Author: Administrator

As a trucker, your career involves certain risks associated with traveling on roadways. Whether you encounter distracted drivers, hazardous conditions, or fatigue, it’s important to keep your safety in mind at all times while driving your truck. Following a few essential safety guidelines will ensure that you have a safe and successful trucking career.

Avoid Talking or Texting on the Phone

Studies have shown that both talking and texting—even while using hands-free options—can reduce your concentration on the road by well over 30%. Avoid talking on the phone and never text while you are driving. If you need to make a phone call or answer a text, wait until you can safely pull your truck off the road before accessing your phone.

Wear Your Seatbelt

Seatbelts are an integral part of truck safety. Serious crashes can throw you from your truck if you are not buckled in, increasing your risk of death by up to 25 times. Always wear your seatbelt while in the driver’s seat, even if you are only taking your truck a short distance. There is no way to know what kind of hazards you will encounter during any drive, but your seatbelt will help to keep you safely in place if a crash does occur.

Know Your Blind Spots

Trucks can have many blind spots and each truck is slightly different. Staying aware of where other drivers are relative to your truck is a good way to prevent accidents. Never assume that other drivers know where your blind spots are; nor should you assume that drivers will know to stay out of your blind spots. Check your blind spots frequently and recheck them before you change lanes or make a turn.

At HDS Truck Driving Institute, you will learn how to keep yourself and others safe throughout your career as a trucker. Are you ready to get driving with our Class A and Class B bus training and testing options? Check out our website or give us a call at (877) 205-2141 to begin the admissions process today.

Fuel efficiency holds many benefits for truck drivers, trucking companies, and the environment alike. New regulations, ordered by President Obama this February and set to be drafted by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Transportation Department within one year, will reduce the amount of greenhouse gases generated by the trucking industry. This important change is a positive step toward a healthier environment for both today’s population and future generations.

Improving Gas Mileage

The goal of President Obama’s proposed fuel-efficiency standard changes is to improve the gas mileage of trucks. Better gas mileage means that truck drivers will not need to refuel as often. Truck drivers will thus be able to cover larger distances and meet deadlines with more efficiency. Improved efficiency can potentially increase safety on the roads for all by reducing rushed driving as well. Better gas mileage will also save truckers and their employers money because they will need to purchase less gas overall. Lower fuel costs will reduce the cost of truck operation, as well as the cost of consumer goods. A reduction in the amount of gas necessary to transport goods will also reduce the country’s dependency on foreign oil imports.

Reducing Climate Change

Studies have shown that mankind’s ever-growing industrial culture is having an effect on the climate. Greenhouse gases, which are released when fossil fuels such as diesel and gasoline are burned, increase the insulating effect of the atmosphere. This causes temperatures to rise across the globe, contributing to significant climate changes. Thus, lowering greenhouse gas emissions will reduce the effects of climate change, especially when these changes are made and observed over the long term.

The trucking industry plays an important role in the U.S. economy, and now it can also play a valuable part in reducing climate change. If you would like to learn more about the trucking industry and becoming a truck driver in Tucson, contact HDS Truck Driving Institute today by calling (877) 205-2141 or stop by our next open house. You can also find more information about CDL training and certification on the Web.

Truck driving is not only an excellent career choice; it is also a pivotal plot element in a number of films. Whether you enjoy watching movies that feature truck drivers as main characters or those that utilize trucks to progress the plot, there is a film choice you’re sure to enjoy.

Maximum Overdrive

Stephen King is a well-known master of horror and suspense. His short story “Trucks” was the inspiration for the1986 film Maximum Overdrive, which he also directed. The film stars Emilio Estevez, Yeardley Smith, Pat Hingle, and Laura Harrington, and features a more humorous tone than King’s other works. Maximum Overdrive follows a number of characters at the Dixie Boy truck stop as they deal with a series of bizarre events that occur when the Earth passes through the tail of a rogue comet. As inanimate objects come to life—including the trucks—the characters must fend for their lives. The film’s truck stop set, which was built in Leland, NC, was so realistic that during the filming, a number of real drivers pulled in to refuel!

Duel

The 1971 film Duel, directed by Steven Spielberg, is based on a short story by Richard Matheson. This single-lead film stars Dennis Weaver as David Mann, a salesman who is on a cross-country road trip. While on the road, he encounters a 1955 Peterbilt 281 tanker truck, which seems to follow and antagonize him no matter where he goes. As the film proceeds, these incidents escalate until the truck begins to threaten his life. The film was Spielberg’s second major directing project and was originally a made-for-television film. However, due to its success, the film was extended and released as a feature-length film overseas.

At HDS Truck Driving Institute, we can bring your movie-inspired dreams to life at our CDL professional truck driver training school. You can learn more about becoming a truck driver in Tucson by calling us at (877) 205-2141 or by clicking through our informative website.

Life as a trucker can sometimes mean long hours spent away from home while on the road. Even so, many truckers successfully manage their family and work schedules. Take a look through this article for some tips you can follow throughout your career.

Stay In Touch

Although you may be out on the road, there are many ways for truck drivers to stay in touch with their families. Cell phones, laptops, and tablets allow you to speak with your spouse and children in real time, and many truck stops offer free WiFi service. Scheduling a time to contact your family when you are off duty each day is a great way to keep in touch and remain an active part of their lives, even when you aren’t at home.

