What is local trucking like?

It’s just like a job.
I stay in otr so I won’t have to work at a job.

 

I haul trash from the transfer stations to the landfill. We also haul mulch,rock,soil and all other products for the dairy and landscaping industries. We work Monday through Friday and sometimes a few hours maybe 4 Saturdays a year. Weekly we put in 50-60+ hours with overtime after 40.

 

You'll still be driving a truck, but the main difference is what you do when you're not driving. I think it comes down to whether you have (or want) a life outside of being a truck driver. Doing linehaul my shift started at 8:30 pm, ended +/-12 hours later, Monday to Friday. My sleep schedule during the week was the opposite of my significant other's, but we could still sit down to dinner together every night. And it left me able to do my share (she might challenge the idea that I was actually doing my share) of all the things you need to do to keep a household running. I could walk the dogs, go to the grocery store, cut the grass, whatever else needs doing. Go to the gym or ride my bike or pick up the guitar for a while. My current job has different start times different days of the week - ranging from 4:30 pm to 10:30 pm., but otherwise very similar. I'm paid for all my time from when I log on to when I log off - driving, fueling, getting loaded, lying down in the sleeper berth for an hour or two until my return trip is ready, etc.

To me, OTR seems fine if you're not responsible to anyone but yourself. Driving a truck doesn't pay nearly well enough to justify being absent for a week, or weeks, at a time.

How much time do you think it takes to sleep and eat?

 

Commute home, eat dinner, sit on the throne, sleep, get up and shower then eat again, maybe some throne time and commute back to work. I agree that's a lot to do in 10 hours. It'll depend on the commute for everyone which is different but to me that looks like about 6-1/2 hours of sleep a night and there's no room for anything other than that exact routine until the weekend rolls around. That's a grind. You think 10 hours is enough for all of that?

 

I’m lucky that my commute is only 15 minutes max from my house to our yard.

 

Of course that assumes the work is there for 5 in a row 14 hour days. How many carriers out there are that consistent and how many of them that are hiring in current market conditions? It's doable on 12 hours work, 12 hours off imo, a little better. Importantly though what’s the pay and is the work there year round (not cyclical)? There's a lot of competition for home daily jobs driving trucks and for the most part pay reflects that... It's like owner operators pulling containers that get home every day. Yeah you can do that, but you ain't gonna make any money.

 

All the above , 12 is about average ( sometimes more , some less ) . Hourly is best . Most of the local around here in ABQ is hourly , but a few are by the load .
As far as miles , it's different everyday .
( ie- might do a trip to durango on wed , and then 4 local / city things on thursday with less than 125 miles ) .
The garbage guys and the soda guys and most of the construction guys work days and off nights , gas guys do it all day / all night .
Been doing local stuff since '05 , and wouldn't even think about OTR.
"... i pay to much rent to go otr ... hahaha !!! )
.... know a guy at first fleet , leaves on tuesday night , phoenix by morning , drops empty , gets 10 , then back on the next day , delivers to grocery store in home town , gets ten , does it again and back by again . Gets about 2 1/2 days off , and been doing it for 12 years now . So each has its good side and and bad.

 

The waking up every day at the same time actually scares me to try and go local lol.

Odd brain here. I did it for 20 years in tech and my brain just refuses to budge.

I think Im gonna have to be on regional/dedicated long distances at best for life, My brain just refuses to wake up at the same time every day anymore.

i can force it once or twice a week for appointments fine but thats it lol. Any more and fatigue hits.

Envious of you local guys. I just cant