LTL Trucking - My Linehaul Job

I agree Brett . ,, as an old timer driver and having done both types of driving , the LTL in the old days was something reserved for a different style of driver , and some freight companies wouldnt hire OTR drivers . and OTR co.'s wouldnt hire Freight haulers ..

I found the diversity about talking over these two areas as an instructor @ SAGE SCHOOLS IN CALDWELL ,, and % of students went directly to yellow / old dominion / CF at the time ( before they closed ) and a few other freight haulers ...and not all students went Over the road . it helped when the student knew some one in the freight business however ,,,,

In regard to pulling doubles as a rookie driver, it's nothing to be afraid of, as long as you're properly trained. I understand your reasons for not encouraging a rookie driver to start off pulling a tank or doubles. It all boils down to training. Minimizing risk is wise, but to a certain degree, all trucking jobs are inherently dangerous.

Of course all trucking jobs are dangerous, but not equally dangerous. Trying to stop a set of doubles or a loaded tanker on slick roads is extremely difficult and excessively dangerous. Unless they sent you out on a skid pad for training you most certainly were not trained to do this. No amount of book work or lecturing in a classroom is going to teach you how to handle a rig in an emergency situation. You have to be in the truck doing it to really learn it and I'd much rather see a rookie learning to handle a dry van or reefer running OTR or regional for a year or so first. Then if they want to try city driving, tankers, flatbeds, or doubles I say give it a go.

And there's no doubt you and your family have benefited tremendously from landing this job, but would you have suffered terribly if you spent a little more time on the road learning your craft? Certainly not.

And what about the one person we were talking about earlier that has had a really bad go of it? What if she loses that job now? Or what if one of those minor wrecks would have been major? Or what if that would have been you? Wouldn't have looked like a very good long term decision then would it?

It's my duty to point out to people that starting your career pulling doubles, flatbed, or tanker is taking a risk I feel isn't warranted. I've spent my entire life successfully navigating risky endeavors without a stitch or a broken bone to show for it. The one time in my life I had to go to the hospital was to get a tetanus shot because a cat bit me of all things! And the most important thing you must be able to recognize if you plan on doing risky things successfully over a long period of time is when you're getting in over your head and taking excessive risk. There's a fine line between manageable, calculated risks and being reckless. Did you have to jump straight into doubles as a rookie? No. Was it the prudent long term decision? No. Has it worked out? It certainly has. Were you more lucky than good? In my opinion, you most certainly were. And in my opinion most people won't be that lucky or good. That's why I don't like the idea. It's not a prudent long term bet.

And I don't consider this an argument either. Not at all. I see this as an opportunity for everyone to learn about both points of view so they can make the decision that's right for themselves. You feel the risk was warranted, you've had great success with it, and you've made your case. I feel the risk is not warranted, I know of people that haven't been successful with it, and I've made my case. Now everyone has heard both sides equally and they can decide for themselves the direction they'd like to go in. That's my goal with this website. I just want people to be well informed so they can make intelligent decisions that they feel will suit them the best.

Except for buying or leasing a truck. Don't do it people!

The Indianapolis area is also a great place for local/ltl opportunities right out of school. There were six of us in my graduating class... 5 of us went right into "home daily" driving jobs. Two went with Old Dominion (one line haul , one city). Old Dominion and YRC came to my school and gave recruiting presentations! Choose your school carefully! The other guy failed his cdl driving exam on his first try and I don't know what became of him.

In regard to pulling doubles as a rookie driver, it's nothing to be afraid of, as long as you're properly trained. I understand your reasons for not encouraging a rookie driver to start off pulling a tank or doubles. It all boils down to training. Minimizing risk is wise, but to a certain degree, all trucking jobs are inherently dangerous.

Of course all trucking jobs are dangerous, but not equally dangerous. Trying to stop a set of doubles or a loaded tanker on slick roads is extremely difficult and excessively dangerous. Unless they sent you out on a skid pad for training you most certainly were not trained to do this. No amount of book work or lecturing in a classroom is going to teach you how to handle a rig in an emergency situation. You have to be in the truck doing it to really learn it and I'd much rather see a rookie learning to handle a dry van or reefer running OTR or regional for a year or so first. Then if they want to try city driving, tankers, flatbeds, or doubles I say give it a go.

