Truck driving is a career choice like any, however trucking requires tailoring a lifestyle completely around a job. What you need to know about short haul trucking jobs. Heres a look at the typical day in the life as an over the road truck driver to get a better sense of how they go about their daily routine. On a daily basis, cdl truck drivers check vehicles to ensure that mechanical, safety, and emergency equipment is in good working order. To maximize pay, you want to log the most miles possible. They perform basic vehicle maintenance tasks, such as adding oil, fuel, or radiator fluid or performing minor repairs a typical day for a heavy and tractortrailer truck driver will also include. Much of what makes the life of a truck driver successful is in the planning and preparation that goes into each journey. Driving long and short distances while following local traffic laws. Drivers, trucking industry, trucks by jurica magoci february 9, 2017 14 min comments life as a truck driver can be challenging, it takes a unique individual to willingly make the vehicle or in other words the truck s cab, a home and office. For years, we have heard that truck drivers have a life expectancy rate that is ten to sixteen years shorter than the average person. Theres a lot that goes into the life of a truck driver. Day in the life of an otr truck driver drive my way.
While many people can answer this question with ease, others employed in less predictable positions may not have a straight answer. Truck drivers transport a wide variety of goods between locations. The bureau of labor statistics estimates that the average age of a commercial truck driver in the u. As a truck driver, you cant drive for more than 11 hours a day. Trucking industry struggles with growing driver shortage. A single truck like the one earles drives might leave at 9 a. So we thought wed pass on this one about a typical day in the life of a person whos working in a mining job to give you an idea of what to expect when you find. Truckers are an essential part of everyday life for almost every industry including.
You see the advertisements with smiling drivers, but what is the life of a truck driver really like. Life as a truck driver balance between highway and home. That breaks down to around 2,500 miles a week, which equates to 500 miles a day. Truck drivers march to the beat of a different engine. It should be noted that the majority of professional truck drivers in the us are male, so a comparison to the average lifespan of an american male might be more accurate. On my typical day at fedex tuesdaysaturday i get up at 4. A day in the life of a truck driver trucking career info. Sure, it can be lonely, but there are cell phones and music. In total, youll drive about 9 hours that day, unless youre trying to meet a docking deadline that day. You wake up a few minutes before your mandatory ten hour break, so that you can dress, run to the store where you parked to use the bathroom and grab a cup of coffee maybe a bite to eat.
Australian mining recently spoke to mirtsopoulos to find out more about her book and life as a dump truck driver. How much does a truck driver make in united states. C1 truck driver training, the school that ran the ads, put rojas up in a hotel in fort wayne, indiana, for four weeks of training. Watch the tractors load the truck he was taking with.
Depending on your delivery schedule, you may have to adjust your sleep habits so that you sleep earlier at night at wake up before dawn. Linehaul and local truck drivers perform some or all of the following duties. Truck driving can be an exciting form of employment for people who value mobility and dont want to maintain a typical nine to five job. In some cases, shipments may need to be unloaded by hand by the driver, although this is usually not the case. At all times a commercial motor driver must follow all department of transportation laws and regulations and all truck drivers must possess a commercial driver s license. A day in the life of a trucker with drivers views all across america. A day in the life of a truck driver matt 20171005t14. What do cdl truck drivers do including their typical day. Mining jobs a day in the life of a miner every now and again we get letters from people who are actively working in the mining industry, who want to share their experiences. A day in the life of a truck driver can vary, but more often than not, its all about operating safely and delivering. If anyone has time, i would greatly appreciate a wakeup to going to bed walkthrough.
These include things like truck payments, maintenance, fuel, insurance, food, permits, and etc. The truck driver is employed to either pick up freight or deliver it. Whats a typical day in the life of a semitruck driver. Show up at main truck depot hub in the far outskirts of town at 6. Truck drivers life expectancy rate wheres the proof. One day, she was scrolling through and an ad kept popping up. Life is free and easy with the windows down and the wind blowing through their haacross their scalp.
There are many perks that come with a truck driver s schedule, not the least of which is a unique view of the country, as well as camaraderie among your peers. The grueling life of a longhaul trucker popular mechanics. Take a good luck walk around the truck to inspect everything from its tires to the oil to the way in which the toys were loaded. When you think of a towing service in greeley, co, you likely immediately picture a tow truck hauling your vehicle off after an accident or a breakdown, or removing your.
