Considering TMC

TMC runs a lot of freight out of and into Maryland. If you live around the Baltimore area that would be great. In my way of thinking you could leave the house Sunday afternoon/ night for your Monday delivery and they could work you west and back towards the house at the end of the week to have you home Friday afternoon. BUT...that's my thinking and it don't always work that way. Things will happen that will reduce your home time. But it is a good area. Get your TWIC card for the ports. They will send you there anyhow but without a TWIC card you will have to pay cash for an escort and burn a lot of time waiting for the escort. Some ports charge by the hour, so that's no good for you if your there half the day. As for trainers in that area I think a recruiter may be able to answer that question. They won't have you out 3>6 weeks unless you request it.

 

Hwy Sailor...thanks for the intel. That sounds pretty good to me! While I realize it doesn't always go the way you want, at least for the most part, home weekends would not be to difficult. A good driver manager helps I am sure.

I hear ya on the TWIC card for sure.

Are you with TMC I am assuming?

 

I can confirm what Highway_Sailor said...MD is an excellent area in which to live freight- and hometime-wise. The way TMC (generally) works it is that they'll run you out 500 or so miles from the house in any one direction, then by about Wednesday or so they'll try to start working you back toward your home of record, to get you home on the weekends. Their "promise" is 46 out of 52 weekends, but that also works both ways: the load planners and dispatchers need to so their part, but so does the driver. When those two parts work in harmony (or somewhat close to it), that's what'll set you up for the best chance of success.

In your particular area, I would think your general area would be MD, PA (DEFINITELY...so much freight moves through PA it's ridiculous, but it ain't the easiest area to get through either), NJ, NY, CT, MA (?), DE, VA, WV (have fun with that one...haha), maybe some OH in there. When I ran the northeast I found my lengths of haul were generally shorter, but my gross totals to the trucks were higher on average per load, and so was my weekly revenue. (My best week ever with TMC started in NJ, outside NYC, and that whole week I didn't go more than 300 miles from NYC in any direction and yet still somehow managed to turn almost $6000 to the truck--of course I also moved like 8 loads that week, two of them re-powers, but still...)

As far as CDL training goes, TMC now has their own CDL training program now, though I couldn't tell you any of the details about it. (It's been roughly a year and a half since I left the company; that started up after I left.) Check into that; but beware the "hitch" (many companies that do that also in effect "lock you into a contract" for a set period of time, generally a year, to pay it off, or else if you leave you'll have to pay the difference on your own).

I'd highly recommend checking TMC out. I had a great four-year run with them, saw all but two out of the contiguous 48 states (Maine and Oregon), got a free weekend in Vegas out of it, but most of all really learned the best and safest way to flatbed. They really took care of me during my time there.

 

Thanks Buc for the response and great info. 6k revenue for the truck in a week is pretty sweet!

I spoke with Tracey on Friday and she explained the whole CDL training program. You are correct, it is a year comittment. I am ok with that, after all they paid for my training.

Sounds like TMC takes care of drivers from what I have read this far. I am a vet, so I am used to the regimental lifestyle and rules, etc. I actually prefer it!

Thanks again for the info! Stay safe out there!

 

Good to see!

Let me though clarify something real quick... $6k in weekly revenue is more an outlier than the norm. That said, I found when I ran the northeast my weekly revenue was always higher...by about a good 5-6 hundred dollars. (In the Midwest, it was about 3200-3700; in the northeast it was more like 3400-4200, depending on the season.) Of course, there's less available parking up there, more traffic, and tighter spots to get into and out of--but there's also that $100 NYC borough bonus that comes into play too--it's an extra incentive for delivering into one of the five boroughs. (If they still do that...check into it.)

 

Oh I totally understand that is not the norm, just thought that was pretty good for a week of work.

Thanks for the averages! I will definitely ask the question about NY.

What did you average per week take home? Just curious.

 

Then how fast you can go?

 

If you are anywhere near frederick MD we have a dedicated account there pulling shingles. and yes TMC will have you home when you want to be. in 3 years they have failed 1 weekend for me, and they made it up by getting me a load that paid me $1000 for the weekend.

 

In the midwest (I lived in Indy during my time with TMC--right around the block from the terminal, for that matter), my take-home after child support (a huge chunk!), taxes, and insurance benefit deductions, averaged out about $630-$650. Up in the northeast, with all that same stuff going on it was closer to $700. That with weekly home time. If I chose to run, I could push that closer to $800.

What I WON'T tell you or anyone is that you'll be "balling" in the trucking world. The potential for higher income is there, but you pretty much have to run like a robot to do it. Some people take a perverse amount of pride in flaunting how much money they make in trucking...I never was one to prioritize it. There's much more to trucking than just $$$ (although that's like the big bait fish they'll dangle out there to draw people in). With me, I ran hard, but I also eventually got to a point where I knew my limits and didn't try to push past them, for the sake of my own safety. I think most drivers eventually get to that point and that's where the steadier income comes in. Took me almost three years, though. Lol

 

Running with TMC, what was your gross ? Before all the deductions if you can remember. My home area would be central Va location. Not sure on the loads in this area or home time availability.