Returning to Trucking

Apply for a Ohio DL and say you lost your Alaska DL and don't have it anymore.
DMV will do a computer check and see that you did have a Alaska DL, so that shouldn't be a problem.

 

companies not excepting the Ak d/l ,might be because you don't have big interstates to do OTR on.

maybe??

 

HMD Trucking, Inc.
Has cdl school either in Chicago or Gary, Indiana.

 

Tell them you no longer live in Alaska. Give them your Ohio address.
They'll all hire you with an Ohio Address.

 

Yes I'm just curious is the USA going the same way as Canada has where by regardless of what kind of experience a person has from driving that is no longer recognized? And a person is basically forced to spend a small fortune to get CDL training somewhere around $8000 which is totally ridiculous. Great for Driver training schools they must be rubbing their hands with glee right now in expectation. Can you image what would happen if universities and business applied the same principle and did not recognize prior learning?

 

I lived in Alaska for many years, and they have truck drivers up there? In fact they make some darn good money. You seem like your heart is still in Alaska, mentioning your Homestead and cabin and such. Why do you want to come to the lower 48 or you’ll probably get stuck driving for years and years before you can go back and visit. Trust me once you leave Alaska and start establishing routes in the lower 48 it’s not easy to go back up there.

 

The most likely reason they won't accept your Alaskan DL is your CDL must be issued in the state you reside in, so to keep you AK license you must claim Alaska residency. This conflicts with most companies hiring policies of only hiring from certain areas of the country.

Now for the training schools, again if they are sponsored through a trucking company they will only accept drivers that are qualified to work for the sponsor. Outside of company sponsored schools the issue is testing. I am a retired CDL examiner and know that it is currently possible to take the skills and road test in a different state, although not all states reciprocate as they should, so maybe the schools you have reached out to are not authorized to administer the skills and road test on behalf of Alaska? Could also be the problem that after testing you will need to appear in person in Alaska to have your upgraded class A CDL physically issued to you. The schools or perspective employers likely don't want to lose the time it would take for that to happen. They want you to generate revenue asap.

The best way for you to keep you AK DL and upgrade to an A is to go home to Alaska and complete the training and testing, then apply for jobs in the lower 48. Still unlikely to get hired except with the rare company that does runs between AK and the lower 48.

 

Usually no more than 1 year lapse, and even that is getting rare these days.

 

Remember, YAHOO -You Always Have Other Options. What if you just got your CDL in Alaska and didn't have to limit yourself to a training company? You can get the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) program and use FREE gub'mint money to pay for your CDL training.

Alaska's WIOA program info Click the, "Eligible Training Provider List" button near the bottom of the page, find a CDL school near you, contact them and let them know you want to train with them on the WIOA program. They'll hook you up.