XPO Linehaul in Cartersville GA VS. ABF Linehaul in Conley GA

You should see if ABF still makes you wait 2 years until you get vacation time. Also, find out about seniority and their respective linehaul boards, what kind of runs each terminal offers. If you wanna just drive or do dock work too. ODFL linehaul drivers just drive. There are other players in the game besides those two LTLs. Look at all your options. Estes, FXF, ODFL, UPSF, and others. No need to jump the gun just because you have the process started with two companies. With how LTL works, especially linehaul, it's a long-term commitment in regard to maximizing your seniority - that in itself makes it worth your while to look into all the LTLs in your area and see what their runs are like, etc.

Any LTL linehaul driver should be able to make the kind of $ you're talking about. It's better to focus on the other things like linehaul runs available, how quickly you might move up the seniority board at any specific terminal, how many other extraboard drivers you'll be competing against for runs (unless you can walk into a schedule right away), if they make you wait by the phone 24 hours for a run (if you are on extraboard). Those are good things to find out before you commit to a company or specific terminal.

I'm a linehaul driver for ODFL. My second choice was Estes. Where I live, I could've gone with any of the big players. Careful if you're applying to a company that runs a "hog board." E.g., UPSF employees can switch from yard jockey, to P&D, to linehaul during any bid - that will obviously limit your options or ensure you'll get bumped from a linehaul run if you're at the bottom of the board in seniority. Conway Freight used to do the same thing, not sure how XPO handles it now.

Many more nuisances to consider besides cpm or hourly rate, because those other nuisances will affect your earning potential.

 

Sounds like you are doing your due diligence then. Good luck.

 

You don’t necessarily get a bid with XPO right off the hop. I’d be leery of any manager claiming that. I’m 18 years with Conway/XPO. Right now they are clamping down on any spending, president just resigned, a lot of grumbling going on. If your going to sign on with Xpo, make sure your eyes are wide open.

 

You know, both companies pay well and have excellent benefits. Given the options, I'd take whichever one didn't involve me driving through Atlanta. Cartersville and Conley are in 2 different universes. If I lived on the north side, I'd go with Cartersville. If I lived on the south / east side, I'd go with Conley. If I lived on the west side, I'd probably go with Conley.
Good luck.

 

Well, there ya go. Given that you don't exactly have a residence, ask yourself this......would I rather live in Conley or in Cartersville?
I can tell you this much, Cartersville will be much friendlier to work at. You'll probably draw the short straw and leave around 730 at night.....Drive to the XPO hub in Conley, and work the dock until about 0500 then drive back to Cartersville.
So, it's mostly dock work at first. But, it's dock work at around $26 an hour......you can get used to it. Oh, and also, 90% of dock work is on a forklift. So, it ain't real hard.