Abilene Motor Express....A New Place To Call Home

Welcome. If you have any questions, just ask.

 

Thanks!! I appreciate it guys,been tryin to read as much as a can about the company, the lady that helped me with the hire process seemed nice and informative lol but so has all the recruiters I've spoken to the last couple weeks so I've been takin everything over the phone as a grain of salt, out of curiosity how often does a driver swing threw the Richmond terminal as a regional driver?Also she(Trish i belive her name was) mentioned all the trucks were auto,is there no option for a manual? **shrugs** no biggie I suppose,,hahah also they mentioned tests at the end of each stage,what kind of tests? I'm assuming General knowledge of procedures and skill tests?

 

Take lots of notes during orientation and read the manuals they give you. All the answers are in there. There are no "gotcha" questions, the company just wants to make sure you know the things you should.

Expect to drive your entire shift once on a trainer's truck. My experience wasn't like what you may have read about other company training. The driving wasn't the problem, it was not knowing I would have to do 11hrs the first day, so I sat up in the passenger seat while trainer was driving when I should have been trying to get some rest.

Space on the truck is very limited, if at all possible carry money to buy food rather than try to cart a bunch of groceries with you. Eating out can get expensive, but if you don't worry too much about "healthy" choices you can get by on $10 a day eating at truck stops. I know everyone on this forum will say not to do that, but those guys aren't in training and have the luxury of their own truck set up for cooking etc. It will only be for a few weeks though so just bite the bullet...and the Subway.

 

what is the home time?

 

6 days out earns you 1 day of home time. Minimum of 12 days out. Maximum of 7 earned days off. Can't bank days off. If you have 4 earned days off and you only take 3 days, that 4th one goes *poof*.

If you have some kind of emergency, they're flexible and some or all of the above will go out the window. I had a sudden medical issue last week that required me to get home on short notice, and they got me home without worrying about the fact that I had only been out two days.

They've been pretty reliable about getting me home when I have approved hometime. Mind you, I live in Richmond where the main yard is. But the folks who live elsewhere (like Florida) seem to get home when they want pretty reliably.

 

Unless there is a hurricane that puts FL loads on hold. I was supposed to be home on Tuesday, but as I write this i am in deepest darkest NM.

It used to be 10 days off max or give up your truck if you wanted longer.