From Driving School Bus To An 18 Wheeler

I drove a school bus for sixteen years and could not live off of salary. Went to work for a company my brother knew the owner of as a driver recruiter and they will not give me 1.00 budget to work with. Long story short , this is not gonna work out. Kids are grown and I am single and I think I would like to hit the open road. I have always loved to drive but am worried about getting other endorsements. I come from a family of truck drivers so I guess it is in my blood. Opinions PLEASE!!!!!!

Go for it!!! I was a city transit bus driver for 6 years. Can't wait to add a Class A and all it's endorsements. I am looking forward to going from driving around in circles for 10 hours all day to hitting the open road.

Debbie, don't hesitate! I too had been around trucks most my life, but my chosen career was in healthcare. 20 years later and I'm sick of sick people. . So much so I'd rather flip burgers than go back. I'm not flipping burgers though but not much above it lol. Trucking for me anyway will allow me to close that income gap that occurred when I left the hospital.

I'll be quitting my current job in about a week and a half and heading off to orientation and a 30 day company training. I'm SOOO excited and I bet you will be too.

Keep the shiny side up and the rubber down.

I started driving school bus last spring again after being on a 12 year sabbatical. Kept my CDL until spring of 2013, Let it go as I thought I'd never drive bus again. Alas, I went back, redid permits and road test and drive for five weeks until the end of school. This fall, I bid successfully and got my own route. I got the worst route in the district. After a month and a half of driving, my husband sat down with me in the middle of October and said basically "You're coming home very unhappy and you're stern with me and you're changing and it's not for the good. Why don't you try to achieve your DREAM? I about fainted and time stood still as I knew what he was referring to. Fast forward to now - I passed my road test this past weekend and hopefully will be in Omaha, NE to start orientation/training with Werner the second Monday in February. I'm so excited, can hardly stand it.

I'm so glad my husband spoke up. I should also add that I'm a veteran. I enlisted in the Army National Guard because I was too young to get into truck driving school. When I completed my enlistment time, I was still too young and then my life started on a different journey than the one I had intended to take. Now 35, almost 36 laters, I'm finally having the chance to achieve my DREAM. I got this and so can each and every one of you.

I've been a SB driver for a while, I was a special needs driver and sure enjoyed the kids. But, yea, the pay SUX!!!. Good luck, hope ya find a great OTR job.

I too am a school bus driver. I can so relate to what many of you have said. I loved my school bus routes for eight years, but I needed to make more money. So I changed from a small town, small school, to a much bigger city school. I was given the longest route with the oldest bus and the problem kids, and I was very unhappy with my job. This past fall, in September of 2016, I started going to American Truck School. My tuition was completely paid for through the Smart Center. I passed my cdl tests on November 17th, and I am headed to Orientation at Swift Trucking on Monday, January 16th, 2017. I am excited and anxious. Most of my concerns are about the weeks of training with a mentor. I look forward to the day that I get assigned to my own truck! My prayers and hopes are with all the other precious women who are starting a career on the road. I am 54; my children are raised and I am single. If I can do this, you can too. Happy Trails To You!