Looking for a paid cdl school!

Did you try Swift?
Try Swift and if that doesn't work, try the WIOA Program. This is free cdl school paid through the state of New York. After you graduate they're plenty of companies that will hire you on Craigslist or local cement companies or dump truck companies.
Put your location on your profile, so we don't have to dig for it. This way you might get some job leads from drivers familiar with your area.
V3 Transportation hires drivers with only a CDL Permit. The training is on-the-road with an experienced driver.

 

OK, try Swift and V3 Transportation.
With V3 you won't need cdl school, just a permit and they will train you.

 

Millis told me i needed a year before they would train me, that will be november. Are you saying i can go to swift before having a dl a year?

 

I don't know if you can go to Swift, but you can try.
I'd wait for Millis if possible. They're a good outfit with super nice trucks set up for driver comfort.

 

Just my $0.02 here, but in my experience, even most mega-carrier driver mills want to see 3+ years driving on a regular license. Also, after the fiasco a friend is going through with a local paid school, I'm not sure I would recommend a standalone school anymore.

Long story short, these idiots have already been paid and are jerking him around on qualifying seat time to meet state standards to take the DOT exam / road test. He should have had his Class A six months ago and he tells me there is a fellow from the class before his that still does not have theirs either. Chinatown has also given their advice on this situation in another thread of mine, you might check it out.

Due to tricky respiratory conditions that make working outside the truck a challenge (secondhand cigarette smoke and fumes are like Chernobyl to me from up to 200 feet), I am looking at Swift myself, because of the high percentage of drop-and-hook. They tell me, however, that their requirements are 12 months experience in the past 60 months. Whether that is because I am an experienced CDL holder or not, I do not know. It's always worth a call.

Little clarification on V3 per my experience in checking them out. They will allow a CDL instruction permit holder to use a licensed driver's on-duty/not driving time as instruction time to create what they call a '14-hour team'. Honestly sounds like a major pain in the a-s to me.

The licensed driver is paid by 1099, at which point they are responsible for paying you your cut, which at 2-3 hours a day, isn't going to be much. There is no withholding, and you will have to allow for this. Basically, you either make quarterly income tax payments, effectively doing the withholding yourself, OR pay any tax owed after filing. It WILL get you experience and qualifying time toward getting a CDL. Which is fine, but my understanding is that this route will lock you into straight trucks, as they will not put you into an 18-wheeler without 6 mos experience driving THAT type of truck.

What this means is that you will only be able to train on a straight truck, and thus only get a Class B license. At that point, you will, however, be able to run a full team on a straight truck, 11 hours each driver. And I hear expedited pays pretty good once you get in the groove. But running team is always ticklish. Unless you know each other well, both are laid back and you know you can occupy close quarters for weeks at a time without killing each other, I don't recommend it.

Then there's that pesky 6 mos Class A experience again. If I'm understanding what I was told by the recruiter... If you want a Class A, you'll have to eventually leave for another company that will train you for Class A license, or rent a truck and trailer to take your test when you are ready. At which point, V3 still would not put you in a combination vehicle without the prerequisite 6 months experience. V3 sounds like an alright company, but I feel like I'd be doing you a disservice by not explaining things in detail.

Mind you, there's nothing wrong with having a Class B vs a Class A, but it does limit your options. V3 has told me their trucks are pretty much auto-shifts, which will likely mean an auto-shift restriction that will further limit your options as you get more experience. There's no shame in driving an auto-shift straight truck if it pays your bills, just know that while this route will get you started, it will eventually require some fancy footwork to expand your future options.

Good luck to you.

 

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