Any Marten or New Century Transportation drivers out there?

I drove for Crete for 3 1/2 years up until 2/09 and putting it lightly they really went downhill during that time.

One thing I hated about working for them after the freight levels dropped is they kept hiring enough drivers to fill their orientation classes every week- all while there was nowhere near enough work for their current pool of drivers to stay busy. Once I took notice of that I quit doing road tests for them out of protest. It was nothing to be parked empty in a truck stop for 4 days (with NO layover pay) before being assigned a load out of there.

The Optimized Idle on most of their company trucks is a real joke, as it's hard to sleep with the engine starting up and shutting down throughout your rest periods, not to mention the inconsistent temperatures in the cab & sleeper making it harder to sleep whenever climate control was needed.

Crete does not allow any power inverters larger than 300 watts to be in their trucks, and that makes it impossible to use a microwave oven in there.

I didn't fret too much when they cut the top road speed on their trucks back to 62 MPH until I noticed how much it kept the Detroit engines from operating in their normal 'torque curve', making it very hard to pull the hills.

I went more in-depth about Crete's shortcomings in other posts I've made. Check them out and take note of the consistencies of the complaints among other Crete drivers.

Even Marten (with their recent changes) is looking pretty attractive right now, considering how few companies are hiring these days, especially out of San Antonio where I live.

 

Good Luck LooneyTune!!!!!!!!!!! Keep us posted .

 

I wasn't a Marten driver for long, 1.5 weeks to be exact, so I'm not the most qualified to comment. I bumped a JB Hunt container (I know, I should have GOAL'ed), no damage whatsoever, he already had rusty gashes from being loaded on rail cars and such. Long story short, JB Hunt driver, fearing for his job, reported the incident, I was fired 2 days later.

Not trying to sound like sour grapes but I thought they were just going to take some of my points away (12) and I would just have to be more careful. Those are the breaks, but it seems like the co's hold all the cards these days.

My point is, maybe you want to avoid such a fire happy co..

 

That sux bro i hope the best for u

 

LooneyTune, with New Century it's all about YOUR attitude. Been there 4 years, and I see drivers come and go often. I make about $80k, home most weekends--made about $85k before we had to match the QC exactly. But, it's not Burger King, you don't get it your way. As long as you use NCT as a tool to make money, you're fine. They are not going to hold a driver's hand or be their friend. They've all got a south Philly attitude in the office. No joking. No smiling.

Just find an area that's past your house, and work with outbound to go to that area to get your hometime. It's easier that putting in for hometime in the computer. When working your freight, always be ready to do what that area's dispatcher needs. It will put you on his side quickly. There are enough drivers that buck the dispatcher that he will look to the drivers that work well with him.

Good luck, it's not perfect--you're their slave, but a well paid slave. Remember attitude.

 

I am looking hard at switching jobs myself. Eastern is making alot of changes and I don't feel welcome there anymore what with all the pay cuts, changes in insurance plan, suspended bonuses, 401k's etc. It has been going down hill for a while to say the least.

Here Is what I need to make an informed decision. Details about any yards, terminals, or regular customers around Harrisburg Pa that would permit me to get home on a regular basis. Who is the medical insurance provider and how much would the premium be for family coverage?

I am also checking into a company named Payne which is advertising up to .54 cpm that services the east coast. Anyone got more details on either company???