And there's no doubt you and your family have benefited tremendously from landing this job, but would you have suffered terribly if you spent a little more time on the road learning your craft? Certainly not.

And what about the one person we were talking about earlier that has had a really bad go of it? What if she loses that job now? Or what if one of those minor wrecks would have been major? Or what if that would have been you? Wouldn't have looked like a very good long term decision then would it?

It's my duty to point out to people that starting your career pulling doubles, flatbed, or tanker is taking a risk I feel isn't warranted. I've spent my entire life successfully navigating risky endeavors without a stitch or a broken bone to show for it. The one time in my life I had to go to the hospital was to get a tetanus shot because a cat bit me of all things! And the most important thing you must be able to recognize if you plan on doing risky things successfully over a long period of time is when you're getting in over your head and taking excessive risk. There's a fine line between manageable, calculated risks and being reckless. Did you have to jump straight into doubles as a rookie? No. Was it the prudent long term decision? No. Has it worked out? It certainly has. Were you more lucky than good? In my opinion, you most certainly were. And in my opinion most people won't be that lucky or good. That's why I don't like the idea. It's not a prudent long term bet.

And I don't consider this an argument either. Not at all. I see this as an opportunity for everyone to learn about both points of view so they can make the decision that's right for themselves. You feel the risk was warranted, you've had great success with it, and you've made your case. I feel the risk is not warranted, I know of people that haven't been successful with it, and I've made my case. Now everyone has heard both sides equally and they can decide for themselves the direction they'd like to go in. That's my goal with this website. I just want people to be well informed so they can make intelligent decisions that they feel will suit them the best.

Except for buying or leasing a truck. Don't do it people!

Curious Brett and forgive me for being new as I am sure this question may seem silly. How is having someone start out on dry van or reefer or even OTR or regional different from city driving? Either way you are in someway dealing with city driving with stops periodically.

Personally I will be starting school in about a month and am nervous and excited at the same time. I have been researching and studying as much as I could for the past 19 months. Spent the last 20 years in sales of some sorta a need to get out from behind the desk.

Although the line haul intrigues me as I know those positions are available in my area I have also considered P&D. No OTR for me I just won't do it until the kids are out. I have heard from too many truckers who have told me OTR is a marriage killer. So for me, I felt line haul or P&D would suit me best. My options are not closed on regional but OTR is out. By what you have said I am not sure you feel P&D is good to start out on and I also understand your concerns of a new driver jumping right into doubles.

Does all line haul pull doubles or is 6 strings unique in that aspect as well. OD has shown great confidence in him coming right out of school and he sounds like he is doing great with it

Done rambling and appreciate any insight

Curious Brett and forgive me for being new as I am sure this question may seem silly. How is having someone start out on dry van or reefer or even OTR or regional different from city driving? Either way you are in someway dealing with city driving with stops periodically.

Hey, no apologies for being new and asking questions. That's what we're here for!

City driving is extremely difficult driving all the time. Low bridges, restricted routes, backing into ridiculously tight docks, backing in off the street, really complex navigation, super heavy traffic, and tight schedules all the time. As a new driver you simply don't have the skills and experience to handle that all day, every day safely and efficiently.

When you're running regional or OTR you're spending 80%-90% of your driving time on wide open Interstates instead of city streets and more than half of the backing you do is in truck stops instead of extremely difficult spots backing in off a busy street. It gives you time to learn your trade without the constant, relentless pressure of city driving.

One of the biggest differences between someone coming straight out of school and someone who has 6-12 months of experience is that you've learned to do certain things so well that first year that you don't have to think about them anymore. You can shift really well, your head swivels to checks mirrors and gauges automatically, you're smooth on the brakes, you don't miss any road signs, your following distance remains safe and consistent, your backing skills are a thousand times better, you're more aware of the traffic on all sides of you, you know how wide to swing for turns in both directions, you can judge the size of an area and know if you can maneuver safely within it (think tight parking lots or turnarounds), you have a much better understanding of how to load cargo, and you're always prepared with a way out if something crazy happens all of a sudden.

