Need a recommendation for good driving school in VA

I went to Swift Academy in Richmond. Top notch school, and great staff. By the time you graduate, you *will* know the stuff needed to pass the test.

And contrary to what some will say, going to Academy does *not* obligate you to drive for Swift. About a third of my class went elsewhere.

 

Shippers is also in Chesapeake/Norfolk area.

 

Blue Ridge Community College in Verona is excellent.

 

If you don't mind traveling just a little...Johnston county Community college in Smithfield , NC is one of the best in the nation. about 3 to 4 hours down I-95 from you location.

 

Swift Academy is $3900, paid back at $75/week for 52 weeks. If you drive for them, they reimburse you at the rate of half that for twice as long; i.e. $37.50 for 104 weeks. If you need a place to stay, that's an extra charge. For us it was another $500 to stay at the nearby Candlewood Suites. (Very nice place.)

They had a thing going that if you paid up front, they would reimburse in a lump sum after six months of driving for Swift.

Richmond Academy is three weeks long, with Sundays off. The VA residents were testing at the DMV as soon as they were ready; some went on Tuesday the third week.

Remember, all schools "teach to the test". Once you get that Class A CDL in hand, it doesn't matter to the starter companies which school you went to; you are going to be spending some time (6-12 weeks) in a trainer's truck, learning how to be a trucker.