Well I just got my Class A permit and expect to have the CDL in about 2 weeks...question is.... if I put in 1 year OTR...and then work local... what can I expect for pay range.??? is 18-20 bucs an hour reasonable.....I have been told that in order to make ANY decent money locally that I need to have the otr experience... is this accurate??? opinions anyone... GREAT FORUM by the way!!!! Oh,, I am in the San Diego Cali area if that helps for clarification.

Thats BS i never spent one night on the road. I always been local and my last job was paying me 19.10hr. Around where i live local jobs go for 16-21 its a big gap.

i agree, you dont need otr experience to get going local, and you should easily get about 16 an hour to start, dont listen to anyone, just apply and go on interviews, even if the ad says experienced required just apply anyway.

Not what I expected to hear so far but sounds very encouraging... THANKS for the replies!!!!!

It really depends on your area your looking to get into to determine how much you will be making.

Try check out the posting in my tagline...this is what I do here in Texas. Your area should pay higher. :wink:

How much you can make local and how easy it is to get a local driving position all depends on the area you are in.

In many areas the local driving jobs often have wages comparable to what factory work brings in.

Around here local jobs pay anywhere from $10/hr(dump truck) to $22.00+/hr(local grocery company).

And as for the BS about 1 year experience. Not always true. I have been driving for eight years(since I was 23) and all my jobs have been local.

I made a lot more OTR than I do here locally!

All the ads here in the Austin area state at least 1 or 2 years of OTR experience. You can get on with cement trucks with a class B, but I hear that gets old fast and doesn't pay well.

The local beverage companies will train you. If you like lumping cases of soda or beer day in and day out. I did that many years ago for Coke and it's hell on your knees and back.

Balancing coke cans on flimsey cardboard does sound like a juggling act. Thanks for your observations!