In the beginning you either have to think about that stuff constantly or you just aren't any good at it yet. So instead of having wide open interstates and big parking lots most of the time to hone your skills you're being thrown straight into the city where you'll face more challenges in a day than you would in a week of OTR or regional. In the city everything is so tight and moving so quickly that as a rookie you simply can't process that much information all at once. You haven't automated the things that need to be automated both mentally and physically so that you can focus on the things that are constantly changing all around you.

Then of course so many of these city jobs are in Northern cities where you'll have 10 times the fun trying to do all that in the snow one third of the year.

Believe me, the second last thing in the world I want to see is someone having to leave their family even for one night a week. But the very last thing I want to see is someone get in a wreck, especially early in their career when it makes finding another job extremely difficult. And that's assuming of course that there were no injuries or worse.

I don't blame any of you for wanting to come out of school and find a job that gets you home to your family every night. I would too! And these LTL and P&D jobs pay great! But for the long term safety of everyone on the road and the long term viability of your career the prudent thing to do is get some experience in a more forgiving environment before jumping in head first into the most difficult and demanding environment there is. And I'd much rather see you get some experience with a dry van or refrigerated carrier before tackling the more difficult and dangerous tankers, flatbeds, or doubles & triples.

It's astounding to me, quite frankly, that these companies are bringing people in straight out of school when they're already offering some of the best paying jobs with the most home time in the industry! I'd love to speak with their recruiters to find out why they aren't landing experienced drivers for these positions. It doesn't make any sense. They should have people lined up down the road and around the corner waiting on a job like that to open up. Not only that, but they know there's a huge difference between someone straight out of school and someone with even 6 months of OTR. I would think they would at least require that much experience before sending someone out in the winter pulling a set of doubles or running around Chicago or Philadelphia all day, every day doing P&D.

I am sure 6 String will agree that LTL is a different type of trucking compared to OTR.

On top of all the things that a rookie driver has to face and think about you have a military style schedule you have to keep.

You do nothing off the clock with LTL. Once you arrive at work you clock in and from that point you have a certain amount of time you have to be off the yard and on the road. With ABF once they call you at home to let you know you have a run to take, right then, you have 2 hours to get to work, do your paperwork, hook up your 2 units and pre trip them and get moving. No excuses.

It's a high pressure, high stress schedule that has to be kept. Does not matter if the customer is slow once you get to a place. You have a schedule and it must be kept.

@Future Rookie Almost, with very few exceptions, all LTL pulls doubles and even triples. The P&D guys pull smaller trailers in town but line haul , which is between one terminal to the next one, is doubles. Occasionally line haul will pull a 53' trailer but rarely.

Thanks for the input. I have a friend who works for Conway and believes he can get me in their doing what he is doing. That is basically working at night driving to other terminals in which you then work the docks and then drive back to your home terminal. To me that sounds like the best option for me starting out. Granted it is at night, it still allows me to not be gone for days. Although it won't be all driving as it will include forklift and dock work it still allows me to get better and more comfortable in the truck before considering line haul and or P&D. That of course is whether the position is still open after completing school.

And Brett, around me their is a good bit of places always hiring whether it is for P&D or line haul. Conway, Estes and A Duie Pyle are all within a mile of each other. ABF and Old Dominon are also up the road 30 minutes from the other 3 listed. To my knowledge 6 string is pulling from the OD a hour away from me and even attended the same trucking school I plan on attending. So here, York PA, it is quite a bit of companies looking for drivers. I only listed a few of the bigger ones but there is other smaller ones as well

