Any Truck Driver here? Interested in doing it.

[Teren_Kanan]

Just looking for some Truck drivers or transportation people(short distance, long distance, big trucks, small trucks, medical, other) To share some info.

It's something I've been interested in for a long time as a future career path, and I'm curious to hear what people who do it for a living have to say about it.

What do you like about it? What do you hate?
What kind of money should be expected when you start? 5 years? 10 years? Anything that should be known about school for it? There are places near me where I can go to school for all the licenses and what have you.

Any information you could share would be really appreciated.

 

[CowboyWay]

I did over the road for about a year when I was 20.

It really depends......how old are you? Do you have a family? I was young and single, and I looked at it differently then. I just wanted to travel, and this was a way to do it and get paid to do it. It is a helluva grind though. Don't think you are going to have time to "see the sights". You are going to be driving, at all hours of the day, and there are very strict regulations now.

Where do you live? There is a place in Dallas that will train you. Stevens Transport. I'm sure there are others as well. But don't waste your money in a "school". There are too many companies that will train for free (provided you work there for a year)

I can tell you, if you don't already have a family, you will one day, and this job is going to get in the way of you having a happy home life (at least over the road truck driving).

That being said, you will never be out of work, you can get a job anywhere you want, anytime you want. OTR drivers are in big demand.

I would tell you to go to college personally, but I don't know you, or what you want to do, but I know after I did it for a year, that was all I needed to kick me in the butt and enroll in college right after that. I'm glad I did it, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't the life for me. PM me if you want more details or have more questions.

 

[Emiliano]

I agree with CowboyWay. I own my trucking company and it's hard for my drivers that do OTR. We try to keep the drivers out about 2 weeks and have them back home everyother weekend. The larger companys, like Swift with keep the drivers out for one to two months at the time.

Don't waste your money on a driving school, as most insurance companies require a driver have atleast two years of experience, one year if you have a clean record. So chances are that once you get your license you wont get a job with a smaller company. The good thing about the the larger companies is that they don't have the insurance requirements that the small companies have so they'll put you behind the wheel.

As far as earnings you can earning a lot owning your own truck. Must companies will pay between .33-.42 cents per mile. And with the new regulations coming next June its even harder to run more mile.