TMC from the inside

Thanks for the info.

 

I just heard a presentation from a TMC recruiter to the 3rd party school that I earned my CDL from last week. I had initially planned to attempt to get on with Schneider's Tanker Division, but the TMC recruiter's presentation sounded fantastic. At this point, I am hoping I can be a good fit for TMC, but I have one issue that I was hoping to get some feedback about that really has me in a quandary. We were told that here in the Pittsburgh area, we would be home most weekends, but we would need to take our trucks and trailers with load, "home" with us. I don't live in a rural area and don't have the space to put my unit on my property. The recruiter said that is not uncommon, and he suggested that I park it in a big parking lot nearby. Well, I live in the burbs where there is a plethora of retail store lots, but I've never seen any trucks/trailers parked in any of them unless they were making a delivery. Additionally, the retail parking lots in the area around my home, specifically prohibit trucks from parking there. Has anyone who drives for TMC or another company that had a similar "take your unit home with you weekends" policy, have any hints or ideas for how to get over that hurdle? Because I don't want to go forward with trying to get on with TMC until I know that it won't be an issue for me. Thanks for any feedback!

 

You might try parking in a lot of one of TMC's customers, a Lowes or Home Depot for example. Just a thought. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

I stay overnight at them a lot...however I don't think they'd appreciate a truck there for more than one night. You ask however, and get permission though.

 

Thanks for your feedback Xile and Noggin. There's a Lowes a mile from my house. I'll stop to check there and inquire at other large retail lots to see if there is a protocol for truckers to park on their properties.

 

also look for little strip malls with a decent size area in the back. Ask the landlord if you can park there, out of the way where you won't be bothering anyone. Don't be afraid to pay a little if it's required though. If you'll be going home every weekend, then you shouldn't be staying more than 34-48 hours. I can see some places charging maybe $20 a day for you to park it in one of their docks they aren't using.

 

When I worked at TMC I had problems with parking my truck. I parked it in Pet Smart/ Home Depot lot before but twice got my fuel tanks sucked dry. When I filed the police report they said its illegal to park there as the township actually owned the parking lot. But lots of trucks park there to this day. I moved it to a Lowe's parking lot that I used to work at. I parked it where there were cameras (and it was brighter) and I had permission from the main store manager.

Depending on your location if its in a bad neighborhood deemed by TMC they can require you to have it parked in a fenced in secure lot. You can never disconnect the trailer though and just drive the tractor home.

Other choices for parking would be truck stops (ask first) or other local trucking companies which may or may not charge you a parking fee. One place I asked wanted to charge me $150 a week even though it be parked only on weekends. Also if TMC policy is the same if the temperature drops below 15F or whatever it might be you have to keep the truck running unless it can be plugged in. So on extreme cold winter weekend nights you might have to baby sit it.

 

That is some good useful information FirNaTine. Just the kind of information I felt the recruiter was trying to avoid touching on, when I asked him the question at his presentation. Without the parking problem though, I like everything else I have heard about TMC.