Trans Am Still

No I am in South Korea working and thinking about moving back to Indiana and get my CDL and start driving. I have been doing research for 2 years and still not sure. I will be 62 in December and thought about working until 66 and driving a truck and spending time with family and friends in the USA.

Money is tax free and pretty good here but really getting burnt out in Korea , been here for 10 years and traveled all over the world before that , getting homesick

 

I hear you I traveled extencively for work throughout North America and Europe. Actually got my MBA in England. I decided that I wanted to go into trucking basically because I have always wanted to do it. Now divorced kids are grown so I started researching earlier this year.. I like a lot of things about transam except the driver facing cameras.

 

All TransAm trucks do indeed have the DriveCam forward and inward facing cams. They have disabled the sun visor extension in the trucks so drivers can not cover the inward facing cam with it. If you cover it in any other way, while driving, you will get called on it. I believe you can cover the inward facing cam when you are parked and off duty and no one will have an issue.

The system also monitors your speed, if you go about 5-7 miles above the posted speed limit, you will get called on it. I got called on that one quite a bit (mountains of PA) but other than a reminder to watch my speed, no one ever made a big deal about it.

All trucks and trailers have satellite monitoring, TransAm will know where both your truck and trailer are at all times.

 

Yeah driving is something I think I would like and the wife will be going with me but these cams and a lot of other stuff these drivers go through make me ask myself is it worth it.
It would be great to have a nice truck and doing nothing but drop and hooks and seeing the country ,lol but don't think that's gonna happen.
Maybe something will work for me someday. That camera in my face is a deal breaker too , I could live with the forward facing one I guess.

 

Ever thought about just buying a travel trailer instead? After years of being overseas, would think you'd have a nice nest egg.

 

Well yes we have , and that is still a possibility. A lot of my family do the RV thing and we have talked about it. But for some reason I just want to drive a truck. I don't know why it just seems like it would suit the wife and I to do a little traveling in the USA
Nest egg is ok , its not about the money

 

Thanks for the info.. Well I can cross TransAm off my list.. Just see no reason for it. I appreciate the comments and advice but with the 5 other pre hire letters I will hold on to a little bit of my freedom just a bit longer..

 

I don't get the resistence to the cameras, they only record if triggered and they can save your bacon. One of my drivers wasted two days in court because he admitted to eating popcorn while in traffic and an idiot in a pickup cut in front of him and then collided with the car ahead causing my driver to hit the now two wrecked vehicles.

 

My resistance is based on the research I have done. Which shows that cameras (while in a few cases do save a drivers bacon) are just another tool that the carriers are using to benefit themselves. Whether they use it to save themselves from a law suit ( as most legal action will be brought against the carrier not the driver because he who has the money gets sued) or they use it to micro manage the drivers find fault with the driver to take action against him or to be misused and abused..

I have made a choice to join this industry fully aware that the carrier I drive for will have a tremendous amount of control over my life. I am fine with that but at some point enough is enough and I want to retain some of my freedoms and control no matter how small.. For example if a carrier were to say Donnie we want to install a driver facing camera in your truck.. Is that alright with you?? This is given me a choice and more importantly is involving me in something that does impact me personally.

Now if the carrier did that my response would be first to ask questions and after my questions were answered I very well may say Yes no problem I agree it is in my best interest as well as the companies. But that is not what is done. the only choice a driver has is to say I Quit and when he does that he very well may have something reported against him causing him problems to secure another driving job.. So that is really not a choice it is a mandate and another example of a carrier invoking authority power or control over a driver..

 

@passport thanks for bringing up about getting called about speed. Just got my first phone call. apparently I was caught new and 77 in a 55 zone going downhill on i78 with the Sun in my eyes. They didn't like my response