Im currently a trainer for Western Express.) Yes we do have some bad reps here and there. As for me, I train those who are fit to be a truck driver. The ones that don't listen are put on the kill-list on the examiners board.
But I just wanted to see other people's answers. Our average driving time a day is 5hrs 30min for both van and flatbed. Beyond stupid? Yes. God knows why people here are stuck with the "more miles more pay" mindset. For me, I never deny a load, even if its a 200 mile run, ill be happy, because I know it will pay more.
It sucks when I get a ragdoll as a student. Can't drive, shift, or pay attention to the signs. I know if I get a student like this, Ill only sleep 3-5 hours a day for the first 2 weeks, and those sleep hours are me sitting on the passenger seat haha .
What is your company's average driving time?
Discussion in 'Experienced Truckers' Advice' started by ev500, Mar 28, 2015.
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Mine is 10-11 hours a day now. We got turned down to 64 and they still want us to do 700 miles a day which doesn't happen now I'm doing more 34 resets then anything
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that said I do personally know someone on flatbed side who is doing pretty well and pretty happy there......but she rarely ever goes home either.
I used to hate those students too. I was a trainer at my previous company. the rare few that are good right out of school are a gift. the rest......if you don't have the patience and disposition to train it can be a nightmare.
5 1/2hr a day average? unless you're just perpetually on recap I wouldn't pack a bag for that.
solo now at my current company my average is 10+ a day and more days than not I run it down to 15 minutes or less. I run it to the wire every day even though I've got pretty wide windows on most deliveries and i'm at one of the rare few companies where you don't have to chase miles to make a killing. i'll always drop at the start of a window rather than the end of it. home every weekend with a 3000 average. if I'm going to be away from home 5-6 days at a time I'm not going to be sitting. my company can run me like that and knows I like to run like that so they do.
at my previous company training I still did an average of 9+ a day. no team training. student driving, me in the jumpseat supervising and training as I should be. I got a bonus for training and the student got a better than average training check as they were paid by the mile and not one of these flat rate bs training wages. I ran them hard. if they could hang with me and run my schedule most likely they'd be successful solo and all of them have been.
you're right about short trips paying more on a per mile basis.....at some companies depending on how the pay structure is set. at my previous company it made no difference. my current company is structured differently and I never turn them down. at my current company, with all accessory pay items added in, the short trips pay almost double than the long runs. knock out 2-4 in a day and you made way more than if you'd been running solid all day on one trip. most guys at my company haven't figured that one out yet. they whine about the short ones while I'm jumping on them and making a killing. -
YoungGuns Thanks this. -
As far as the sleeping part, I run my hours at night, and let me students drive during the day. Sometimes I take naps here and there. I worked for Allied after I quit Cummings and Lynden: thats where I developed the 3-5 hour a day rest because working for a moving company, it was physical labor from 7am in the morning till 5 in the afternoon and then drive all night.
So to sum it up, im picky with my students. If they can't run or try to run with my schedule (4000-5000 miles a week) then I will fail them, period. Western's got the trucks set at 63, but not my truck. The compensation bonus is nice but its not worthy when I get a phone call saying "the driver you trained got in an accident".
The only time where I had to drive over 11 hours was because i had an FBI shipment, government loads, and this was when I worked with allied. Texas to Virginia? Only 1 day, non-stop rolling. -
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well first it's not a secret that Western Express' pay scale is very low. so if you're only driving five and a half hours a day I can't see how anybody can survive there and make any money at all
G.Anthony and Moving Forward Thank this. -
My drive time varies just depends on how long it takes to get there.
G.Anthony and Moving Forward Thank this. -
If 5 hrs and 30 min is westerns policy then you should be telling them its beyond stupid.I think the first week of that drive time is normal.There's no need to push the students.Remember safety first and I hope you're not one of those trainers that uses students for the miles.
Mudguppy and truckerlife74 Thank this.
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