Central Refrigerated Truck Stop

I would plan on needing 300 bucks when you go to orientation.
This is after license and the 100 bucks they charge you when you get there for background checks and such.
If you have to wait for a trainer you may need more than 300.
They will offer you an advance after orientation, I personally would not take it unless you have too. Save it for emergency.
It will be a week and a half too two weeks till you get a training check. The 450 is before taxes, and they will not start charging you for school till you upgrade to your own truck.

As a company driver one thing you need to remember about pay is that .08 cpm is per-diem.
This is helpful in a way. It will basically make it so that your gross and take home will be the same on the check. The per-diem covers up what the taxes take out.

I would plan on averaging 700 a week take home, when I started at Central I was taking home an average of around 800 per week, good weeks were around 1000.
I am not hearing from many that are making that now. I was maxing out the miles.
So plan your finances on 650-750 per week take home. Remember that it will cost you 100+ per week to live on the road, even if you are frugal.

 

Congrats Niners. I hope to post that message in about a month =) Oh and Chrome... thanks for the continued help and information that you have provided all over these boards. I hope to meet you and thank you in person some day.

 

I live in Jamestown NY, so it is very possable we can meet some time.

 

Yeah thats not far at all. I live near Syracuse right now but originally from Buffalo.

 

central will charge you for over idle and deduct it from your pay. Basically you are allowed to idle 30% in the summer and 20% in the winter. So time your engine was running and actually driving and the percent you idled and not drove.

and what you do in states that make idling illegal, you have to balance your need to rest comfortably against the chance of a possible fine. In California it's a $400 idle fine, I know because I was almost fined, but had medical reasons to be exempted and I asked the CARB inspector what the fine would have been.

The qualcomm in the truck tracks your idle percent, and eventhough the truck is equipted with ICON or TAS idle control system, basically you can set a temperature you want the cab at, and it will start the truck and idle it until the temp cools or rises to the set point, then shut the truck off. But this also goes against your idle percent.

on a totally unrelated side note, I hack or modify almost all my electronics, my cell phone is jailbroken, I download DVD's, mod my ham radio gear, and other types of equipment and electronics. So if there is a hack or work around for anything I generally find it.

 

Thanks for the answer bigrigtruckdriver. It's not the answer I wanted to hear. I may reconsider signing with Central. I feel that sleeping is going to be hard enough in a cool truck but not very good in a hot truck. I know that it isn't hot everywhere in the summer like it is here. But having to sleep in a hot house would be a deal breaker for me.

 

Sorry for the double. Don't know what happened.

 

Is there a starter company that provides APU's? I definitely try to stay on a night sleep schedule to help with the cooling issue. Haven't got charged for over-idling. I do hang out in the truckers' lounge while loading/unloading where able. Also, purchased a folding chair to sit in the shade between trailers and below the cool air escaping the warehouse/trailer during loading/unloading. Good place for reading or computing if you have an air card.

 

congrats... now let the real punishment begin!

 

Company drivers have the Icon system installed in their trucks. It keeps keeps the inside of the truck at a certain temp range that is specified by the driver and it starts and shuts off the engine to heat/cool the truck to reduce idling. so 30 to 20% isnt that bad unless you arent getting any loads at all.