JTL truck driving school, Omaha, NE

I have been going to class for a week now and love it. The instructors are great and very patient with all the students. There are 4 students in my class and it makes it very nice having the time for everyone to get there questions answered. They have 4 trucks for driving, and have them all equipped with video cameras that show the driver, where the truck is heading, the left side facing back, and the right side facing back. They video tape all of your driving so you can take it home and review it. I have found this very helpful in figuring out where I was making my mistakes in shifting. They split us up into 2 trucks so 2 students per truck makes for a nice amount of driving each day. Ok the school costs $4040 dollars for a 4 week course. They are an independent school but work closely with Werner.

Ok a description of my first week. On day one we spent the morning watching several videos and going through the general section of the cdl book and having a test over the material and then going over the test to help us understand any mistakes we made. The afternoon was spent in a truck. The instructor took us out for a drive so we could see and feel how the truck maneuvers, shifts, brakes and so fourth. Once back at the school he lined up the truck in the straight backing lane and had us each take turns backing. Wow in the truck and in the drivers seat on the first day. Day two started with taking a review test over the General knowledge section, and going over it again for anything else we had questions on. Ok now we are off to the DMV to take our general knowledge test and get our CDL learners permit. Back to class and more videos. After lunch back out to the truck for some drive time. The instructor drove us to what they call the shifting circle. It is a 1/2 mile road that loops around some industrial sites with very low traffic. It has some gradual turns and a couple tighter turns. We get to drive around the circle several times to get used to shifting enough to get out on the road which was about an hour and a half for me. Then it was off to the main roads. I did ok and was nervous as hell the first time. Wow got to go out and drive on the second day of class. Day 3 more videos more practice tests. After lunch back out in the truck this time we spent most of our time doing our 90 degree back into an ally. This is much harder than I thought but not to bad. I got it everytime with only one pullup. Then we did our straight back and well this is easy as pie. After this we went back out on the road for awhile. Day 4 Pretty much the same thing. I felt much more comfortable driving by this time. I improved my shifting a ton. Day 5 more videos and practice tests. This day driving was great. I made almost all of my shifts and recovered very quickly when I didnt. This school is very good in my opinion. I cant wait for next week.

 

ok I am 3 weeks out of school and now in training at TMC. I would have to say that JTL did a great job of preparing me for my future in the trucking industry. My 12 days of orientation at TMC was pretty easy compared to others that were there. They complained about the amount of driving and the amount of information they learned at there schools. I ended up getting the Achievement Award for my class at TMC. I feel that this was mostly in part to the training at JTL. I highly recommend this school to anyone wanting to get into the trucking industry.