Truck Driver Schedule

Working as a truck driver, you’ll spend lots of time away from home. It means that your family members will not see you for weeks. For that reason, before you start mapping out your truck driver schedule, you need to take into consideration your family commitments and maybe some other family obligations to your spouses, kids or parents. When you think ahead, you’ll be able to combine your exhausting job and your family.

Making a Truck Driver Schedule: Tips to Follow

It is very easy to overcome all problems related to your family life. Below, we publish several tips that will allow you to create an ideal truck driver schedule.

• Choose Predictable Schedules.

Predictable Schedules allow a truck driver to plan his life. In other words, he can select dedicated trucking routes where a driver has a chance to drive one and the same route on an ongoing basis. Commonly, such routes involve the use of dry van trucks and shipping of drop-and-hook loads. In this case, drivers get immediate payments or a definite sum each week.

The greatest benefit of this truck driver schedule is that you know when you are at work and when you are at home. Furthermore, in some instances, you can even spend nights at home. If this schedule type is of prime importance for you, it is much better to opt for regional or local runs, like food service, or moving areas.

• You Can Be an Owner Operator.

This is another type of a truck driver schedule. As a rule, it is more flexible. Besides, you can earn more because you just can pick up additional trucking jobs over the road. Owner-operators can regulate the load and improve the level of income.

• Your schedule hinges on several aspects:
• The type of load and a truck;
• The work conditions of the company you work for;
• The season;
• The area where you work.

Besides, unforeseen complications like a traffic jam, snowstorms or machinery breakdown happen and no one can predict them.

How Long a Truck Driver Can Drive per Day?

Commonly, the legal drive time is the following one:

• 11 hours of driving;
• 10 hours of break.

If you drive for 14 hours non-stop, you need to have 10 hours of break (it makes no matter how many miles you were at the wheel. Besides, there is also the 70-hour restriction over 8 days. These rules should be followed by each driver. They spend the major part of the day at the wheel. This doesn’t influence positively their state of health. For that reason, doctors recommend to stop every 2-3 hours and do simple exercises.

The Impact of the Driver’s Schedule on the Salary

Drivers can be paid in three ways:

• Per miles;
• Per hours;
• Monthly salary.

Drivers who are paid per miles can earn even more than salary paid individuals. These drivers are more interested in their job. In this case, their salary and schedule depend on the area where they work, their level of experience and the company they work for. The average salary varies from $0.30 to $0.40 cents per one mile. Several companies pay more, but in this case, there are definite requirements to the drivers.

In any case, the profession of a truck driver is one of the most unpredictable ones. Definitely, there are schedules allowing you to predict the hours on the road and the hours of rest. Nevertheless, you should be ready for unexpected developments.