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Topic 3844 | Page 1
Awesome! You will do great!
Matt if you are going to prime for the psd program here are some tips. 1: always be early for class. 2: get your permit before you go. And a dot physical if you live in a state if you have to be self certified. 3: take enough money for about 5 weeks on the road. 4: tell them about every run in with law enforcement you have ever had. 5: remember the entire process is an interview. You are being watched the entire process time until you get your cdl and they hire you. 6: enjoy yourself and learn as much as you can.
Best of luck to you. I went through the psd program and just upgraded to solo two weeks ago.
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.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.
PSD:
Prime Student Driver
Prime Inc has a CDL training program and the first phase is referred to as PSD. You'll get your permit and then 10,000 miles of on the road instruction.
The following is from Prime's website:
Prime’s PSD begins with you obtaining your CDL permit. Then you’ll go on the road with a certified CDL instructor for no less than 75 hours of one-on-one behind the wheel training. After training, you’ll return to Prime’s corporate headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, for final CDL state testing and your CDL license.
Obtain CDL Permit / 4 Days
- Enter program, study and test for Missouri CDL permit.
- Start driving/training at Prime Training Center in Springfield, Missouri.
- Work toward 40,000 training dispatched miles (minimum) with food allowance while without CDL (Food allowance is paid back with future earnings).
On-the-Road Instruction / 10,000 Miles
- Train with experienced certified CDL instructor for 3-4 weeks in a real world environment.
- Get 75 hours of behind-the-wheel time with one-on-one student/instructor ratio.
- Earn 10,000 miles toward total 40,000 miles needed.
Congrats Matt. I've been driving locally in the Texas panhandle for 3 years and I'm putting my two weeks notice in tomorrow morning so I can go OTR as well. Good luck to you!
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.
Well Matt, Guess I'll be seeing you there...Starting June 9th myself.
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Just wanted to say thanks to everyone that contributes here. June 9th I will begin training at Prime Inc.
After working in retail for 9 years (store management and then the corporate office for a couple of years) I was ready to do something different; and the testimonials, forum discussions, and information on this site helped me to make that decision driving a tractor-trailer. I'm glad I found this resource, and I greatly appreciate everyone who is candid about their experiences driving.
I will finish working through the High Road Training Program this week so that I am ready to take my written CDL , then it will be time to get this thing going. I'm very excited (and a little nervous), but I feel that I am as prepared as I can be to begin this new career. Again, thank you very much!
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles: