Mr. Rev...what makes you say it is tough to average 59 mph? Except for CA, OR, & WA on the West Coast, where I-5 is the main corridor, and the CA speed limit is 55 mph for trucks, most other states let the trucks run 70 mph or more. When I was trying to do the family business thing in 03-05, it was not unusual for me to set the cruise on my fruitshaker at 63 mph after passing Cottonwood scales, and leave it there...except for the occasional disengagement for Sacramento

The company I currently drive for has 1100 trucks, each and every one of them governed to 60 mph. None of them will do 62...unless the Driver let's it roll going down hill. Running to Memphis TN from Orange TX, I can and do average 58 mph without a problem.

Now...those numbers I put down? Those were "An Example" and that is all. However...for your knowledge, My "wages" are .39 cents per mile and $13.25 at the gates. I do get paid for every hour I work, and the company does not allow us to work over 70, unless we are not driving any of the hours over 70. My problem...I do not like that "Our" terminal manager requires drivers to log 55 mph. The thing about a mph average...If you like to open that lefthand door a lot, it is tough to average anything at all.



Also..I will not name the company....but I am sure that more than a few of the driver's whom read this forum, have been stuck behind one of the trucks, at least once, on roads such as I-40 between Memphis and Nashville, I-85..any where along the entirety of the road, I-65...and so on.

Yes..Local 63 Bloomington, CA

Informative Thread on LTL vs OTR career.

Ultimately, as has been said, only YOU can decide if OTR or LTL is a good/better/best fit.

I work in an LTL non-union barn and I'm V-E-R-Y grateful for the union barns out there. They are the #1 reason I went from $16.00/hr (starting rate) to $18.50/hr in just over one year. The company I work for is finally starting to realize that if it doesn't come close to what the union barns offer (pay, benefits, etc.), they will lose the good drivers they have.

One thing i cannever figure out is this...Why dont some of you LTL guys realize that all of us just dont have the option to run LTL...alot of us live in areas where this just isnt an option.
Another thing is, yes, when running OTR sometimes we put in a lot of hours compared to the money and it scales down to a low hourly wage.....BUT for instance, I am taking home about a grand a week or better right now. Yeah, I can go get a crappy clock punching factory job but not one that is going to let me get enough hours on the clock to let me bring home $1000 a week if I could even stand punching out floor mats or dashboards for that many hours. Yes, OTR can be made to look bad on paper by people who want it to look bad, and yes it is an industry full of flaws...but there are many factors as to why people go OTR.
With that said, just stop badmouthing us OTR drivers and what we do...If we decide we dont like it we will quit and it doesnt have to bother you. Would i rather be doing something else...yes....is there anything in the short term future in my area that i am gonna make 50k+ no. Just go do your LTL wonder job Mr Frosty and let us do what we are doing....its really not affecting you...and if we werent hauling the truckload stuff you wouldnt have anything to put in your little day cab everyday anyways.

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

For the most part in my career (10 years) I have pondered this also. I have worked 6 years in LTL (Con-way, Averitt) and it was great pay, home every day, and great benefits. I must say that now I work for a big OTR company but, I work on a dedicated account where I can be home everyday or, I can run the wheels off the truck if I want to. Actually, the money is better now than it was in LTL plus, I get a nice truck to drive but, I like to run hard and I guarntee I am in the minority.

Quite honestly, IMO most OTR drivers are not cut out for LTL. I am not going to lie about it, LTL is harder work by far than a big OTR company and the vast majority of drivers I have had contact with do not want to work hard and heavens forbid they get any excercise on the job doing work. They want to make the big money but, they dont want to put forth the effort it takes to make that kind of cheese. Actually, most drivers that work the account that I do dont make the big money becasue they dont want to work for it. They are satisfied with their $500-$700 bring home a week where, I am doing between $1100-$1500 bring home every week. In alot of cases I would wager to say you can make good money with a OTR company but, you have to work for it and go into the job initially and establish a reputation of a driver that likes to run and can be trusted to get it done for them. IMO, most drivers dont fall into this catagory. IN OTR there is too much opportunity to slack off and waste time so, most take full advantage of it. In LTL this is not the case for the companies I have worked for. You will be required to work like a dog but, everyone makes good money.

Uh, "work like dog"....no, I don't think so.Linehaul for an LTL company is not all that bad. Pull a set to a terminal, unhook, go to the hotel...pretty simple. I think the point of the OP was that OTR will not ever pay for your time and if you object to FREE TIME, (as you should-NO-ONE should ever give away their labor) LTL could be a better way to go. Personally, I do not think that OTR driving has much of a future in the United States. If "W" get's his way, the OTR market will be replaced by cheap labor from south of the border (and no, it's temporarily postponed for now-but Dubya's plan is not going away-and oh BTW, thank you Teamsters for your help in getting this postponed for now-"TRUCK-DOWN" was a real success wasn't it ???)

OK, not all companys work that way now do they???? Like I said, I have worked for 2 LTL's and they didnt work that way. Averitt did depending on the length of trip but, with Con-way it was a patio party for everyone. It can be hard work like I said. Of course, since you think all LTL linehaul guys drive, park the truck, and hit a hotel, I guess you really dont know then do ya?

Let's all decide to agree to disagree agreeably and focus on respecting one another no matter what.

Hey driver, could you please pass the ketchup? Thanks! :)

Gee...and I thought us LTL pick-up & delivery guys had it the worst! :roll: :wink: :P :lol:

Interesting. I think cheap labor like cheap freight will continue to co-exist with not-so-cheap labor and not-so-cheap freight. Our country is based on a capitalistic system--a free market/free economy. Shipper Sam can choose whomever he wants to get his goods to Receiver Rachael (or vice-versa). The OTR market will change but not as drastically as you seem to hint.

I have done P&D also. It isnt a cake walk by any means. That is if you live in any kind of metro area of course. I have ran P&D in the DC Metro area. It sucks throughly. :evil:

How long did you do it for? Just as with OTR, LTL P&D has a certain learning curve. It took me a good 6months before I knew the quirks, in & outs of most of our customers.

Once you are up on the curve its not bad at all. Traffic can still be frustrating, but when you're on the clock it takes a lot of the edge off.

I was in LTL for 6 years and I did P&D for 1 year of it. There is no learning curve to hauling multiple skids of whatever up 6 flights. Like I said, this was the DC metro area. Now, when I worked for Conway, my terminal was in a more rural location and once in a while I would fill in on P&D. There it was not bad at all. It is all in the Delivery area.

Hey Ian, I see you are in NOVA. Where at exactly if you dont mind me asking. I am in the area also.

So you were stuck in hand muck hell.

Thats not so much LTL as lumping. Unless the customer pays through the nose for inside delivery our responsibility stops at the end of the trailer.

Except for our one straight truck with a lift gate we don't see all that much hand muck at my barn.

I am oh so happy that a lot of customers without a dock don't want to pay through the nose for inside delivery! :D :D :D

Yes, it was back of the door but, alot of times these customers would pay for inside delivery. They seemed to have more money than brains like alot of folks in that region.

I always told them for me to bring it in it would cost this much (I would inflate the number hoping they would not go for inside delivery). I just seemed to have back luck I guess???? LOL!

Guess you didn't inflate the number high enough. :shock: :roll: :lol:

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

Do you know how much money you would have to make to BRING HOME 1500.00 a week, get some NEW stories!!!!!!!!!
Talk about inflated numbers....lol

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

Yeah , you would have to gross around $2400 a week (give or take a hundred or so) to bring home $1500 a week , not happening .

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

There are a host of factors that effect your net vs gross. If you had a bunch of dependents and a large mortgage in a no income tax state like Nevada its possible to take home 80% of your gross.

I know you can claim a portion of your earnings as per-diem OTR too.

My take home is ~70% of my gross and I have my 401k dialed up to 10%. As soon as I get my step and COLA raises in July I'm bumping it up to 15%+

I always wonder why OTR drivers live in high tax states like CA or NY, even if its only on paper you can move to NV, NH etc. Given that you are OTR the majority of the time the high cost state can't nail you on time spend at "home."

What we are getting at, is the fairy tale of the drivers take home pay as to what he groses. Should have started the story with "you aint gonna believe this shi$".....lol

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

I am sorry you are not making any real money driver. You dont have to buy what I am saying and I dont care if you do or you dont. The only thing I know is, I enjoy the hell out of my weekly paycheck. If you want to make that kind of money, you have to get a better job and run harder. Yes, that kind of cheese can be made.

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

Your still not bringing home 1500.00 a week no matter what you want us here to believe! That’s around 100k a year and YOU aint making that. I do know you are a driver because of the stories you tell. If you said you grossed 1500.00 a week, then I would believe you and that is still 78k a year, which is some of the highest pay in the industry. There are exceptions to every rule but you are not one of them!

You said:

"Actually, most drivers that work the account that I do dont make the big money becasue they dont want to work for it. "

If they work the same acct. as you, they should be making the same, doing the same work as you do!! What you said makes no sense!
If you’re going to tell stories, make them believable. I have been out here for a few decades and have one of those Cush jobs. I guess this is where the tin foil hat comes in, am I right REV? Or did I use tin foil hat thing out of context?....lol

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

Yeah, right. That's what they all say. You're full of BS just like the rest of them.

