Tractor Trailers

The New Jersey government may have a budget crisis, but, for truckers, it’s business as usual.

Many of the state’s government offices will be shut down until the state legislature finalizes a budget, but the state police will be in operation.

According to Captain Al DellaFave of the New Jersey State Police, truck weigh stations will be operating under normal procedures. “The weigh stations are run by the state police, so they won’t be affected,” he said.

Atlantic City casinos are closed because gaming officials are not working. State lottery, construction, motor vehicle offices and maintenance for hospitals, parks and beaches will be affected. Paychecks for state employees are not being written and courts are not in session. But the truck weigh stations, according to state police, will be running normal hours.

Generally, the only active truck scales in New Jersey are on I-78 Eastbound in Bloomsbury and I-295 Northbound at Carney’s Point.

Tags: New Jersey, Truckers, New Jersey State Police, Truck Weigh Stations, Atlantic City Casinos, Truck Scales, Truck Drivers

More and more, I hear brand new truck drivers contemplating the lease purchase programs many companies are now advocating. It never ceases to amaze me how these companies will target new drivers. Swift Transportation and Prime Trucking are two of the most aggressive lease purchase companies out there, but it seems all of the companies have jumped on the band wagon.

After all, why wouldn’t a trucking company want to pass along the costs of fuel, purchasing a truck, truck maintenance, truck insurance, permits and health insurance? Not to mention, they no longer are expected to provide a 401k plan with company match. And they get to charge the driver much higher prices than market value for a truck that won’t be worth much at the end of the lease.
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Tags: Truck Drivers

There are a lot of good trucking companies out there. I have known company drivers for US Express, USA Truck, Schneider Trucking, Werner Trucking, and LTL trucking companies like Yellow Freight and Roadway Express that were really knocking back the cash. I personally have worked for Continental Express and Digby Truck Lines and did quite well. But for some drivers, working for someone else just isn’t enough…

The problem for some is that the lure of the open road tricks them into becoming owner operators before they are ready.
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Tags: Trucking Companies, Owner Operators

Trucking jobs aren’t just about driving. When you think of a job in trucking, you think about riding down the big road, living the American dream, steering and gearing.

But there’s more to trucking that sitting behind the wheel.

There’s regular old freight trucking (dry goods like toilet paper, cereal, packages). But there’s also flatbed trucking (steel coils, pipes), refrigerated trucking–called reefers (temperature sensitive goods like ice cream, frozen dinners, produce), tankers (liquid or gaseous substances like gasoline, milk, and propane), and car hauling.

All of these require special knowledge and training.
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Tags: Trucking Jobs, Freight Trucking, Flatbed Trucking, Refrigerated Trucking, Reefers

There seems to be an obsession with poultry in the trucking industry. No, I’m not talking about chicken fried steak, I’m talking about Chicken Trucks and Chicken Coops and all kinds of other chicken-related terms in the truckers’ vocabulary.

The general public may not know about it, but truckers talk turkey a lot.

Anyone who has ever listened to the CB radio knows that truckers have a language all their own. If a rookie driver or a vacationer dares to tread on the truckers’ territory, he’ll find out quickly that he isn’t one of the flock yet. It’s what you say and how you say it that gives you away.
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Tags: Poultry, CB Radio