Home time

Work for a company with a terminal within an easy drive of your home. The easiest way to get home is for you to be near home when the truck comes back to the yard. New driver ROUTINELY ignore this type of advice, hire on to a company based 9 states away from home and only 1 customer in some driver's home state and then complain about never getting home. If you park the truck at the company yard you don't have to pay for truck parking when you are home or get parking tickets or notice from your homewoners association for parking commercial vehicles in a residential area. The company can do maintenance on your truck when you are home instead of waiting during the week, not getting paid, while mechanics do maintenance during the week.

SOME companies MIGHT route your load by your hometown and let you have time off with freight in the truck, most never do that.

 

The last company I worked for was based out of Minnesota and I took home time in Florida..They would get me a load delivering within 150 miles of my house then I would go home from there on personal conveyance line 5..(Some companies don't have this,so you might need to do a restart so close to home)

 

I agree. Find a company that is reasonably close to home. It's so easy to just park at the terminal. Then you can write up anything that is wrong with your tractor and they fix it while you are at home. Sitting in the shop is frustrating.

 

You dont get home time.
You'll see.

 

If you end up being serious about trucking move to ATL or Dallas. Youre halfway between already. 2nd option is once you get experience go work for an O/O who lives close

 

here's how it worked when I was over the road and doubt it's changed much compared to now.your dispatcher will find you a load as close as possible to your home.once youre unloaded you find a truckstop and drop trailer then bobtail home.but before you do make sure you ask the truck stop.your company may provide you with glad hand locks but if not then buy them at a truckstop and see if you can get reimbursed for them.

 

@ akfisher :Why would one go work for O/O once you get the experience ? You have it backwards. Once you get the experience, you would want to go work for a good company with good pay and benefits, and I don't mean the mega mill feeders.

 

Because Louisiana has a lot of O/O who dont lease to major carriers. I have heard before its not the easiest place to work out of.