Truck Driving has its positives and its negatives, the posters to this point have made good points. However, there are many different forms of Truck Driving. When most of the general public here "truckdriver" most probably associate with the OTR type of driving, I presuming that the surveys intend is focused mostly at the OTR style, as this is where you will generally find the widest range of opinions.
There is no real diffinitive answer to the post because not everybody will adapt to the OTR "lifestyle of driving. Some will enter into the field with the illusion that it is the possible solution to all there problems, others enter with the illusion of a over glorified lifestyle. OTR driving is not for everybody, unfortunitly this is not discovered till after you have entered the field after many months of training, from aquistion of the CDL, through actual OTR training with your first company, and making an almost insignificant amout of money. Then you will be handed the keys to your first truck and you will be on your own struggling through you first few months, figuring out what you are doing out here and how to adapt to this new experience and lifestyle.
For those that hang in there and actually adapt to the job, may actually start to enjoy it.
There will be good day and bad, sometimes many bad in a row and sometimes many good in a row.
If you come into the job thinking that the company is going to hand you everything on and Silver Platter and hold your hand everyday on the road, you are mistaken and will quickly become burned out and begin to hate every accept of driving. However if you stick with it and believe you can percerve through it you just might succeed. One of the big keys is the adaptation period, could take a month, could take a year, or you may never adapt. Learning the industry and then finding a "niche" within it is also a key to succeeding.
No matter what anybody tells you about the industry, good or bad. You may never know the answer, if its for you or not, until you have gone through the adaptation period. You will have long periods away from home, long days of driving the occassional many hours of waiting for shipper/receivers to load or unload the trailer, or waiting for dispatcher to assign your next load, dealing with some crowded truckstops, and fuel islands, trying to find a place to park at the end of your day. The list can go on. There are good days and bad days, trucking has its good points and its got its bad point.
Dont expect anything, and work hard for everything.

 

I would NEVER recommend it to anyone.



THERE IS NOTHING I WOULD RATHER BE DOING!

OK, maybe golfing would top it :lol:

 

I have known a vary wide range of personality types since I have been associated with this business. It is a business that is accepting of almost anyone who is willing to work and put in the effort to get the job done. It isn't perfect, but no job it without it's drawbacks. I think one of the main reasons there seem to be so many naysayers is due to so many people wanting to start at the top and not pay their dues. If you are successful in this business you will pay your dues. That is not necessarily a bad or negative thing. It means that you are learning. You will get out of this business as much as you put into it.

This is a business like nothing else. There is no such thing as working 9-5. It is a blue collar job but could also be considered a white collar job if you own the truck. With minimal training you can earn a salary comparable to many college graduates. I have known a number of college graduates who have decided to change careers and get into trucking. I have also known of those who barely got through high school.

Those with a good work ethic and attitude can do well. If you have a poor work ethic and constantly find fault with everything, then you probably won't be happy no matter what you do for a living.

 

The big blowhard that calls himself BigDiesel is one of the drama queens mentioned. Notice how he tries to make some accusations about rose-colored glasses as if he alone is the great harbinger of truth.He's one of these "what he don't know ain't worth knowing type guys" Truth is everybody sees things differently.(that's a good thing)

Is it bad? I started trucking on June 14,1972. Have owned and paid for 8 trucks, managed to save a good amount of money for comfortable retirement, paid off a small farm and sent 2 of my 3 children to college.
I always tried to work smart and legal, not hard and fast as many will. 32 years before had my first accident (minor bump in a parking lot).

Was the business better 30 years ago? Can't say for sure because it was different. Drivers tended to be more professional and viewed this as a career. Somewhere along the way our country decided it's okay to disrespect hard working blue collar people as low lifes. The companies stopped paying decent wages and the business started attracting people who couldn't find anything else to do. When that happened, the public started to disrespect truckers more and more. I don't think the quality of people in the industry as a whole is what it was 30 years ago. I don't mean to offend anyone as most of the people on this site seem very professional and got it together.

However, 30 years ago , we didn't have very good equipment, roads were not as good as they are today. Seldom had power steering and air conditioning that worked. 36" sleeper was good size and 300 horsepower was a "big" motor. I never had a jake brake until 1986. CB radio was just coming in style and it was already filled with little johnny rambo's popping off about how tough they are or lookin for good buddies.

Don't believe all the negative posts. Don't believe all the positive reports.
I've got a bad back, arthiritis, and some other ailments from all this tarping and chaining in cold, snowy weather. I missed sporting events, family functions, friends weddings, and a lot of nights with my family.

I've also seen all 48 states and most all of Canada. I met some of the most decent people anyone could ever want to meet in their lifetime. I've learned things from shippers and receivers that I never would have learned doing normal jobs. And I never had to answer to anyone. Never had a boss sitting next to me or breathing down my neck. That freedom is worth a lot.

Trucking, just like life is good and bad. 90% is what you make of it. OTR is hard on a man's family and breakups are common. But even when I weigh all the good and bad, I would do it again. Always felt like I belonged out here on the highway. But I can't say I'd recommend it to anyone else. I now do it only because I choose to do it and because after 35 years, I don't know enough about anything else.

 

Littlediesel - you have no point

 

WOW
That was some great info! I really thank you for taking the time and sharing your experience.

 

Trucking is what I love almost as much as my family. There are good and bad things about it but as long as the money is there it makes it all worth it. I would and have recomended trucking to family and friends although after a taste of it(riding on the truck) none of them wanted anything to do with it or couldnt handle it. But on the other hand If my kids wind up in a truck ill have to support them in it, but they better have went to college and recieved a degree first, even if I have to pay for it.

 

What it boils down to is whether you think $40-$60K is good money to live, eat, sleep, and breathe on the job 24/7 away from friends/family for weeks on end. Look at average OTR fleet turnover rates range from 80% to over 120%...which means that a company like Swift with 18,000 power units must hire 21,600 drivers every year. Add up all the fleets and all their drivers and there are hundreds of thousands of drivers being replaced every year. If the job was any good, do you think the industry would need to be constantly hiring like that?

My uncle made $42,000 driving truck back in 1982. And he was out 6 and home for 3. 26 years later, drivers aren't making much more...some even less...and they are working longer hours and spending much more time away from home.

If the hometime and pay don't get you then the "lifestyle" will. All the unpaid waiting around, filthy/nasty truckstops, broken promises from dispatch, waiting in line to take a shower, DOT/fines, etc...the list goes on and on and on.

You are better off going to school and getting some sort of trade/degree where your odds of good-paying work with a healthy home/social/sex life are much better. 90% of trucking = burn jobs.

Here is perhaps the greatest description of OTR. Heed this driver's warning:

 

What I would tell someone is that it's a high liability job. I dont think just "driving" the truck is the biggest issue. Nowadays trucking is under strict laws.. (log books, scales). You have to be a mature and responsible person to take charge of 1000s of pounds of steel and remain cool under pressure. Then of course there's the lifestyle, whether you're doing local LTL or OTR.