Trucking As A Second Career

I’m planning to make a career change and have been looking seriously at trucking. I read a lot of info online, and much of it conflicts, so it’s hard to get an accurate picture. One of my biggest questions is, can I get a regional trucking job right out of CDL school that 1) pays well and 2) offers decent home time? By pays well I mean starting in the mid-forties. By decent home time I mean home on weekends or gone for 2 weeks and home for 3 or 4 days. Do jobs like that exist, or are those unrealistic expectations?

Some info about me: I’m 49 years old, have a wife and two teenagers, and live in the northeast. I’m also new to this forum and this is my first post, so apologies if I break an online etiquette. Thanks

Hi Jason! I started trucking as a second career also. I have 5 weeks left in my 8 week CDL school.

Most of the students at my school get picked up by the 8 to 10 regional carriers in the area. We are in West Central Illinois. Sharkey, Gully, Thompson Inc., Dot Foods Transportation, and others are all within an hour. All pay in the mid 40's to start. Most get you home every weekend, or at least part of every weekend. YMMV.

Good luck!

DeanOfMack

Unless the jobs pay hourly it's hard to guarantee what you will make. In this industry most jobs pay per mile. You need to turn the miles to get paid. With that said we've had members make over $50k their first year, others have only made $30k. We have a member that went to TMC and made over $70k his first year [Disclaimer: He was paid a percentage of the load and the rates were much better than they currently are.]

You'll likely see "dollar accounts", dedicated for stores like dollar general or dollar tree, offering money in that range but DONT DO IT!

If you want to be home nearly every weekend check out flatbed companies such as TMC or McElroy. There are others but those are only ones I can think of at this time.

I think you can but it will take a lot of diligence. One thing I’d forget about is going out 2 weeks home for 3 or 4 days. I doubt any company does this but If they do you wouldn’t get a check every third week. Stick to getting home for the resets.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I appreciate hearing your thoughts. And Dean, I’ve been reading some your other posts on this site about your experiences starting out in trucking. I hope you keep going with those. They’ve been super helpful to me.

Hellol Jason, and welcome to our forum!

You'll discover trucking is full of people your age, and many of us started this as our second career. I was 53 when I jumped in, and I celebrated my 60th birthday while on the road this week. I'm still loving it, and making solid money while really enjoying myself is just icing on the cake.

You should consider flatbed companies. There are many that offer regional gigs with weekends at home. Look into Maverick, TMC, and McElroy. If any of them are hiring from your area you could earn the money you're looking for and get home for a little while each weekend too. If you develop yourself into a Top Tier Driver, you'll soon be earning twice that amount of money.

Thanks Old School. Good to know there are others out there like me who’ve made this same transition and done well. And thanks also for the tip about flatbed companies. I checked out three you mentioned, and they look good.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I appreciate hearing your thoughts. And Dean, I’ve been reading some your other posts on this site about your experiences starting out in trucking. I hope you keep going with those. They’ve been super helpful to me.

You are most welcome. I can rarely post Monday thru Thursday as I travel to class at 5:30 am and don't get home until 5:30 pm. it will be worth it in the end.