Choosing between different schools [Need opinions].

5th wheel is good. A friend used them in New Liskeard and was recruited by Schneider through them.

 

The least of your worry will be finding a job. you should see the people they are hiring and giving control of 80,000lb of steel with no experience or knowledge or ability to even read road signs.

If you want to stay in Ontario look up Titanium Transport, they have regional drivers and home every weekend and hire people right out of school, they're in Bolton Ontario

 

I'll give you my experience with OTTA in Mississauga, but I can't speak for their other locations.

The first month was spent entirely in the class room--no practical experience whatsoever. Tests were administered after each chapter and the answers were given to you for the final TTSAO exam.

Airbrake course was three days--2 in class and on the third day you go into the truck with the instructor who guides you through the procedure and you are tested shortly thereafter. If you stumble, don't worry, they'll help you out--guaranteed to pass.

Spent one day on their $30,000 simulator which sits idle for most of the time. Will come back to this point when I discuss backing training.

Driving/practical experience were divided into two 2.5 hour blocks 4 to 5 times a week for 4 weeks--one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Each student receives, or is supposed to receive 2.5 hours of one-on-one driving with an instructor. If you are in the morning block you spend one hour doing pre-trip before your drive and if you are in the afternoon block you have to wait for the staff to finish their lunch and gossip before going for your drive--there was no pre-trip as pre-trip was was done in the morning and for some reason I guess they thought it would be a waste of time to do it again. Practically all my pre-trip was learned at home on my own time. I was in the afternoon block.

They promised me 90 hrs of driving time but my calculations amounted to roughly 55. Overall the driving portion was good but by far the easiest portion of the course. Drove lots of highway, through Caledon, the 401 all the way to Toronto and back, so I really can't complain too much about the driving portion except for the hours promised.

Yardwork was divided into blocks the same as driving except all students were included in each session. Yard consisted primarily of pre-trip, coupling/uncoupling, and backing which we only started learning two weeks prior to our test. Individuals who attended prior to my/our class who failed their tests were also allowed to attend these sessions. The pre-trip portion was a mess because the instructors not well versed in this area and gave out some wrong info which could have caused a student to fail their driving test. For example: In order to test for free play between the upper and lower coupler/fifth wheel.

1. What it is: Movement between the upper/lower coupler or free play of the kingpin in the jaws of the lower fifth wheel is limited by law to 1/2 inch or 13mm. In order to do this test the student must make two marks--one on the skid plate and one on the apron of the trailer after pulling the tractor forward. They must then move the tractor in the reverse position and come out to measure the marks for any movement. Movement in excess of 1/2 inch is defective. This is important because you may be asked to demonstrate this procedure on your drive test.
2. How they described this procedure: We were told that over time the lower fifth wheel can develop movement from where it sits on the platform which is attached to the frame. We were instructed to make a mark on the locking portion of the sliding fifth wheel lock and the frame then check for any movement. Totally wrong and would make you look like a complete idiot to the examiner at the drivetest centre.
3. Emergency and Safety Devices: Emergency and safety devices for a tractor-trailer consist of fully charged fire extinguisher, emergency triangles and a first aid kit. We were instructed, if asked about "safety devices" rather than "emergency" or "emergency and safety" devices at our drive test to mention things like the seatbelt, windshield wipers etc. because these are "safety" devices and that's what the examiner asked for, again making you look like an incompetent fool not worthy of having a class A license and potentially causing you to fail your test.

Finally, the most important aspect of truck driver training and what is going to determine whether you pass or fail your test--BACKING. We began to learn the backing procedure that was administered at our drive test in Guelph just two weeks prior to our test date and, regardless of your test date, all students including those that failed previously took part in these sessions. Sometimes there were about seven students in total during these short two hour sessions. It basically amounted to practicing the maneuver one time, twice if you were lucky and if the instructor didn't spend too much time blabbing away. They walked you through the maneuver step by step telling you when to turn and when to go straight and telling you when to stop before hitting the pylon in the back. We were also instructed not to look at the right side mirror because it would cause you to drift toward the right pylon. We had to perform the maneuver exactly the way the instructor wanted regardless if you were able to guide the trailer into the box using your own method--this is what caused me and others to fail our tests the first time. All of this could have been alleviated had they chosen to incorporate simulator training instead of having students stand around waiting for their one turn to back up the truck. What backing practice basically amounted to was one time a day, three to four times a week, two weeks prior to your test date with a lot of time standing around watching others back up and listening to the instructor blab on and on. Also, the test is performed using an automatic which goes on your drivers abstract.

Overall, for me, it was not worth the money I put into it--over $8500 for eight weeks training and a month trying to pass my test, about ten thousand total when you factor in transportation. It did give me some basic skills to build on but not enough to pass my test. I tried three times, failed twice on backing and one time for a careless mistake which was totally my fault for being inattentive. After running out of money I had to go on welfare and I am now redoing the course at another training facility which is run more like a real school. Classes are 8 hours a day and hands-on practical is administered together with class room time right from the get-go. Just two weeks in and I'm successfully pulling off 90 degree alley docks with no guidance from the instructor. I'm pretty confident that come my next test date that I will be successful and I will be doing my test in a manual and not a ####ty automatic. I won't mention where I'm attending for fear of sounding like a shill but, if you want to know, you can PM me and I'll gladly tell you.

 

Testing through OTTA Mississauga is done in Guelph--you'll be doing a driver's side offset for the backing maneuver and the circle-check is no longer part of the test. You are asked 4 randomly generated questions for the exterior pre-trip, 2 questions for the interior and you have to perform an in-cab check. Everything you need to know is in the truck handbook.

 

One thing that you should consider is fresh out of school you will know jack #### and when looking for a starter company the training program is the most important reason to go with that employer.