TransAm Trucking On my way ...

Thats why I am going to try Schneider because it is only 2 weeks. I drove before and dont want to spend a lot of time since I do know how to drive.

 

I may have had stars in my eyes when I started looking for a place to work. However, the reason I am here on this forum is to make an informed final decision. I agree, 2 months is crazy. I wasn't really comfortable with that idea and with the "not knowing any better" I was about to suck it up. After reading a lot of posts here on TransAm, I feel that I am better informed than I was a couple weeks ago.

Swift is a good idea, but again I did hear a few horror stories while in school about them. I did cast around the forums to see who was a good company. What I found in my reading is that Roehl had really good reviews. I called them up to see what the deal was. I asked about how home time worked and they told me 11 to 14 days out 3 days at home. Whereas TransAm requires an 8 day notification and request when you want to be at home. So far, big difference. Roehl doesn't have a terminal in Florida, but they do have a drop yard I can use in Jacksonville, which is just north of me.

All I want to do is find a company that I feel comfortable with that I can cut my teeth on and feel happy about working for. I don't think that is too much to ask for or want. The trouble is that stars or no stars, making this decision as a student driver is difficult or near impossible when you have no foundation to compare things to. That's why I am here, that's why I am posting and that's why I am working so hard to gather this information.

I appreciate the input, thank you.

 

@xianoth If you stick to you guns and dont get talked into leasing then you will make a paycheck with Trans AM. one thing you may want to check if you havent allready is make sure you have a place where you can park the truck when you do get to take home time. The city I live in and the surounding citys will not let you park overnight unless its in an industrial area and have permission. That alone made things stressful If you cant work out parking in a resonable distance from you house then I would look at a companey that has a drop yard with in a reasonable distance. DO NOT trust your driver manager or the classroom instructers if thety tell you theres places to park untill you see the proof they are good at telling you what you want to hear not what you need to hear.

 

Like I said in another post, I'd add an addendum to their lease:

LO is guaranteed a mininum of 2800 miles per week. In the event that LO cannot attain said miles NOT due to driver availability, inclement weather, mechanical breakdowns, etc., Transam Trucking, INC. shall reimburse LO up to the amount LO would have made at 2800 miles.

NOW their lease is good.

This means if I'm available and they only give me 1600 miles in a week, I get reimbursed up to a 2800 mile paycheck. This means that if I'm sitting at a meat plant for 3 days waiting on a load, I don't have to worry about it.

Now it's not ME who won't sign the lease, but THEM.

And do you know why they won't sign the lease? Because they can't screw you then by cutting your miles. Oh they can still cut your miles, but you'll still be owed as if you ran a 2800 mile week.

Amazing how that one little paragraph changes everything. It's called "covering your ###".

 

Guess, I didn't read the whole thread... But how could a company possibly guarantee 2800 a week and remain profitable?

 

the man has a contract with the mad cow meat plants to haul so many loads per month at a certain rate, when i work there back in the 90's once maybe twice i dead headed from pa all the way to kansas, he's making good money, now the lease drivers are paying for all maintance and what ever else for the truck, his bottom line just keeps getting better

 

when did they throw that line in there, we will pay you if you don't make 2800 miles per week, HOLLEY COW, i sence to many drivers leaving and not enough staying to move the freight, GEE i just might come out of retirement for this one, please keep us posted on these new unheard of stats, ALSO hows those new MX paccar engines holding up and do they have any power, THANKS

 

Bikerdave...Read the line again, esp the underlined part!

Like I said in another post, I'd add an addendum to their lease:

 

Yea, It's the "cover my #####" part of their lease that I would add.

Of course, they'll never agree to it, which is fine. I'll just be a company driver.

I'm not a newbie. I've been to the slaughterhouse in Dodge City Kansas. I know what its like to "hurry up and wait" when dealing with meat haulers. Sit for 3 days waiting for a load, and the bills keep coming. The bills certainly don't wait 3 days because you were sitting waiting. Transam doesn't pay detention pay.

And .84 cent per mile for a lease, and understand this, NOT a lease purchase, is the lowest rate I've seen for Lease Ops. At the end of the lease, you still have to buy the truck (if you want to own it). No thanks. Hell, Heartless Express pays .95 cent a mile for lease ops and they have a Southeast Regional. If I was going to be a lease op, I'd at least try them out first.

 

Look at this way too, how as a Lease Op making only .84 cent per mile can you NOT go in the hole unless you make at least 2800 miles a week?

You'll need to run at least 1800 or so to break even, and then the other 1000 is simply what you'll need to save to buy the truck and pay your at home bills. Transam's Lease is NOT a lease purchase, so where's the money going to come from for you to buy the truck?

Also, I have a sneaking suspicion that Transam is getting A LOT MORE THAN .84 cent per mile to haul these loads. They're merely giving YOU .84 cent per mile. They may be getting $1.84 per mile to haul these loads and giving you the .84 cent and YOU have to pay for everything else out of that, including THEIR truck payment (because its NOT a lease purchase).

If they weren't MAKING MONEY off this lease, they wouldn't be doing it. And I imagine they are making A LOT of money off this lease "deal".

Transam just bought 100 Million dollars worth of new Kenworth Trucks not too long ago. Does that give you any idea of how much they are making?

Some people were born at night, but not last night.