New driver in N,C. What can I expect

Its going to be tough landing a gig taking home $700 as a new driver. Most drivers take home $400-$600 as new drivers working for the mega-carriers. Do the math...

$.30 a mile x 2500 miles a week = $750 gross. This figure is if you run 2500 miles every week and never go home.

Trucking is not like a regular job either. Some weeks you could make nothing. Some weeks you could be in the negative!

Your absolute best chances for success will be to go with a smaller carrier. They usually pay more and certainly run more miles than the mega-carriers. The difference in companies is in the dispatchers.

Another benefit is that smaller companies run paper logs and this allows you to be able to make a little more $$$.

If you are currently making $550 a week at home, personally I would go with that. Its much easier to pick up some side work or another part time job to make a little more money and still be home every night. Hell, you could make a couple hundred extra bucks a week just selling crap on ebay or craigslist!

Another thing to consider is that every time you go home it messes up your pay for three weeks. The week trying to get home is slow, then the week you are home is null, then the third week heading back out is slow because you are trying to get back into the freight lanes and the flow of things. A driver that never goes home has a much higher average then the rest. Once you average in home time for a year worth of driving it really brings that weekly average down. Probably looking at more like $300-$400 a week. This is why it is so important to stay out there and drive.

 

A couple of companies to check:
$700.00 a week is actually low for tanker drivers.
Should be able to take home $700.00 with most food service companies, such as U.S. Food Service. Check Careerbuilder website.

Florida Rock & Tank
Martin Enterprises of the Carolinas Inc.

 

I'm into my 4thweek driving otr. I decided to go with a smaller carrier because I realized that I will get more miles. My first week out I got 3950, second week I got 3500, third week I got 3910. Each week I was home either Friday or early Saturday morning. At. 37cpm I am taking home over 1000 a week. It can be done you just have to find the right company. Most companies will not hired over the road drivers with less than 1 year experience otr. I had 6 years local experience and a clean driving record so they took a chance with me

 

$425.00 A WEEK TAKE HOME PAY IS EXCELLENT PAY.

That is the equivalent of $10.62 an hour, EXCELLENT TAKE HOME PAY, especially for a single person located in central North Carolina.

What company were you working for? What kind of work did you do?

 

Local delivery job driving a straight truck. 8 years with company. No raises in 8 years. 12 bucks an hour. Starting jan 1st they took away paid holidays and vacation and cut.our hours back.

 

Alsi, we work 45 hour shifts, no overtime anymore

 

Clearly you don't live in central nc

That pay sucks.

 

My type of driver. Did the legwork to find the money, got behind the wheel, and cranking out the miles. This is what we call a trucker.

 

Congratulations!

God bless you and your family! God bless the U.S.A.!

 

It's definitely a commendable work ethic. However, I feel that even the pay that he is reporting is not worth that much effort. Based on the challenges of regulatory compliance, certification requirements, odd hours, time devoted to work that goes unpaid, and the requirement of living away from home without basic facilities, OTR drivers should be earning a minimum of $52K annually, and driving no more than 40 hours per week at that rate.

This "I need miles to make money" mentality needs to stop. How about "I need money for ALL the work I do"?