Becoming a truck driver day in the life of a trucker. This will bring better quality drivers to the industry because they will have the information about transportation logistics and life on the road to make informed decision before getting on the road. Maintain logs of working hours or of vehicle service or repair. The average independent owner operator works at only a 5% profit margin. A day in the life of a professional construction truck. A truck driver commonly referred to as a trucker, teamster or driver in the united states and canada. The professional driver gets up early usually between 2 a. May transport hazardous products or dangerous goods. At 61 years, a truck driver will have a life that ends 15. As for the truck driving world, being on the road can present wildly different circumstances from one day to the next. The inability to participate in daily life and the solitude can take a toll on. Life as a truck driver does pose some interesting challenges, including physical fitness. On a typical day, lanelle devlin wakes up around 10 or 11 a. A typical day in the life of a truck driver might include.
Take shower, eat supper, waste time on the internet, go to bed. Q and a with a dump truck driver australian mining. The little black box that customers sign when a package is delivered serves as a computer that records time. Start of the day before truck drivers get on the road, a dispatcher typically will send them some type of alert or message telling them where the freight is that they will be transporting and what time itll be available. A day in the life of a professional construction truck ownerdriver april 01, 2010 by ron singer.
I mean, i know you have the basic wakeup, drive, and sleep. Even for local and regional drivers who are home more often, truck driving is still nothing like a typical 95 job at which you punch a clock twice a day at the same time. A day in the life of a tow truck driver july 21, 2017 10. But seriously, there really isnt a typical day, or rather, a typical day is anything but typical. Purpose of life as a trucker my purpose of life as a is to. Truck driving is also a vital need in our industrialized society, so many drivers feel proud to contribute to americas commercial network. Overtheroad truckers drive 100,000 to 110,000 miles on average each year.
My mileage per day averages 350450 miles, with a day every so often over 500 miles. At all times a commercial motor driver must follow all department of transportation laws and regulations and all truck drivers must possess a commercial drivers license. The revolutionary routine of life as a female trucker. He enjoys attending truck shows like wheel jam in huron, sd and has competed in the south dakota truck driving championship three times placing 2nd and 3rd in five axle van. Most drivers are expected to cover 125,000 miles per annum. Day one go to terminal, get in truck, and hook to my loaded trailer. A day in the life of a truck driver the news wheel. Life as a truck driver balance between highway and home posted in category. The phrase, studies have shown is all across the internet and publications alike. Logging 12,000 miles a month, surprisingly clean truck stop showers, and dogs riding shotgun we go inside the cab with an american road warrior. So i have been searching the web trying to find an account of what the typical day or night of an otr solo driver is like. A typical day for a truck driver truck driving jobs at. Hello again guys and gals, this week id like to discuss a typical day in the life of a truck driver.
Computers inside and outside of the truck tell the company if the driver is staying on schedule. How i start my day in trucking, pretrip, driving vlog. A day in the life of a truck driver baltimore freightliner. Follow a typical day for a truck driver the balance careers. Many truck drivers have found great ways to stay active while on the road. Ever wonder what a typical day is like for a professional construction trucker. Here is a day in the life of a truck driver to give you a better idea of what to expect. The actual length of the workday can vary depending on the route and availability of rest areas and. Daniel mccarthy at barrnunn mccarthy transport inc. A driver might average 120 deliveries or more a day. Maybe you are considering a career as a truck driver or youre just curious as to what it is like to be a truck driver. That translates to 7 12 to nine hours of driving each day.
Educate the person who is thinking about becoming a truck driver so that he or she will know what to expect. Or, as i like to call myself, a material movement specialist, oh man, i crack myself up. The schedule of a typical trucker is going out on the road for several weeks at time. On average, hinker drives about 500 miles a day over the course of around 11 hours. Average life expectancy for professional drivers find a. My senior driver, bob, and i walked more than five miles during each shift. Day two drive to destination, usually about a 450500 mile drive. The schedule of a typical trucker is going out on the road for several weeks at time, and then having a few days home, which is called hometime. A day in the life of a ups delivery driver during busiest. When all is said and done, it boils down to what the driver wants from the job. But if youre attracted to flexibility, 20 hours of solitude each day, and following a different routine from the. An aging fleet of drivers is one of the main reasons for the driver shortage.
There are many perks that come with a truck drivers schedule, not the least of which is a unique view of the country, as well as camaraderie among your peers. Longhaul truck drivers perform some or all of the following duties. Heres what its like to be a woman truck driver cnbc. Since the mean life expectancy for an american is about 78 years, that number falls a significant 17 years short. The problem however, is the inability to locate the actual studies. A day in the life of a truck driver can vary, but more often than not, its all about operating safely and delivering goods to customers on time.
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