Newbie Truck driving questions

[Robert26]

How many hours per day do truckers drive? Do truck companies tell the driver how many miles they want him or her to drive in a day? Does the company tell drives what time they must start driving and what time they must stop driving?

Why did you become a trucker? Trucking seems like a good job for me because I will be fully covered financially, it is not very social and I can advance my career.

What truck company is the best company for a beginner to work for?

Do most truck companies' trucks offer the same amenities? Do their trucks have a bed. refridgerator, microwave, heater, air conditioner, etc?

Are newer trucks more comfortable to drive than older trucks? Suppose I am in Iowa and the outside temperature is -10 degrees farenheit. Will the sleeping area of the truck be cold? What if I am in Arizona and the outside temperature is 110 degrees farenheit. Will the sleeping area of the truck be warm?

In Camden, NJ, I work as a security officer. Three years ago, at 9pm, I was sitting in my guard shack and a trucker parked his 18wheeler truck alongside a curb. The truck was parked directly accross the street from my shack. I saw the trucker get out and check the tires. After that, I think he went to sleep. The building next to the truck has a barb wire, fenced in parking lot. The building has bars and fences on the windows too.... The trucker slept in the most dangerous city in the country. Do truck companies allow their truckers to sleep anywhere?

Are truck stops safe? Is truck stop food and a shower astronomically priced? How much food can a truck hold for one driver? Are truck stops good places to take a brisk one hour walk?

Suppose I am in the middle of delivering a load to business xyz. One of my family members dies and I must attend services. Will any truck company allow me to stop driving and see my family?

I want to be an regional, dedicated or over the road trucker for four to five years. After that, I want to get a local truck driving job. Do local truck driving jobs pay the samething as over the road truck driving jobs? I heard that I will need at least one year of truck driving experience to get a local truck driving job.

What is the best trucking school to enroll in? After I graduate from trucking school, I will become an OVR, right? Do I have to graduate from a particular trucking school to work for truck company xyz?

Any help would be appreciated.

[Rev.Vassago]

How many hours per day do truckers drive?

11 hours on, 10 hours off.

Do truck companies tell the driver how many miles they want him or her to drive in a day?

11 hours on, 10 hours off.

Does the company tell drives what time they must start driving and what time they must stop driving?

11 hours on, 10 hours off.

What truck company is the best company for a beginner to work for?

That is a loaded question, which is impossible to answer by anyone but yourself.

Do most truck companies' trucks offer the same amenities? Do their trucks have a bed. refridgerator, microwave, heater, air conditioner, etc?

Unless you are running a daycab, you will have a bed, heating and air conditioning. Beyond that, options vary. Most carriers' trucks do not have refrigerators or microwaves.

Are newer trucks more comfortable to drive than older trucks?

For the most part, yes.

Suppose I am in Iowa and the outside temperature is -10 degrees farenheit. Will the sleeping area of the truck be cold? What if I am in Arizona and the outside temperature is 110 degrees farenheit. Will the sleeping area of the truck be warm?

Yes. That is what heat and air conditioning is for. Hopefully the company you choose will let you idle, or will have some sort of APU to take care of that.

Do truck companies allow their truckers to sleep anywhere?

No. You can only sleep somewhere that it is legal for you park, or you risk getting fined or towed.

Are truck stops safe?

Depends upon the truck stop.

Is truck stop food and a shower astronomically priced?

Yes. Expect to pay anywhere from 20%-50% higher for most legitimate food.

How much food can a truck hold for one driver?

As much as you want to carry.

Are truck stops good places to take a brisk one hour walk?

If you like the smell of pee, then yes.

Suppose I am in the middle of delivering a load to business xyz. One of my family members dies and I must attend services. Will any truck company allow me to stop driving and see my family?

Yes, some companies will allow you to get home for family emergencies. Most will make you pay to get yourself home, unless they can dispatch a load getting you there.

I want to be an regional, dedicated or over the road trucker for four to five years. After that, I want to get a local truck driving job. Do local truck driving jobs pay the samething as over the road truck driving jobs?

No. It really depends upon what you are doing.

I heard that I will need at least one year of truck driving experience to get a local truck driving job.

In today's market, you will likely need more.

What is the best trucking school to enroll in?

One that is run by a technical college.

After I graduate from trucking school, I will become an OVR, right? Do I have to graduate from a particular trucking school to work for truck company xyz?

OTR, not OVR.

The trucking company you choose will be able to answer that question for you.

[moldytwig]

some companies (for example Swift) have on the job training. they will help you get your CDL and provide you with training. i believe they pay 35K to people who go that route.

[Fourcats]

You are "ruled" by the DOT and the log book. Learn to manage your time/log book well or the DOT will get you.

