LTL Trucking - My Linehaul Job

Awesome information. Thank you for taking the time to write this up.

No problem, I'd like to give back to TT and hope it helps. Maybe there's a prospective driver out there that is hesitant to go OTR and doesn't know about other trucking options, like LTL.

Awesome stuff, 6 string!

Thank you,

-mountain girl

Awesome stuff, 6 string!

Thank you,

-mountain girl

Thanks MG! Here's a link for readers to mountain girl's LTL thread: LTL Thread ...for inquiring minds

Up until now, I haven't seen any detailed info on Trucking Truth about the LTL world. It just so happens that now it looks like two of us will be posting our experiences at our new LTL jobs. We're both rookie truckers, and we're even starting at our respective jobs on the same day! Yes, we did not plan this

I know that when I started researching trucking 3 years ago w/ my wife, we devoured every bit of info we came across. I was vaguely familiar w/ the LTL sector of trucking, but didn't know jobs like that existed for student drivers. I'm hoping that prospective drivers can gain from these two threads, and at least know that there are other options out there besides OTR to gain entry into this industry. Again, not that there's anything wrong w/ OTR!

Here-here!

-mountain girl

Inspired from mountain girl's thread, I'll also take some time now to share the hiring process with my company. After which, I'll get back to talking about the LTL world and pick up where I left off, P&D. I see some similarities between my company and mountain girl's, especially in regard to how long the process takes, and I think that it is unique to LTL companies. Here's why.

The Hiring Process

Before I actually graduated from private CDL school, I started applying to companies to get pre-hires. This is an important part of the process for a student driver, and something that should be done BEFORE graduating from trucking school. Most companies suggest to apply 30 days from graduation date. When I graduated from school the end of June, I already had pre-hires from Werner and Prime. Crete / Shaffer and Schneider came back quickly too w/ their approval. Basically, I could've been attending any of these companies' orientations within a week after graduation from trucking school. It happens that fast.

When I was in school, the linehaul manager from my LTL company came for a visit. At the time I was taken back, since I was under the impression that LTL companies don't really hire students. I was aware of Conway's in-house training program, but that was about it (my company is not Conway-Freight by the way). This LTL company doesn't aggressively advertise for new drivers like OTR companies - not many LTL companies do. Our terminal is a larger terminal, a break bulk terminal, which means they break up freight for distribution to the entire north east. Therefore, they have a greater need for linehaul drivers. My company has experienced tremendous growth over the past few years, adding to further need for new hires. So, there's really no recruiting per se, which is why the linehaul manager came instead of a recruiter. He gave his pitch, which was very different from a typical recruiter from a truckload mega carrier. We had other recruiters come to our school - Schneider, TransAm, TMC, Crete / Shaffer, McElroy, and more. The linehaul manager's pitch was much different than the rest. He didn't seem as 'desperate' to sell the company. Plus, he used to be a driver himself. He said we had to have at least an 85% average when we graduated, be in the top 15% of the class to be considered, and have our tank, hazmat , and doubles / triples BEFORE being eligible for hire.

The linehaul (from here on L/H) manager gave us his card, and left. This was during the 2nd week of school, back in May. Keep in mind I attended an eight week course, since I signed up for evening classes. I emailed the L/H manager in the beginning of June, when I started getting pre-hires 30 days from graduation. He said to get back in touch after I graduated, and he'd set up an interview.

Interview. That's the first major distinction between most truckload OTR companies and LTL companies. mountain girl talked about it in her thread. With most OTR companies, the chats w/ the recruiters ARE the interview. I arrived for my interview, before which I had to formally apply on-site at the company's computer. After the application, which was VERY in depth, I sat down w/ the L/H manager. He looked over my 10 year driving manifest , and then explained the difference between the L/H job and the combo job that was available. Basically, a combo driver does L/H and P&D. I chose L/H. He had me go back to the computer and fill out more digital paperwork, e.g. employment history, a mini test on hazmat knowledge and general driving situations, some questions on safe driving. After I was finished, I met with him once more in his office. I believe it was at this time that we set up my next appointment at the terminal, when I would come for my road test, drug test, and some more paperwork. So far, it's been about 2 weeks from when I graduated, because I had to wait a week until my first interview with the L/H manager.

The Hiring Process (continued)

3 weeks since graduation, and I show up for my 2nd appointment at the terminal. First, the road test. The trainer was very laid back. He introduced himself and then we walked out to the yard to find a tractor. My company uses primarily Freightliner Cascadias - great equipment for an LTL company. As a side note, usually LTL companies are not known for their up to date equipment. Don't get me wrong, they are still day cab Cascadias, and they don't have a lot of bells and whistles. But it was still a pretty new truck. 10 speed transmission.

We walked up to the tractor and he had me do a pre-trip exam. Boy, my instructors at school weren't kidding when they said they "over-trained" us. In fact, on more than one occasion, my trainer at the LTL company said that I would not use a decent amount of that 'stuff' that I learned in trucking school. Surprise suprise ;) Don't get me wrong, he made sure I knew the key safety points, but he hurried me along after he knew that I could show him more than the basics.

Off we were in the yard to find a trailer. He said that he wanted to see me shift, that he was aware of the yard speed, but that he wanted to see me shift up to 6th gear. He also made sure to put me at ease, knowing I was nervous. He said, "Just do what you already know how to do. I have no more authority than a pebble on this lot. Relax." That helped.

One other thing I'd like to mention is how NICE new equipment is!!!! This Cascadia was probably at least a 2012. In trucking school, I first learned on a 13 speed transmission Kenworth T600, and it was a ***** - using my instructors' words. I was able to bobtail in a T600 that was a 10 speed during our last week of class, but even that was an older truck. And that one felt new compared to the 13 speed T600. This Cascadia felt like I was shifting a small Honda car - the gears were that tight. Very nice truck, and much easier to shift!

