TransAm wasn't too bad!

Pan Handle

Are you still at the terminal in Oletha ? If you are tell my hubby Hi. His name is Doug (Jack Knife) from Omaha.
He is also waiting to find out if he gets a truck or if their going to be sending him home. Hopefully well find out today.
At least you got to go do a recovery run that's better than sitting around for days.
Are you a company driver or lease and did you just graduate or have you been with TransAm for awhile?
I wish you luck and hope you can get out on the road or at least home for a couple of days.

Isa

 

Yikes, Good Luck maybe if your there long enough they'll put you in a dispatch chair. HA HA

 

d'kota,
Still in terminal. Thought I had a truck yesterday then it was taken away due to body damage. Seems to be a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing.Was given another truck after that, sat down to talk a few minutes, then had it taken away also and don't know why. Assume it was up there in miles.
Have been with T/A for # 5 months now, company driver. Refuse to do a lease till I know more about the business. Sides-from all I've read, by the time all the deductions are taken out and figuring in health care, taxes, IRAs, etc. You just don't end up making all that much leasing.
Was woken up this morning by some guy who had been assigned this truck to give road tests to new drivers. They have 41 in this orientation class. Wonder what they will do with them?
Will try to find Doug and say hi to him for You.

 

Don't have the college education or lack of commen sense to be a dispatcher. Side- -they have to to much.

 

Boy I just don't understand whey these companies take on so many new recruits before they place the last bunch. It doesn't make sense to me to pay all these people $350.00 a week plus their hotel bills to sit around and wait. I know TransAm isn't the only place that does this but I sure can't see the logic. From talking to my husband they just play cards and shoot pool and nap all day and of course walk to where ever they want to eat.
I know they think if they can just keep the people who want to be company drivers sitting they will eventually take a lease.
So Panhandler what's your opinion on TransAm's miles as a company driver? And also if you don't mind when you started with them where you able to get a truck right away or did you also have to sit and if so how long?
Hope you get moving soon.

Isa

 

I was wondering how many grads are still waiting in Olathe for trucks, I am supposed to go to orientation Feb4 but dont want to wait forever for a truck either. Is overall opinion of trans am positive?

Woofy

 

I don't have problems with TransAm.They have been real good. The only problem is how long the drivers are now waiting for a truck.
I suspect it's all because of the economy, according to what my husbands been telling me they use to have a high turn over because it's so many new drivers and once they get experience they move on for better pay or what ever reasons, But no one is leaving anymore so there for you have a truck shortage.
If you go lease they get you out right away but if you want to be a company driver you just have to wait your turn.
The rumor has it they had a meeting a couple of days ago to purchase more trucks to get these guys out making a living. But that's rumor! Who knows whats going to happen. Sounds like the freight is there but not enough trucks. I guess even if they gets more trucks it could be a couple of months to recieve them.
It's not just TransAm, all the training companies are having the same issues from what I've read. But like everyone here says you can't just listen to rumors. You have to do what's best for you.
In our case we feel like there's no choice but to sit it out and wait for a truck. My husband quit his job to get into trucking so there's no job to come back to.
He was working in manufacturing and all the jobs at his company are being sent over seas, so we made a decision to move on before he lost his job.
I don't regret our decision because eventually we'll have a future. Just hang in there and follow your gut.
Best of luck to you

 

I went lease right out of training and waited three days for a truck. It's not just company drivers that have to wait. The lease trucks and company trucks are in different pools and each pool runs short at times. I ended up with an '07 T600 instead of getting a 660. I asked to be put on the list for a new 660 and later had my name taken off. I like my truck, even if i could get a couple tenths better fuel economy with the 660.

I will agree with what was said above, it seems planning and dispatch have a lot of inexperienced folks working the keyboards. I don't envy their jobs at all, 20 odd dispatchers for a fleet of 1200+ trucks?? I can see why people leave! My dispatcher was off today as I came off home time and I didn't have a preplan. The guy covering his board was still able to get planning to give me a swap load delivering tomorrow night to get my week started. Some weeks the miles suffer, mostly because planning wont assign my next load before I deliver and I end up sitting a day (or three) before my next pickup. I've had numerous occasions to collect multiple doses of $85/day layover pay. Keeping in contact with my driver manager helps to avoid those situations most of the time. I just hate delivering on sundays because if i don't have a preplan by 5pm friday I can pretty much figure on sitting til Tuesday. Weekend planning and dispatch just can't cover the whole fleet by themselves.

That said, my average weekly miles over the last 20 weeks has been about 2550. I take maybe 3-4 days off per month and sit another 3-4 days per month collecting layover pay. I joke that if layover came out of the planners' salaries NO ONE would sit! I wish my mileage average was a little higher, sure, but I think the company does a good job and I have to give my driver manager kudos for "turning lemons into orange juice", as he puts it, on more than one occasion. I've had 3800-3900 mile weeks and 1300-1400 mile weeks. I've never been asked to run illegally and they've never had to swap a load off me to get it delivered on time. I don't get asked to do swaps at all unless I am going to or leaving the house. In fact, this last load I had delivered 10 miles from my house at 0900 and I had asked to be home at 0800 for an appointment. I told my driver manager about the time discrepancy and he arranged a swap at the nearest truck stop the night before so I could be home on time. That was cool.

Good luck to the new people. Just remember, its best to treat your driver manager like one of your best friends. We all have to deal with a lot of crap in trucking, and if you can be someone they like dealing with it makes getting your situations dealt with and your problems solved a lot easier. I think Trans Am is a pretty easy company to work for. When I get down on the company I like to remind myself that it's not what you think of it, it's what you make of it that counts. No company (or driver) is perfect.

 

TransAm is not a good company. Nuff said

 

good post about sums it up I was lucky got my truck 3rd day of rockwall
but other then that ANY job your Fm/Dispatcher is your paycheck and better be your best friend.