Any Local (home Daily) Drivers?

Any local drivers here? Just have some questions. How different is local vs otr? How many hours do you put in daily? What is the average amount of hours for a local driver? What is the difference in pay vs long haul? How did you get your local position?

I've always wanted to be a truck driver. While I dont mind starting off with OTR for a number of years for experience, eventually I feel somewhere down the road I would like to go local.

Any local drivers here? Just have some questions. How different is local vs otr? How many hours do you put in daily? What is the average amount of hours for a local driver? What is the difference in pay vs long haul? How did you get your local position?

I've always wanted to be a truck driver. While I dont mind starting off with OTR for a number of years for experience, eventually I feel somewhere down the road I would like to go local.

I just did local driving. Did it for a bout a year. I was 40 hrs a week plus OT, paid $13hr. when I went from OTR to local, I had an increase in pay. I also was in my first yr of OTR and had some really bad miles (another story for another time)... Weekly i made enough to live on. not enough to put some away and save, but i lived..

I did almost a year of OTR which is how I got the job. Local employer was searching for a CDL driver, But that wasnt my only job, I also did straight truck.

Personally, I enjoyed being home nightly, but OTR is what I really enjoy. I like the open road, being in a new state each day. I also find that now (with 2yrs exper) i make more OTR then local.

OTR isnt for everyone. There are guys/girls here that went straight to local and they love it.

Hey Francisco. I'm what you would a consider a local driver. I paid for private school myself so I could leave my work options open. I knew I wanted to stay local because I have a two and four year old at home. So after I got my cdl I applied to anywhere and everywhere that was offering local work. I didn't care if the ad said they wanted experience, the worst they could say was no. After applying icalled usually the following day and made sure they knew i was extremely serious and motivated. I ended up getting four interviews and in the end three offers. One with a local dairy, one with Sysco of new England, and the other with my current company Olympia sports. All were delivery jobs with solid hours and pay. Unltimately I chose Olympia because it gave me more opportunities to travel further out.

My Schedule is usually a four day work week. I travel all over the northeast from Maine to Virginia. I usually get one overnight a week which the company pays for a hotel and I get money for food. my hours are usually between 40 and 50 a we with weekends and holidays off. I make 17/hr plus overtime after 40. My days are on average 11 hours a day.

Honestly i wouldn't have it any other way. I know I don't have all the normal problems that your typical otr driver gets so if i ever transitioned to otr I would have to learn a whole bunch.

If that's the way you want to go then go for it and don't let anyone tell you that you can't go local yet. It is possible you just gotta go for it!

Hi Francisco.

I'm always quick to jump on these threads because I would've appreciated it if somebody told me about local trucking gigs or the LTL world of trucking when I started researching trucking. I knew about them, but didn't think I could get one unless I did the typical OTR for one year - not true. I'm what you'd call a "local" driver, since I'm home every day. But I run linehaul - we're a special breed. Woody, another member here on the forum, is also a linehaul driver. Maybe he'll chip in.

First off, unless you WANT to go OTR for the personal experience, you don't need to do this to get a local gig. I see you're in Jersey. Being in the NE, you'll have plenty of opportunity for local and regional trucking gigs. A lot of LTL (less than truckload) companies are hiring student drivers without any experience. You don't necessarily need the 1-2 years of OTR experience anymore. That's starting to become obsolete.

You asked to compare OTR with local. You should also consider LTL. I wrote a whole thread talking about the LTL sector of trucking here: LTL Trucking - My linehaul job

I work 12-14 hour days, 5 days a week. I"m home every night. I used to have to "bag out" and stay at a hotel a few days a week, but not anymore. I get two days off a week. I work linehaul, so I'm paid by cpm like OTR guys. I currently earn .58 cpm and average 2500 miles a week. Keep in mind linehaul drivers are some of the highest paid drivers, and I work for one of the best paying LTL companies. And no, I am not in a union. After taxes and all deductions (benefits, 401K), I clear around $1,000 a week.

I went to a private CDL school and had no idea that I could get a local job with a LTL company. It wasn't until I was already in school that I learned some LTL companies near my house were hiring student drivers. I applied to my company and got the job. Originally I thought I would have to go OTR, but it was only ever considered a stepping stone to eventually go local. I have a family and am not interested in the "lifestyle" of an OTR trucker - maybe if I was younger and single. I'm into trucking because I like trucks, but more importantly, because I needed a stable career that paid well. And I even have a 4 year college degree - wish I would've gotten into trucking years ago!

If you have no interest in the lifestyle of OTR, and want to maximize your income and stay close to home, there's no reason why you couldn't do that based on where you live. My company has a terminal near your place in South Plainfield. Where there is one LTL company, there will be more.

As Heavy C mentioned, besides LTL, you have the food delivery jobs too like Sysco. There are TONS of local gigs if you think OTR isn't going to be your thing. Depending on the company, as a local driver, you could make more than you ever would running OTR. You just have to do the legwork and see what companies near you are hiring. But again, you live in a prime area, it's not like you're in the middle of Montana. Best wishes to you.

I think they are alright but one thing to consider is that if you don't have any oil field around your area then that would be your best choice because in the oil field you could be making anywhere from a thousand to 2000 a week.. at the moment I'm currently hauling frac sand and I'm making anywhere from 2500 to 3000 dollars a week so there's a lot of work out there it just depends what you looking for. Its a fun job. I enjoy it. when I first started I started in a company that pay me $12 an hr I was makin 70 plus hours a week taking my 24 hour reset . it's always a work in progress but you would find your perfect job for you once you get trucking.

Hope that helps.