I can't tell you how many times I've heard the line: "I can't discuss my gig driver, but it's sweeeeeeet!!!" :roll:

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

At least thats what YOU keep telling the whole forum.....lol :lol: :lol: :lol:
You sure you and fozzy are not related :lol: :lol: :lol:

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

LOL!!!! You are too funny!!!! Yeah, they should make the same money but, the problem is they dont want to run. I do like to run. They are happy just taking a 300 mile trip and calling it a day. Not me. The account i work at will run you as hard as you want or, you can lay off and take it easy. Just becasue they work the same account does not mean they get or want to get the same miles and the same amount of stops. Load me up on miles and stop pay! I can make that a week anytime I want but, I usually lay off a bit 1 week out of the month and I might bring home $1000-$1100 still. Like I said, you dont have to believe me. I dont care if you do or dont. I love messing with drivers like you on the radio. It is too easy to get you worked up. It amuses the hell out of me and helps keep me stay awake and alert. I got the same resonse when I was in LTL. You would hear drivers on the radio bragging that they made 40K and I would get on there and told them I made 70K a year and I was home everyday and off every weekend. Of course they were just like yourself and didnt believe a word of it and would also get thier same panties in a bunch over it. LOL!!!!

Oh BTW, I am home almost everyday also. Damn I hate my job!!!! :twisted:

Re: WHY WORK FOR A OTR COMPANY GO LTL
 

70k is a far cry from a 100k! You dont get me worked up at all driver, I have just been out here to long and can spot the fairy tales. I drive for a large drugstore chain in the Indianapolis area, 1300 to 1500 gross/wk, good benifits and # 4 on evening board! I work 5 days a week back and forth from Chicago and Indy every evening with no overnights at all, except on the weekends. I do the overnight thing with certain ladies....lol Like I said I would believe 1500.00 gross/wk and that is 78k a yr!
Oh by the way if you need a better job we will take you......lol

IT DONT MATTER BY 2020 They'll only be 2 LTL Carriers !
UPS AND FED-EX!! :lol:

and I'm retiring in 6 weeks....Seriously though, as a senior driver on the feeder board 15- to 1600 week GROSS (4 and a half day week) is about it for me. But, that said, that is my choice to bid. Kids getting older and grown, I'm a lot older and I just don't wish to work that hard anymore. But, that is my choice. Things are paid for and I'm at that stage I just don't need to kill myself like when I was young, dumb and full of(ah well, you know about all that..)

otr compaines hire the worst drivers guys who have no teeth can hardly speak you know the game ltl companies do not hire those guys

Yeah, I would have to agree. So many OTR guys I see dressed like Larry The Cable Guy. Heck, it's the only place where the mullet is still in style.

You can't get away with forgoing showers and not shaving or brushing your teeth in LTL. Too much interaction with the customer.

yea thats true

The thing is, LTL is just not for everybody. New drivers will get in over their head and quit within a couple weeks. It can be pretty tough trying to find 12 stops a day in and around busy city areas not to mention handling all of the freight. In and out the truck over and over again, then in and out the trailer over and over again. On top of all of this, they have some pretty tough areas to back in and out of as well. Alot of the customers are small businesses and they have very little room for trucks and freight, makes both things hard. OTR gets to hang around alot of DCs and large warehouses with much more room and truck friendly. LTL seems like its for guys in their early 20s in very good shape. Last year when I was working LTL, I worked 12 or 14 hours a day. I got more sleep and felt alot better when I was OTR not to mention I made about the same amount of money but almost felt like I never even worked with OTR compared to LTL. Of course with OTR, being away from home which as we all know can be tough at times. At last, with OTR, don't forget the trucks are much newer and nicer. In the end, its all just a matter of preferrence, what one prefers. LTL would be much better if it were three 12 hour shifts or four 10 hour shifts. Whats the purpose of working local if you are working 60 hours a week? So 40 hours a week is a full time job, none of this we don't pay overtime until after 50 hours stuff. Thats a whole other problem in itself with some LTL carriers and its not acceptable. Over 40 hours should be time and a half, if they can't pay that, I work only 40 hours period.

LTL is not for everyone.

In some ways it has a much steeper learning curve that OTR. In a busy day I can do more backing into tight areas that some OTR Factory-to-DC guys get in a year. Once you have your backing skills dialed in its second nature.

Right now its TDC season; if you want to see some serious backing skills observe a Rodeo skills course.

After a few months you know the city you work, most of your customers and what types of freight they ship and receive. You could pull all the address and shipping labels off all the freight on the outbound dock and I could ID 90% of it and take an educated guess as to where its going.

Its a smaller version of what London Cab drivers simply call "The Knowledge".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kno...#The_Knowledge

Once you have your knowledge and driving skills dialed in you can pound out 20-30 stops per day.

When taking my equipment in unfamiliar areas I frequently will park on the street and recon the area on foot.

When you only spend 8-12 hrs per day with your equipment its quality & age become less of a factor.

You don't have to be young, just in good shape. My barn has plenty of city drivers in their 40s who are very productive.

You can earn as much in LTL working hard 45-50hrs and home every night as you can doing OTR 60-70+.

When I describe my job to people unfamiliar with LTL in a social setting I simply say its "Like UPS but with pallets rather than boxes". The common public conception of drivers is from Smokey & the Bandit and OTR.