Hello 6 string and everyone else. I want to start by saying signed up to this forum just because of this thread. I am currently interested in trying to become a linehaul driver. I am currently stuck in somewhat of a toxic situation at my current job and don't feel like I have many options to get out. I didn't go to college, so I'm deemed "stupid" in the work world. I've been with this company since I was 20 (34 now), so when I should have been out aquireing a certain "skill" or "trade" I was investing all my effort into this job thinking my hard work would pay off. Longer story short, it hasn't, now I'm stuck. I just work in a warehouse of a major HVAC distributor. I make $20/hr, and feel like I'm stuck because I can't find anything where I don't have to take a $6-$7/hr pay cut. So upon my last years worth of research, I've found what I believe to be about the main 2 possibly attainable options I have for someone like me without many skills. The railroad, or driving a truck, both industries that are willing to invest and train an employee. And railroad jobs just don't seem to come up that often, and when they do, there's 120 people gunning for one job. Don't get me wrong, I'm no dummy by any means, but one main job and it only being a warehouse position on a resume doesn't give a lot of options for employment. So I started searching jobs on glassdoor.com and found......the LTL linehaul driver! A job that appears to me as attainable, while having the chance to make good money. I'm not gonna lie and say the money doesn't matter, I'm in it for the money. For the opportunity to make more money than I would probably ever be able to make doing anything else I'd “qualify” for in my life. Although $20/hr is somewhat “decent” money (it pays the bills), I've always told myself I'd do the back stroke in a septic tank for 6 figures a year. From what I understand through reading, research and talking to drivers, $60K/year is very standard, with potential to make up to $100K/year with some extra effort.

I've also contemplated a city driver position too, wouldn't necessarily have anything against it, but like 6 string said I want to drive. Not too crazy about driving a semi around the city all day, in and out of tight docks and dealing with customers. After working with a so called “team” for the last 15 years and carrying much more than my share of the weight, I'd rather work alone by myself. I don't mind the isolation, I'm somewhat of a loner anyways. Give me a radio to listen to while driving, and I'm good to go.

I too have a family, and while it would be hard to be away from them 3-5 days at a time, I would tough my way through it to improve our quality of life with a better income.

My current plans are as follows, gotta finish off this year at my current job. At the start of 2016 as soon as I can, I plan on taking the majority of my vacation ( 3 weeks) off to attend the Apex CDL Institute here in Kansas City and aquire my CDL and all endorsements needed. I can't do it now as I work a full time job, and the classes are during my scheduled work time. Then it's go time to get my nose to the grind and try to aquire a linehaul job.

More interesting as to why I signed up for the forum, is the 3 companies that I am most interested in right now are FedEx, Old Dominion, and ABF. FedEx obviously isn't going anywhere and the drivers I've talked to all seem to be happy with their jobs. ABF has a good reputation and is a good company to work for judging by my research. One of the things I like about their job listings is they state that applicants "must have a good stable work record." Says to me that they want good reliable long term employees and not just anyone with a heartbeat. And Old Dominion.....heard a ton of good things about them. Along with the good things 6 string has said here, I had the chance to talk to one driver at my warehouse, which is rare because we never use OD. The guy didn't have one negative thing to say. Said it's the best company he's ever worked for. I also was talking to another trucker one day (not employed by OD) in just general conversation, and I said something about OD, and his reply was, "oh yeah, Old Dominion is like the best there is."

So I think I have 3 good options to choose from. Fedex and ABF terminals are both about 30 mins from my house, OD is about 45-60 mins depending on traffic.

I also joined here to run some more questions by the linehaulers and 6 string after reading this thread. Here's some of what I can think of now, may have more later.

6 string, you said early on in this thread, there were times you considering quitting. what things got you to that point? the isolation? the stress of driving a big truck? driving over night? long hours?

What made you decide to stick with it? are you glad you did?

You've commented about being on tight schedules, what happens if they give you a run that takes 10 hours to get there, but you get stuck or slowed down by traffic costing you and hour and a half putting you over your 11 hours drive time? Do you immediately have to stop that truck for 8-10 hours for the last 30 mins it would take you to get there? How does that affect you as far as the job goes? Penalized or chewed out?

Looking at some linehaul jobs on the OD website, they are listed as SVC mileage linehaul driver. What does SVC stand for or mean?

Running out of characters, so I will let this be my first post.

Jared keep in mind that ABF and OD have the option to work on the dock and they will put you through their own training. At least both ABF and OD do where I am located. Granted here the dock work is not guaranteed 40 hours so you have to decide what's best for you. Also you are then under their contract for I believe each is 1 year. Anything happens and you're fired or quit you must pay for the schooling. Good luck.

I'd much rather see you get some experience with a dry van or refrigerated carrier before tackling the more difficult and dangerous tankers, flatbeds, or doubles & triples.

Brett,

Sometimes I wonder if I'm making the right decision by choosing flat-bed right out of the gate? I just have a really strong desire for it.