Western Pennsylvania a good freight lane for TCD?

You close to Erie? Roberts has a newish temperature controlled warehouse out by Harborcreek/North East area.

Downside to living in Western PA and running either TCD or flatbeds, expect to see New England on a regular basis. Dispatchers seem to think us Western PA residents pretty much live in New England and love NYC! It's an on-going fight I have with my own carrier.

 

How about that! I live in Meadville, myself!

Better option would be to go talk to Careerlink about WIA funding for your upgrade. There's a CDL school over in Franklin. That way, you are not beholden to some ripoff outfit that's just gonna jack you around.

Also, if you don't mind working for a living, look into flatbedding instead of reefer. Better chance of avoiding the black pit of despair that is NYC that way. A large amount of the reefer freight rolling through PA is NYC bound, and you'll get a bunch of it as "go home" loads, provided your carrier of choice actually lets you go home.

 

Ok, in that case look at Stevens Transport out of the Dallas, TX area. They have their own school, and require a, I believe, one year commitment. Company itself isn't all that great in my opinion but the schooling and subsequent training is some of the best available. Swift, Prime, and I think Roehl all also have schools (and commitments) and all also have TCD divisions.

Grab your PC or laptop and start applying. Remember, a year isn't really all that long in comparison to the rest of your life. Just because you start with a training company doesn't mean you have to retire from that same company. Get your time in, keep your nose clean, and at the end of your contract start looking at your options. Above all, DON'T LEASE UNTIL YOU HAVE AT LEAST TWO YEARS OF EXPERIENCE!!! Trust me, you'll thank me later.

 

Swift ain't actually as bad as they used to be. They still have a bunch of BS rules, but they do seem to be at least trying to improve. They others aren't bad as long as you stay on the company side. Yes, there are better carriers out there. But none of them are in a position to help your situation as far as I know. And like I said, once you fulfill contract to pay for the schooling, you can run wild and free.

 

I drive for Maverick TCD and live near Wheeling, WV. Freight to and/or from the house is no better or worse than other companies. Maverick does a good job at getting me home at the time that I requested. I usually have to dead head empty about 100 miles going into and coming out of the house. Maverick works with other companies to pick up freight (called broker loads).
When the traffic, weather, and schedules work out, I get around 2,000 miles per week.

I have been to New England once, Metro NY area once. Maverick frequently has runs going into and out of Hershey, Hazleton PA, bakeries in Pittsburgh (stopping there and then finishing the load in New Hampshire), etc. Lots of chicken and turkeys around Arkansas and Mississippi.