into the LTL culture.
Linehaul is pretty straight forward. No customers, not a lot of backing (except for backing pup trailers or vans to terminal docks), and the routine of going to the same places. It's much easier than P&D, and usually pays more. The two caveats with pursuing linehaul are night shift and the availability of jobs. Being near Chicagoland might give you opportunities.
One of the biggest draws to linehaul is the pay. Most get home every day, if not weekly. Average cpm in truckload might be .40 cpm - that might actually be on the higher side. In LTL linehaul, you could easily start over .50 cpm. I'm currently at .64 cpm.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
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.
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
Richard, look into the following companies all of which operate around the greater Chicagoland area.
Pepsi distribution-New Bern Transportation.
Dutch Farms- eggs and dairy delivery
Great Lakes transportation- coke delivery
Splash transportation- Dr. Pepper/7up delivery
All of these companies will get you home everyday. You will unload all the pallets yourself to different grocery stores and/or gas stations. I do not know if they will hire without experience or not but it's worth a shot. Hope this helps.
OWI:
Operating While Intoxicated
I got hired by us foods straight out of school.but that was 10 years ago.That job isn't for everyone though.its a lot of lumping.and I agree with these other posts city driving can be difficult for new drivers.however otr drivers need to city drive at some point.i worked for Schneider otr and we hauled out of some pretty tight spots in new Jersey.
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.
Welcome Richard. I too am your age. I got into trucking 3 1/2 yrs ago. I drove otr for 3 yrs too get the experience I needed to land a local job. It all paid off for me. I know FFE has alot of LTL stuff out of Chicago. I worked for KLLM for awhile and FFE is owned by them. They have a small terminal in Portage In. They run short hauls 400 miles or less from Chicago area and back. Just a suggestion.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
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.
Thanks for all the info!
You can start out doing regional with Schneider. I would recommend regional intermodal with Schneider. I had a buddy that worked for them. Very good company, very big on safety. I currently work for JB Hunt Intermodal Local. Live the job live intermodal. Never sitting cuz the rail yards are open 24/7. I did otr and hated it, regional was much better, home weekly, local is even better
I am 57 years old and I am brand new to truck driving. I graduated truck driving school 3/2/17, I have tanker, hazmat , double/triple endorsements and I am looking for the best company in the Chicago or Northwest Indiana area. I would like to retire from the company I decide to start working for. Are there any great companies in this area that hire inexperienced drivers, offer training and have runs close enough to get home daily?
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.
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.
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.
I got an offer from Schneider for an intermodal position at .34cpm. They say that I would average 1700 miles per week.
You can start out doing regional with Schneider. I would recommend regional intermodal with Schneider. I had a buddy that worked for them. Very good company, very big on safety. I currently work for JB Hunt Intermodal Local. Live the job live intermodal. Never sitting cuz the rail yards are open 24/7. I did otr and hated it, regional was much better, home weekly, local is even better
I am 57 years old and I am brand new to truck driving. I graduated truck driving school 3/2/17, I have tanker, hazmat , double/triple endorsements and I am looking for the best company in the Chicago or Northwest Indiana area. I would like to retire from the company I decide to start working for. Are there any great companies in this area that hire inexperienced drivers, offer training and have runs close enough to get home daily?
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
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.
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.
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.
CPM:
Cents Per Mile
Drivers are often paid by the mile and it's given in cents per mile, or cpm.
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Advice For New Truck Drivers Choosing A Trucking Company First Truck Driving Job Home Time Local CDL Drivers LTL Driving
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I am 57 years old and I am brand new to truck driving. I graduated truck driving school 3/2/17, I have tanker, hazmat , double/triple endorsements and I am looking for the best company in the Chicago or Northwest Indiana area. I would like to retire from the company I decide to start working for. Are there any great companies in this area that hire inexperienced drivers, offer training and have runs close enough to get home daily?
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations