LTL Trucking - My Linehaul Job
Topic 4501 | Page 3
I've got some more useful ideas for the thread until I can document my actual job experience. I've already covered some basic concepts of LTL trucking, viz. the two basic jobs (linehaul and P&D), their schedules and job descriptions, and important information like extraboard / flexboard and how that relates to seniority. I'm now going to provide a list of LTL companies for anybody interested in employment, including direct links to their websites. And yes, my company is included in this list ;)
LTL Trucking Company List
NEMF (New England Motor Freight)
There are plenty more, but these are some major players. I'm sure I left some major players out. And while I think Trucking Truth is one of the best trucking forums on the world wide web, here is another forum that specializes just on LTL for drivers. Trucking Boards
Awesome thread! I have no trucking experience or even a CDL yet. I do know that eventually I want to drive for Fedex or UPSF though. Thanks for the insight!
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.
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
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.
LTL all the way
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
Perhaps another preliminary topic of discussion for this thread might be, "How Do I Get An LTL Job?" I'll think about how to organize the info, and based on the companies I have knowledge of, provide some suggestions for those interested. I'll write as I have time later ...
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
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
I was thinking more about how I could most benefit a prospective driver, or even somebody w/ OTR experience but little to no knowledge on linehaul , and besides having something like a running journal of my day to day activities and destinations, I'd like to include mini tutorials and/or informative essays. I've already included some informative essays on topics like linehaul, P&D , the extraboard etc. I could talk about topics like coupling a set of doubles , or night driving (how to cope, tips and tricks, benefits vs day driving), or what it's like to be on a bag run (my linehaul job is out for 5, home for 2 days).
This whole thread is for the newbie to LTL. And as I'm a newbie myself, I'll be able to share my bumps and bruises as well as my excitement for the job. If you guys and gals have anything you'd like to see included in this thread, please let me know! I'm trying to put myself in the shoes of somebody just starting out on researching trucking jobs, because I know for me, there wasn't a whole lot on LTL , it's mostly OTR out there for newbies. Just throw some topics out as you think of them. And remember, I don't claim to have all the answers, I'm learning as I'm going, so if anybody is a driver and can toss me a couple tidbits of knowledge along the way, please do so!!!
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.Doubles:
Refers to pulling two trailers at the same time, otherwise known as "pups" or "pup trailers" because they're only about 28 feet long. However there are some states that allow doubles that are each 48 feet in length.
....signing on this thread. Will read asap and put forth the ole rookie questions.
Thanks for the info and time spent :)
SAP:
Substance Abuse Professional
The Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) is a person who evaluates employees who have violated a DOT drug and alcohol program regulation and makes recommendations concerning education, treatment, follow-up testing, and aftercare.
....signing on this thread. Will read asap and put forth the ole rookie questions.
Thanks for the info and time spent :)
You got it!
I noticed your picture. I can see a board w/ a computer running a DAW on the screen, am I correct? I'm a 'retired' professional musician myself and have had a home studio for the better part of the last 10 years. Since I've gotten married and have children, I don't really have the time for it anymore. My last setup was a Logic Pro studio, w/ a MOTO interface, a couple keyboards, my drum kit, guitars, and basses. I wound up getting rid of a lot of my hardware, moving mainly to soft instruments, and then came full circle back to hardware ;) I mostly gigged as a drummer in a jazz outfit, but also play a little bass, guitar, and keyboards. You?
SAP:
Substance Abuse Professional
The Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) is a person who evaluates employees who have violated a DOT drug and alcohol program regulation and makes recommendations concerning education, treatment, follow-up testing, and aftercare.
Oh, and the most obvious of questions, what part did you play w/ that record?!
....signing on this thread. Will read asap and put forth the ole rookie questions.
Thanks for the info and time spent :)
You got it!
I noticed your picture. I can see a board w/ a computer running a DAW on the screen, am I correct? I'm a 'retired' professional musician myself and have had a home studio for the better part of the last 10 years. Since I've gotten married and have children, I don't really have the time for it anymore. My last setup was a Logic Pro studio, w/ a MOTO interface, a couple keyboards, my drum kit, guitars, and basses. I wound up getting rid of a lot of my hardware, moving mainly to soft instruments, and then came full circle back to hardware ;) I mostly gigged as a drummer in a jazz outfit, but also play a little bass, guitar, and keyboards. You?
You have me beaten on the talent friend. :) I'm just a recording engineer. I think you meant MOTU, as part of your rig.
I have run on just about every tape machine and console made. The digital bridge for me was RADAR on the way to Pro-Tools.
Now it is all Pro-Tools. I haven't smelled recording tape or aligned a recorder in years. The art is gone.
I talented writer can make a stunning record on a Mac laptop running Logic. Engineers are going the way of the Buggy Whip.
So here I am. Looking for the third and final phase of my life. Trucking seems pretty cool.
SAP:
Substance Abuse Professional
The Substance Abuse Professional (SAP) is a person who evaluates employees who have violated a DOT drug and alcohol program regulation and makes recommendations concerning education, treatment, follow-up testing, and aftercare.
Oh, and the most obvious of questions, what part did you play w/ that record?!
I was the Tracking Engineer on Taylor's first record. We started out working with Liz Rose , Troy Vergas and Angelo as writer / producer types. She finally ended up working with Nathan Chapman, who was gracious enough to use some of recordings in the final product and give me credit. He magically reworked everything we did. He is a monster music cat.
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I've got some more useful ideas for the thread until I can document my actual job experience. I've already covered some basic concepts of LTL trucking, viz. the two basic jobs (linehaul and P&D), their schedules and job descriptions, and important information like extraboard / flexboard and how that relates to seniority. I'm now going to provide a list of LTL companies for anybody interested in employment, including direct links to their websites. And yes, my company is included in this list ;)
LTL Trucking Company List
ABF Freight
PItt Ohio
YRC Freight
Old Dominion Freight Line
Conway-Freight
NEMF (New England Motor Freight)
New Penn
Holland
UPSF (UPS Freight)
Fed Ex
SAIA
There are plenty more, but these are some major players. I'm sure I left some major players out. And while I think Trucking Truth is one of the best trucking forums on the world wide web, here is another forum that specializes just on LTL for drivers. Trucking Boards
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:
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.