OTR Vs Dedicated
Topic 23485 | Page 1
Here is where you get to find out for yourself. Get the hang of OTR. While doing that talk to dedicated drivers you meet. Some dedicated is harder working. It would be easier to handle dedicated after you have some experience OTR.
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.
Jamie, I just started driving day cab for FAB Express, running local dedicated routes for International Paper and Packaging Corp. of America. I was OTR for only a couple months when I started with FAB. I have to say, I really enjoy it. SGetting into some docks can be 'interesting', but the challenge puts a little 'buzz' in the job. If you can get into what is right for you, then go for it.
Dedicated Route:
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."
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.
Day Cab:
A tractor which does not have a sleeper berth attached to it. Normally used for local routes where drivers go home every night.
Jamie, I committed to running Walmart Dedicated for Swift after about 3 months of OTR experience.
Here is one of many threads I’ve written on the subject...
Day in the Life of a Walmart Dedicated Driver
Use the search facility by typing Walmart and you’ll find a whole lot more information on the subject.
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.
Keep in mind, that some dedicated IS otr. I am Hormel dedicated, and still run all over the Midwest, NE, and SE, with the occasional SW load. I run HON backhauls to a drop lot, pick up an empty, then back to a Hormel DC, and start over.
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.
Keep in mind, that some dedicated IS otr.
This is very true. We've got a lot of terminology in trucking that we sometimes apply our own meanings to without fully understanding the dynamics of the job. The last two weeks I ran from Louisiana to California and back twice, then I ran from Louisiana up to Chicago and back. Now I'm headed to Vermont. All this on a "Dedicated" account.
Also, Don makes this observation...
If you can get into what is right for you, then go for it.
That sounds good on the surface, but Don is brand new at this, and ended up having to be local for family considerations. He felt it a necessity. I never recommend that path if you're trying to establish a long term goal of success at this. Learn the ropes by staying with your OTR job at the same company you start with for one full year. That's very important in my opinion.
Why You Should Not Start Your Career As A Local Driver
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.
TWIC:
Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.
Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
It's certainly a path thats becoming more viable nowadays though. Companies like Fedex, Ups, Yrc and more have driver apprentice programs. The options are plentiful.
Learn the ropes by staying with your OTR job at the same company you start with for one full year.
Yeah, I wasn't intending to jump into a dedicated right now. I'm going to stay OTR for at least 6-12 months before deciding.
And I know some dedicated is OTR, I was mostly looking to get insight over the two. Which I did get some more information, and will consider it later down the road. Of course I'm staying with the same company when and if it happens.
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.
It's certainly a path thats becoming more viable nowadays though.
I'm going to have to disagree with you on this. Starting this career as a local, or home nightly position, is more available now days, but to define it as more viable would go against much of the evidence we've witnessed right here in our forum. It puts the already steep learning curve into a really difficult level, leaving many who attempt it with either extreme levels of stress, or a career ending mistake on their record.
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I'm looking to get opinions of OTR and Dedicated accounts. I'm still new to trucking, but I'm thinking long term.
I have been recently thinking about after being over the road for 6 - 12 months, I would switch to a Walmart dedicated account or something alike.
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.
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.