Become an Over the Road Trucker: Benefits, Challenges and Tips
Truck jobs have a lot in common, but they also have some differences. Let’s go into a few of these. Some truck drivers are home every day, and these are called local truck drivers, other drivers may be home only once a week or every few days. These are called regional truck drivers. The type of truck driver most people envision is the one that drives the continuous 48 US states and is rarely home. These drivers are called over the road truckers or OTR for short. An over the road driver usually makes more than a local or regional because they are sacrificing a lot more of their lifestyle in return and seldom see home. They also have a higher cost of living in a truck due to increased prices for the basics such as food and supplies because they are limited to shopping at a truck stop.
Traveling Great Distances
An over the road truck driver will travel a lot farther on a single trip than any local or regional driver. I have run all three types of driving jobs and as an OTR driver I have gone from the eastern seaboard all the way to the west coast with a single load. My average load ran from Ohio and the surrounding states to San Francisco and Los Angeles and everywhere in between. Because of this I was able to put up some pretty big miles each week. Freight also usually pays a lot better the longer the distances involved so the driver benefits with higher pay because the company is able to earn more.
Never the Same Route
As an OTR driver you will rarely have any 2 weeks that are identical with your route, shipper, or receiver. In other words, each week is going to have somewhere new you are going to whether it be a new state, city, or customer. This type of driving job is best for people who would get bored driving for a dedicated customer in and around their city being forced to run the same route every day. Trust me I did this driving for Amazon for over 2 years and the entire southeast of the country started to get boring after visiting many of their warehouse’s dozens and even hundreds of times. I knew the routes a little too well. So, if a region can get boring you know a city can get even more boring working a local truck job where are you home every day.
The Real Money is in OTR
If you want to make the big bucks an OTR driver is what you want to be. Once you get a year or two of experience you can ditch that low paying mega carrier that took you straight out of truck school and start looking at the higher paying trucking outfits. They will always require that you have experience. The pay difference can be staggering vs local driving jobs. You will hear a lot of local drivers brag how they are home every night but have they every made over $4,000 a week? I bet they have not, but I have as a cross country driver. Local driving jobs in my market are average around $1200 but when I was an OTR driver my weekly average was closer to $3000. Just do the math on that. You are going to work the same number of hours at each job. So why would you want to make ½ or even a third less for all of your hard work. In most cases it makes financial sense to be an OTR driver because you are making so much more money in comparison.
Loneliness While on the Road
When a lot of inexperienced drivers get into trucking adjusting to the lifestyle of living on the road can be quite a shock. Trust me I have been there myself and it can take a mental toll getting use to spending most of your time living in a box, you will be driving, sleeping, and usually eating all within the confines of your truck for weeks or even a month or longer at a time. The lack of social interaction just complicates how hard this can be which is why it is important to try and keep your mind active by staying connected with friends and family or listening to audio books, the radio and so on.
Living on Fast Food and Out of Truck Stops
One major downside to being an over the road driver is the fact your shopping choices are extremely limited when it comes to eating healthy or even affordably. There are some tricks of the trade however to help lessen the financial pain of living out of a truck stop. Walmart is your friend. There are some Walmart’s that have truck parking. It would be in your best interest to learn which ones do along your trucking route and buy the vast majority of your food and supplies there while you are trucking. You will eat better and even save a small fortune in the process.
Home Time as an OTR Driver
Even drivers who like being away living on the road need to get home once in a while to take care of things back home and visit their family. Most companies will give you an option of being home around every 3 weeks and this varies. Some want you out a month and a few as short as 2 weeks. Keep in mind when you are sitting home as a truck driver you are not making any money, and neither is your company. So, they will understand that you need home time, but they will not like you sitting there for a week. The norm is around 3-4 days in my experience, but this varies usually by the amount of time you spent on the road. If you are out for 2 weeks expect to be home 2 or 3 days and if you are out for 3 or 4 weeks, they will give you 4 to 5 days home.
Summary of Going OTR
It is not for everyone but if you want to make the big bucks OTR is where most people go while trucking. If you can stand extended periods of isolation, the ever-changing challenges that await you out there and have a knack for a sense of adventure it can be a great career choice. Just do not expect this lifestyle to look like anything you have now. You will do about everything differently versus living a life in the comfort of your home.
