I am going to get my CDL in about 2 weeks from TDI. I have been researching for months trying to find a good company to work for. Does anyone know if CT Transportation (the flatbed division of Comcar industries)is a good company to start out with and work for. THanks. If not. Anyone know of a company near Huntsville, Al that is worth it. I'm single and am trying to get out of this $10/hour slump at a hotel i am working at. I would basically just like to catch up on some bills and save a little money. I'm not terribly in debt, and i'm not expecting to get rich off of truck driving(just thought i would add that i'm not over expecting anything just incase people would get that from my post.)I just want a good company to work for with some decent pay.

I have searched and searched and i havent found anything bad about this company. It is a private company who has around 500 trucks.

I am hoping to get a job with $600 a week bring home pay. By saying that. Did i just contradict what I said about not expecting to get rich off of truck driving? I find that more on the reasonable side though compared to the $800 - $900 a week that the schools say you will make.

THanks for any honest advice anyone can give.

I was prehired by CT. You'll do eight weeks ( I think it was) with a trainer at $500 a week, then .32 cpm mile after that. They rely heavily on the construction industry and I was told the drivers are averaging around 2200 miles a week with the current economy. Make of that what you will. My brother worked for CTL a few years ago, and liked them, don't know if all ComCar companies are run the same though. They have pretty nice looking Macks, and I think they are autoshifts. I would have accepted the job but Roehl found a place for me in the flatbed fleet so I stayed. I know McElroy runs out of Alabama too. I've heard decent things about them, so they may work for you. I see a lot of Jordan down in that area too, but not sure where their home terminal is.

__________________
This is my winch bar. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my winch bar is useless. Without my winch bar, I am useless.

And also if you have any info on the shape their equiptment is in and how much they pay by the mile that would be great too. I trusted the Marine Corps Recruiters too much when i joined them, so i dont want to put all my questions in the hands of a recruiter.

Thanks

Reply to Dr. Venture

thanks for the info. i couldnt find anything on milage on their site or anything about training pay. SO how is Roehl working out. I have seen quite a few post where people said they switched to Roehl. Whats the average miles they give you there and do they let you keep your truck with you.

Thanks

The nice thing is they will have you home every weekend. That being said, you may get home Friday afternoon and leave Monday morning, or you may get in Saturday morning and leave Sunday night. Just long enough for a reset. But you have a better chance of running through the house during the week. When you are with a trainer you still get the weekend off, but it's at his home. So you'll be in a hotel while he's at home.

__________________
This is my winch bar. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my winch bar is useless. Without my winch bar, I am useless.

Roehl has been good to me. I am sitting at 7500 for this month so far, usually end up right around 10000 for the month. You can expect to be out two plus weeks, but when it's time to head for the house they are pretty good about hitting the date you ask for. You can take your truck and trailer home, but need a 'secure' place to park it. There is quite a bit of freight in Alabama, so you should have no problems no matter who you go with. Our equipment is pretty decent, I have an 07 Freightliner with an APU, so I can't complain. Our mileage pay and tarp pay just went up too. We are also the safest flatbed fleet in the industry.

__________________
This is my winch bar. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my winch bar is useless. Without my winch bar, I am useless.

Well, it seems no one else has any info on this company. So in comparing your experiance with Roehl and your brothers with CT. What do you think a best option for a beginner driver is. I would like to get in the Flatbed division of Roehl if I did choose them. I am going to school on Aug. 11th. But it is nerve racking to decide on that first company.

I have heard many good things on Roehl and have read many on their DAC. But CT doest have a DAC report. Neither does their parent company Comcar, so the only info from drivers i have is from you on that company and i appreciate it.

So based on your experiance. What company would you suggest for a begginer. Roehl or CT Transportation.

do they also pay the same milage with no load? (Roehl)

My brother said ComCar treated him decent. He worked for the bulk tanker division (CTL) though, not for CT. The drivers I talked to on my own seemed happy enough with Coastal. All said they do get home every weekend, but the miles are slowing down.

Roehl does pay empty and loaded at the same rate. I think for a new driver it's .31 for the first six months, plus tarp pay. Don't expect to be home every weekend with Roehl though, unless you are running the 7/7 or 7/3/7/4 fleet. The practical miles are fairly accurate. Since I've been keeping track of dispatched vs. driven miles most, but not all, loads have been within 20 miles. The flatbed division here is pretty laid back, though we have our issues too.

For being new, I'd probably say Roehl is your better option. Time with a trainer is shorter than CT, getting you on the road and making mileage pay faster. I have heard that CT uses new drivers as cheap labor by keeping you with a trainer for so long, but that's just what I've heard. We spend most of our time in the Midwest though, so if you're looking to stay Southeast, CT is better. It's really a give and take. Roehl won't push you to run illegal, I don't know about CT. You'll probably make more money with Roehl, but again, that comes with being National and not running a specific region. The quality of equipment looks about the same, though I don't think CT is getting APUs.

It's been said a million times on here, go to Roehl for a good training experience; then when you can, get out. Whether or not that's true, I'm not sure. I do have plans on leaving, but not at any fault of Roehl. I just see something more attractive that will benefit me more.

Also, our flatbed fleet is the safest in the industry, so that may be something to look at too. Despite what anybody thinks of us, the statistics talk.

__________________
This is my winch bar. There are many like it, but this one is mine. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life. Without me my winch bar is useless. Without my winch bar, I am useless.