So, we find a trailer - it's smaller than the 53' I was used to. He asked me to hook up, and watched as I coupled. He asked me a few questions about what to look for, and was satisfied with my response. Much to my relief, I didn't have to road test with a set of double trailers. We headed out of the yard and onto the highway.

It was a short drive, maybe 20-30 minutes? During which he said not to take him at his word, but if the company brought me back for a road test, then I was probably hired. The road test was pretty simple, and easy. Keep in mind I hadn't been in a tractor trailer for about 4 weeks. I had taken my road test for the state of PA the weekend before I graduated, and then graduated the end of June. The last week of school we bob-tailed around York, PA in that 10 speed Kenworth. We're now in the second week of July. One thing I'll say about those pup trailers, they react a lot quicker than a 53' trailer. They don't off-track as much, so that was an advantage. After being used to the gauntlet of back roads and city driving my instructors at trucking school put me through, this was a breeze. Thanks again to the guys at DCS School of Driving

So we finish the road test. The company's drug testing is done offsite, so I got that taken care of, and then drove back w/ paperwork from the clinic. I met w/ the HR gal, and showed her my tax records. I am self-employed, so the company needed my tax returns for verification. The L/H manager looked at my diploma from school, my grades, and my 2 year medical card. Yes, I already had my medical card because my school required a DOT physical and drug test, plus a 10 year copy of my driving record, before I could be enrolled. I don't know when I would've done my DOT physical had I not already had a 2 year medical card, but I didn't have to do another DOT physical. Some trucking companies will still have you do another DOT physical even if your school already required one - my company does not.

After the road test, drug test, and final submission of any remaining paperwork, the HR gal and L/H manager sent me on my way. At this point, corporate had to give final approval. For my company, this can take 7-10 days. So, more waiting.

This past Friday, July 18th, the L/H manager called me and told me I was approved. My start date is Monday, July 28th. Total length of time for the hiring process? About 1 month.

Quick note: Get all of your endorsements ASAP. This is often preached on this forum, and it basically allowed me to have the opportunity at my LTL company. I got my permit the first week of school, back during the first week of May. Early the second week, I took all my endorsement tests and passed - thanks to the High Road on this website. I went from PennDot in Harrisburg, PA back home for a spell, and then later that same day, got fingerprinted for my Hazmat. I say all this to let you know that I didn't get a letter of confirmation from the government that I was cleared until a week before I had my skills test... in late June. That's right, it took a month for the hazmat process. So, if you're going to a 30 day program, get your hazmat prints done ASAP, as well as your other endorsements.

During my interview w/ the L/H manager, I learned that he only needed to hire 15 more drivers. About a month and a half earlier, during the visit at my school, he needed about 100. If I wouldn't have gotten all my endorsements when I did, and started the hazmat process, I wouldn't have even been eligible for hire. Now, I read in mountain girl's thread that she's being given time to get her needed endorsements. I don't know if my company would've done that or not. Point being, he told us back during that school visit that we need all our endorsements at the time of hire, so I guess that's their policy.

P&D

I already covered linehaul in LTL. I have more knowledge on linehaul than P&D, since linehaul has always captured my interest, and I've researched a lot on the subject. Before I even went to trucking school, I knew I'd like to eventually end up as a linehaul driver. I just didn't think that the opportunity would've presented itself, as my first trucking job! My company is the kind of company I can fully expect to retire from, so perhaps all I'll ever know is linehaul. I will however have a small taste of P&D, since during my 3 week driver training, one week will be strictly P&D - even though I applied for a L/H job. It'll be nice to get the experience. Perhaps the company does this because a L/H driver might want to cross over to P&D sometime during their career, and vice versa. Any rate, back to P&D.

The Schedule:

I don't know of any P&D drivers that work nights. As I previously mentioned, this is because they deliver freight to the customers. Most businesses operate during the day, so you have day time P&D shifts. These guys (and gals!) are typically working long days, just like long shifts in linehaul, but get to go home every night. 5 days a week, 2 days off. Pretty standard.

The Job:

I've heard it said that these city drivers will bump more docks in a day than most OTR guys do in a week. P&D drivers tend to get a lot of respect from their trucker brethren. They might make the same, if not less than an experienced OTR driver, but they have to have mad skills. They might do 10-15 stops in one day.

P&D typically is easier to get into than linehaul, and they'll have more physically demanding jobs too. They drive, sling freight, and sometimes work the dock - but, they are home every night. The price to pay for daily home time, for some drivers, isn't worth the cost. Personally, I wouldn't want to do P&D either. I prefer the exclusive driving of linehaul, and if that wasn't available, OTR please!

Perhaps I don't need to say this, yet again, but I will. Whether LTL (P&D or linehaul) or truckload (OTR), every trucker has their role to play in the industry. I'm not trying to say one is better than the other in this running thread. It's no secret I'm excited about my linehaul gig, and a huge fan of LTL over truckload for earning potential and frequency of hometime. But if I didn't have a family, I would've probably liked to have had that OTR experience. I was really looking at Prime Inc - they've got great looking equipment and you can do well there. Crete was my top pick for dry van. There's a part of me that wonders if I'll ever have a chance to live in my own, company-assigned truck. But for me, I have my loving family to support, and I'm very grateful that I have the opportunity to earn a great living, driving a truck, along with the ability to get home every day eventually. You can't beat that!

Thank you 6 string! I had no idea about LTL and how it works. Great post!

Thank you 6 string! I had no idea about LTL and how it works. Great post!

That kind of response is the reason why I'm writing this. You're most welcome.