Just get started. Pay for school or get company sponsored. OTR is a great way to learn how to handle a rig. Either way, you will need to take a road test with a local position, so you have to know how to handle a truck. Once you are a good, safe driver, the positions are out there, especially in NJ. The pay is usually based on either hourly (usually $18-$25 per hour) plus overtime, or daily pay plus activity money. Either way, you should earn btw $750-$1500 per week as a local driver. It really depends on where you are and what you are doing. These positions are limited, so if you can find one, jump on it. If you have someone you are already interested in driving for, make contact with them and let them know your intentions, they may bring you on sooner than normal and it will give you the incentive to get through the bumps and bruises of learning.

Thank you everyone for your replies!

Hey Francisco. I'm what you would a consider a local driver. I paid for private school myself so I could leave my work options open. I knew I wanted to stay local because I have a two and four year old at home. So after I got my cdl I applied to anywhere and everywhere that was offering local work. I didn't care if the ad said they wanted experience, the worst they could say was no. After applying icalled usually the following day and made sure they knew i was extremely serious and motivated. I ended up getting four interviews and in the end three offers. One with a local dairy, one with Sysco of new England, and the other with my current company Olympia sports. All were delivery jobs with solid hours and pay. Unltimately I chose Olympia because it gave me more opportunities to travel further out.

My Schedule is usually a four day work week. I travel all over the northeast from Maine to Virginia. I usually get one overnight a week which the company pays for a hotel and I get money for food. my hours are usually between 40 and 50 a we with weekends and holidays off. I make 17/hr plus overtime after 40. My days are on average 11 hours a day.

Honestly i wouldn't have it any other way. I know I don't have all the normal problems that your typical otr driver gets so if i ever transitioned to otr I would have to learn a whole bunch.

If that's the way you want to go then go for it and don't let anyone tell you that you can't go local yet. It is possible you just gotta go for it!

I've always had the impression that you really couldn't get anything local without experience. I always thought the only way to really get experience was to go OTR with a beginner friendly company like Swift or Werner. This is a career I've always wanted, but if I could be home daily I would love to. I plan on paying for school myself, so I'm doing as much research as possible. You said you usually followed up after applying. What did you usually say? How did it generally go over with the companies?

Hi Francisco.

I'm always quick to jump on these threads because I would've appreciated it if somebody told me about local trucking gigs or the LTL world of trucking when I started researching trucking. I knew about them, but didn't think I could get one unless I did the typical OTR for one year - not true. I'm what you'd call a "local" driver, since I'm home every day. But I run linehaul - we're a special breed. Woody, another member here on the forum, is also a linehaul driver. Maybe he'll chip in.

First off, unless you WANT to go OTR for the personal experience, you don't need to do this to get a local gig. I see you're in Jersey. Being in the NE, you'll have plenty of opportunity for local and regional trucking gigs. A lot of LTL (less than truckload) companies are hiring student drivers without any experience. You don't necessarily need the 1-2 years of OTR experience anymore. That's starting to become obsolete.

You asked to compare OTR with local. You should also consider LTL. I wrote a whole thread talking about the LTL sector of trucking here: LTL Trucking - My linehaul job

I work 12-14 hour days, 5 days a week. I"m home every night. I used to have to "bag out" and stay at a hotel a few days a week, but not anymore. I get two days off a week. I work linehaul, so I'm paid by cpm like OTR guys. I currently earn .58 cpm and average 2500 miles a week. Keep in mind linehaul drivers are some of the highest paid drivers, and I work for one of the best paying LTL companies. And no, I am not in a union. After taxes and all deductions (benefits, 401K), I clear around $1,000 a week.

I went to a private CDL school and had no idea that I could get a local job with a LTL company. It wasn't until I was already in school that I learned some LTL companies near my house were hiring student drivers. I applied to my company and got the job. Originally I thought I would have to go OTR, but it was only ever considered a stepping stone to eventually go local. I have a family and am not interested in the "lifestyle" of an OTR trucker - maybe if I was younger and single. I'm into trucking because I like trucks, but more importantly, because I needed a stable career that paid well. And I even have a 4 year college degree - wish I would've gotten into trucking years ago!

If you have no interest in the lifestyle of OTR, and want to maximize your income and stay close to home, there's no reason why you couldn't do that based on where you live. My company has a terminal near your place in South Plainfield. Where there is one LTL company, there will be more.

As Heavy C mentioned, besides LTL, you have the food delivery jobs too like Sysco. There are TONS of local gigs if you think OTR isn't going to be your thing. Depending on the company, as a local driver, you could make more than you ever would running OTR. You just have to do the legwork and see what companies near you are hiring. But again, you live in a prime area, it's not like you're in the middle of Montana. Best wishes to you.

How do I look for these companies? Or any student/beginner friendly local or at least home weekly gigs? My only source really has been craigslist. How do you recommend scoping out all the possible available positions?

In that link I provided you about LTL , I have a page about 1/2 way through where I list LTL companies. You'll need to take a company name, Google it, and find their webpage. From there, see where their terminal locations are and notice if they're near your residence. I know for a fact that my company is only 30 some miles from you - perhaps a 45 minute commute depending on traffic. There will be other LTL companies. You could also try Google for "LTL Freehold NJ," or something of that nature. They are definitely there where you live, you just have to do the legwork. You should also try calling said companies. My company will hire people off the street at my home terminal, and put them through their own driving school to earn a CDL A. All while being paid employees. Having said that, paying for your own will give you the most options, but being paid to go to school is very enticing. I will private message you the name of my company.

I just private messaged you all the contact info needed for the company terminal in South Plainfield, NJ. Check your email to make sure you got it.