If you plan to stop driving for awhile do not make the same mistake I did!

Many drivers go local right out of cdl school and do the entire career as a local driver. The myth is a new driver must pay dues by going OTR first; that's just a myth.
Just depends on what's available in your area. Friend of mine hated OTR and got a job with Waste Management and made $65G the first year.

 

Another driver, right out of cdl school, got a job fueling locomotives and made $85G the first year.

 

The driver I mentioned that fuels locomotives, at first wouldn't apply because the website had, "12 mos. experience required", so I told him to apply anyway. He did and was hired.
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Where are you located that a studio apartment is $1200 monthly. That's a pretty common rent in most areas.

 

If you want OTR with a tanker company, first you must live in the hiring area and then must attend a cdl school the company hires from.
Here's an example:
Eagle Transport Corporation | Truck Driver Jobs | Rocky Mount, NC
Must graduate from a 200 hr. cdl school that Eagle approves.

 

HOME | tidewater-transit
Must live in hiring area.
Professional driving school graduates considered from approved accredited cdl schools.

 

Bulk Transportation Services | Schneider
Must live in the hiring area.
Hires from some cdl schools and has their own in Indiana.
Once graduated, the student will attend tanker school in PA or TX.

 

Coastal Transport Co., Inc.

• Graduate of a CDL Driver Training School within 12 months of application. School must be on the Coastal approved list.

 

Thanks for the warning. You make a good point. Lots of drivers that stop driving think the only way to keep their CDL is to keep getting a new DOT medical card. You don't have to do that. Just change your self-cert to one of the categories that doesn't require any DOT medical exam. Also, if a driver has a HazMat endorsement and stops driving, go to the DMV and trade your current CDL for one without a HazMat. If you have a HazMat endorsement and you just let it get old and expire, you will likely have your CDL downgraded to a simple passenger car license. Several states have this procedure. I don't know if all states have this. Anyone with HazMat needs to find out if their state does this before your HM expires.