Stevens Transport

they dont do dumb and dumber anymore. you can start training for 3 weeks at houston community college. after you finish that, you will go to dallas and be sent out for 5 weeks with a trainer. when thats completed, you go home for 5 days and then return to dallas once again and are sent out with a finishing trainer for 5 more weeks. so far ive only been to the school in houston 3 days and so far everything is good there.

 

They just got rid of the training team deal few months ago now they do 3 weeks with a finishing trainer.

 

I vaguely remember working for Stevens back in the late 80's.. They wern't nuch good then and from what I've heard from a buddies cousin who is there now.. things haven't changed much..

Problems with trainers are unbeliveable. This guy had like 4 trainers.. For various reasons he got outa the truck and was sent to another.. (I won't get into details unless someone wants me to)?

Now Steven's is pushing the good ole' "Lease Purchase" trying to entice him into going O/O!!! He has maybe 5 months experiance! Are they insane? I'm an O/O myself and have tried to reason with him. He thinks .80 cpm is going to make him a whole lot more $$ than he's making now... I try and tell him to read the lease crunch the #'s and the miles you'll need to be successful..

Why a company will even contemplate signing up someone so soon after getting their license is beyond me.. I wonder how they sleep at night.. How many deaths have resulted from this sloppy business practice.. How many financial lives ruined?

No cruise... no jakes... sounds too familiar.. The reasons for them doing this elude me.. To this day I don't see a reason why they shouldn't allow jakes and cruise at teh drivers discression.. How the heck is he suppose to learn how to do it right if it's disabled from the start?

Enough venting.. I'll get off the soapbox for now... Has anyone recently leased a truck from them? What were their leasing "highlights" Like rate per mile, lumpers, fuel surcharge, base plates, and permits.. ect. How about the payments.. is it weekly? How much?? Insurance?? Workmans Comp.? ect.. You get the idea.. I'm gonna try 1 more time to rationalize with my friends cousin with some real #'s and if that doesn't work.. I'll give up and let him learn his own lesson..

 

Two students to a truck?! That makes no sense but only to the company. If problems arise who do you go to? Problems will arise, we all know that. As with who drives when and who sleeps were that's all minor. As a previous poster sad before get to know someone and understand them. If you both click then request that person. Is it perfect? No, but it may help somewhat on the road. The both of you need to focus on the job at hand and not minor things taht can get you both killed. Imagine being ticked off about you partner because he wanted to sleep on the top bunk and you have to drive on the road at night. I know I wouldn't be able to sleep good. All it takes is one mistake. Goodbye world, hello heaven. It's just not worth it. Be a man and man up to the situation. You'll be better for it in the end.

 

ok
as i understood it from when i was there the lease program paid anywhere from .80 to 1.10cpm depending. the fuel surcharge was 90% and floated based on mpg avg and fuel prices. truck payment was weekly and ranged between 700 and 900 a week depending on truck leased which was usually a truck that someone else already leased once and paid off or completed if you were a 1st time leaser.... this payment included the truck payment base plates and ifta i believe i think your insurance was extra and had to carry bobtail insurance also

 

Hi all- I have spent several weeks reading posts on here trying to decide which company to start with. I have some experience with being gone from home long periods of time and some experience with life on the road.I ave always enjoyed the open road so that is why I decided to jump in and become a truck driver. I am about to sign on with Stevens Transport and have read alot of negative things about them. I think if I go there and suck it up for 3 months and get through the training with a good atitiude everything will work itself out.
Just my thought.

 

I don't know brother...keep searching. I'm in the same boat and I'm going back on the road and i'm gonna do it with a better company that will hire from my area. I used to work for CRST and one of the reasons I left is bcuz of how they run their team operations. they press you to try to go on as a driver/trainer AFTER 6 MOS if you don't have a partner...which is QUITE OFTEN if y'all don't get along or one of u quits.

They can't find a partner for you but as SOON as u get hungry for miles and more $$ and sign up as a driver/trainer...A NEW TRAINEE COMES OUT OF THE BLUE FROM YOUR AREA!!!! It was like they had more driver/trainers than regular drivers!! And that was back in '03!!!

Point is: I couldn't deal with the idea of trusting my life to someone who has just as much - OR LESS - training and experience as me. I DON'T CARE WHAT OTHER PEOPLE TRUSTED ME OR DID IT WITH NO PROBLEM!! I can sleep in the truck while is moving. But not if I don't COMPLETELY trust the driver. I'm sure most would agree.

And I can deal with 3 maybe 4 weeks of training, and more if necessary, but 5 MANDATORY?! THAT'S CRAZY!! And then they don't let u have a truck with cruise control??!! I thought that was supposed to be BETTER for fuel economy!! I can kinda understand that thay may not want to let students get sleepy easily behind the wheel using it.

But no JAKE BRAKE??!! I LOVE MY JAKE BRAKE!! You're supposed to learn IN SCHOOL - it's in the CDL manual - not to use it in bad weather!!!! I loved the sound of the Jake brake since I was a kid in my GRADE SCHOOL CLASSROOM listening to the distant sounds from the hwy!

Any company that does THOSE things OBVIOUSLY seems like it's not the place for me to work. Let alone learn in. I hope some others feel the same and don't get caught up in the BS. U see the signs...

 

Hell other companies such as rhymes with Time will put a driver straight off his 30k training in a lease..

 

Stevens Teaches how to properly decend a mountain without using the jake during training, but it is available from the start. A long time ago they kept it turned off/unavailable for a period of time but that was long passed.

 

30K training?