[Sealord]

What is the best trucking school to enroll in? Community College, normally least expensive. Some private/commercial schools call themselves "technical college". After I graduate from trucking school, I will become an OTR, right? Not necessarily if you want to deliver beer or soda. Do I have to graduate from a particular trucking school to work for truck company xyz? Some companies want driving school grads to be from PTDI certified schools. One of my family members dies and I must attend services. Will any truck company allow me to stop driving and see my family? The company you drive for will not see it as a "must attend" on your part. The only slack may be if it's immediate family, mom, dad, brother or sister. The family better allow plenty of time for you to get there for services. BOL

[moldytwig]

You are "ruled" by the DOT and the log book. Learn to manage your time/log book well or the DOT will get you.

i think what he means to say is the DOT regulates your hours "by law" - technically you are not supposed to drive a class A vehicle more than 60 hours per week and i believe there is a daily hour limit also (maybe no more than 12 hours in one day?).

also, if you do not have a few thousand to spend on a training school. i would consider the community college route. you can prob get grants / student loans to do it. good luck.

[Rev.Vassago]

i think what he means to say is the DOT regulates your hours "by law" - technically you are not supposed to drive a class A vehicle more than 60 hours per week and i believe there is a daily hour limit also (maybe no more than 12 hours in one day?).

Ummmm....no.


You can be on duty 70 hours in an 8 day period for a carrier that runs 7 days a week before you can't drive anymore, and there is absolutely no regulation that limits the amount of hours you can drive per day.

You aren't a truck driver, are you?

[BigDiesel]

i think what he means to say is the DOT regulates your hours "by law" - technically you are not supposed to drive a class A vehicle more than 60 hours per week and i believe there is a daily hour limit also (maybe no more than 12 hours in one day?).

also, if you do not have a few thousand to spend on a training school. i would consider the community college route. you can prob get grants / student loans to do it. good luck.

The blind leading the blind.....

[got mud?]

Ummmm....no.


You can be on duty 70 hours in an 8 day period for a carrier that runs 7 days a week before you can't drive anymore, and there is absolutely no regulation that limits the amount of hours you can drive per day.

You aren't a truck driver, are you?

you can't drive more than 14.45 hours in a day. day starts at 12 midnight with you driving. drive until 11 am (11 hours) log post trip (15 min). break from 11:15 till 9:15 leaves you 3 hours 45 min to drive.( assuming you don't leave the sleeper and go to rest room) :wink: that's 14.45 hours in one day. I could be wrong but I think that's pretty much the limit.

[Rev.Vassago]

you can't drive more than 14.45 hours in a day. day starts at 12 midnight with you driving. drive until 11 am (11 hours) log post trip (15 min). break from 11:15 till 9:15 leaves you 3 hours 45 min to drive.( assuming you don't leave the sleeper and go to rest room) :wink: that's 14.45 hours in one day. I could be wrong but I think that's pretty much the limit.

You would be wrong. Not only is your math incorrect, but you forgot the required pretrip inspection prior to operating the CMV. Assuming you logged your pretrip and posttrip as 15 minutes each, and didn't have to fuel, you can legally log 13 1/2 hours per day driving.

But my statement still stands - there is no FMCSA regulation that states you can only drive a certain number of hours per day.

[got mud?]

You would be wrong. Not only is your math incorrect, but you forgot the required pretrip inspection prior to operating the CMV. Assuming you logged your pretrip and posttrip as 15 minutes each, and didn't have to fuel, you can legally log 13 1/2 hours per day driving.

But my statement still stands - there is no FMCSA regulation that states you can only drive a certain number of hours per day.

actually you can flag your pre trip, you are only required to log a post trip.

[BIG JEEP on 44's]

actually you can flag your pre trip, you are only required to log a post trip.

Nope...you may choose to flag either the pre or post .

[got mud?]

Nope...you may choose to flag either the pre or post .

okay I stand corrected. I knew it was one or the other. my company said post trip. point is you don't have to log both. by log I mean show fifteen minutes on line 4 for both. obviously you have to flag it. anyway... lol

[got mud?]

You would be wrong. Not only is your math incorrect, but you forgot the required pretrip inspection prior to operating the CMV. Assuming you logged your pretrip and posttrip as 15 minutes each, and didn't have to fuel, you can legally log 13 1/2 hours per day driving.

But my statement still stands - there is no FMCSA regulation that states you can only drive a certain number of hours per day.

and actually your statment is wrong. the simple fact that the fmcsa can regulate how many hours you can drive without a break and the given hours there are in a day, by default they are regulating how many hours you can drive in a day. (obviously all driving is in reference to a laden or unladen cmv not used for personal conveyance)

can you drive 24 hours of the day? no. reason? FMCSA regulations make it impossible to do so. therefore while they do not exactly stipulate how many hours you may drive in one day, it is those very regulations that dictate you may not drive more than X amount in one day.