Should i gain experience OTR before i go into LTL?

I must be crazy, I went straight into local p and d in chicago, most people I work with have never been otr

 

I am speaking on what I know of my terminal with Averitt

 

A lot of smaller companies bring in guys with no experiance. Also, typicly the more physical labor needed the easier to get the job

 

OTR is over the road 2-3 weeks at a time. LTL is light truck load usually home every day

 

LTL is less than truckload (the shipments are as little as one pallet, or one piece of pipe or whatever). LTL has 2 types of drivers: P&D and linehaul.

P&D are the drivers who deal directly with customers doing deliveries in the morning and pickups in the afternoon. You get to be an expert at ninja pallet jack maneuvers.

Linehaul are the drivers who move that freight between company terminals, usually at night. It arrives in another city and the P&D driver there is the one who gets to deliver the stuff you picked up yesterday.

 

And the answer to the thread question is "no". You will get more experience backing under more difficult circumstances in one day doing LTL P&D work than the average OTR driver does in 2 weeks.

If you want to be home everyday, go LTL. Those opportunities didn't used to exist for drivers with less than 3 years experience, so I would jump on it. If you want "adventure", go OTR.

 

This is perfectly explained and right on the money !!!

I should consider doing line haul if my lady starts pissing me off

 

@Bob Dobalina explained it perfectly. Lots of knowledgeable folks on this site, I suggest spending some time here. I've been trucking my whole adult life and I still consistently learn things by reading this forum.

 

Me too, I jumped right into LTL food service in nyc, being a country boy all my life it sure was eye opening