Include Your Children

Take the opportunity to include your children in your truck driving career while at home. Teach them about truck maintenance and allow them to help you with appropriate tasks, such as checking tire pressure or packing a safety kit. Children can also help you plan your trucking route before you set off. These simple actions will show your children that you care about including them in your life and help you to think of them while on the road as well.

Spend Time with Your Spouse

When you are at home, make an effort to spend time with your spouse. Whether you plan a romantic dinner out at a nice restaurant or spend the night in with a movie, this time together is important. Even small, simple gestures, such as breakfast in bed before you head out to work, can go a long way toward reminding you both of the importance and strength in your relationship.

HDS Truck Driving Institute is more than a CDL school—we will help you find and maintain your ideal career in truck driving for life! You can learn more about our Lifetime Job Placement Program when you visit our website, or (877) 205-2141 for details about our programs.

Here at the HDL Truck Driving Institute, we pride ourselves on providing marketable lifelong skills and nationally recognized truck driving training. However, driving professionally is as much a lifestyle as it is a career, and rookie drivers can easily be caught by surprise if they don’t know what to expect from the job. Below is a closer look at life on the road.

Trip Planning

Most drives don’t simply “drop and hook” a trailer and follow nearest highway signs to their destination. Inclement weather, accidents, and rush hour traffic jams all affect the schedule and potentially waste hundreds of dollars. Expect to spend time looking at traffic, accident, and weather alerts and plotting the route around weigh stations and roads that do not allow large trucks.

Work Schedule

Your actual work schedule may vary significantly depending on whether you focus on local or regional deliveries or long haul drives. Local truckers may spend all of their time on the I-10 or I-8 and be back home every night, but long haul drivers may be on the road for a full week and have several days off in between. Safety is a paramount concern, so drivers often have to schedule time around the Department of Transportation time clock to avoid any violations.

Wages

A driver’s wages can be determined in many ways, but most companies pay by the mile for rookie drivers. This means that time wasted in loading docks or stuck in traffic usually translates to less earnings. However, how many miles you actually drive in a day doesn’t always determine your take-home pay; many companies use software to calculate “practical miles” between area codes, which usually averages out over time but may not always reflect the actual distance you drive.

HDL Truck Driving Institute has been training professional drivers for more than 20 years, and are committed to providing our students with all of the training and job placement resources to pursue successful careers. For more information about our CDL training programs in Tucson, call (877) 205-2141 today.

If you’re thinking of switching careers, you might consider earning your CDL and becoming a professional truck driver. You’ll find that truck driving school can be exciting and rewarding. However, you may have a difficult time paying for trucking school while supporting your family. Fortunately, there are several ways you can pay for your truck driving education.

Student Loans

If you can’t collect enough tuition money from your family members or personal savings, you might consider student loans. If you’re willing to visit various financial institutions, you may find a student loan that’s worth pursuing. Student loans are advantageous for aspiring truck drivers because they typically have low interest rates. Once you land a good job in the trucking industry, you should be able to repay your trucking school dues in a hurry.

Financial Aid

Another way to obtain funding for trucking school is to explore your financial aid options. If you contact the trucking school admissions representatives in a timely manner, you can have a much easier time coming up with the necessary funds. For instance, HDS Truck Driving Institute can match qualified individuals with Arizona trucking companies. If you get pre-hired with one of these companies, you can have up to 100% of your tuition costs covered.

GI Bill

HDS Truck Driving School is honored to serve those who have bravely served our country. If you have recently been on active duty in the U.S. military, you can fund your Arizona CDL classes with GI Bill Educational Benefits. Our Arizona driving school also offers reduced tuition for those in the U.S. Army Reserve or National Guard. If you are the dependent or spouse of a deceased veteran or active duty soldier, you won’t have to pay as much for CDL classes.

Paying for your truck driving education can be simple if you’re willing to go through the proper channels. If you have any questions about paying for tuition, call HDS Truck Driving Institute’s Tucson location at (520) 622-0419 or our Phoenix location at (602) 484-7901. We’ll do everything we can to make sure you receive the CDL education you’re looking for.

Truck drivers get to see the country and enjoy the freedom of the open road. Still, truck driving isn’t for everyone; before you apply for truck driving school in Tucson or Phoenix, it’s important that you have a realistic view of the transportation industry and what it takes to be a part of it. If you satisfy the below criteria, consider speaking with a representative at HDS Truck Driving Institute.

Drive and Stamina

To succeed in the trucking industry, you need to have the strength and resolve to get through truck driving school and land a job with a trucking company. After a few years on the road, you may have enough money and experience to become an owner operator. Life on the road can be challenging for some; still, if you can handle long hours by yourself and long stretches away from home, you could be a great truck driver.

Good Driving Record

Trucking companies only want excellent drivers with at least one year of driving experience and a clean driving record. Good drivers can be trusted with cargo while keeping themselves and other drivers safe on the road. It’s okay if you have a few parking tickets, but if you have any more serious charges on your record—a DUI, for example—then you might consider a different line of work.

Commercial Driver’s License

No one can operate a large commercial vehicle without first obtaining a Commercial Driver’s License. Before you can earn your CDL, you need to attend truck driving school. At a Tucson or Phoenix CDL school, you’ll learn everything you need to pass the written and practical exams. Once you obtain your CDL, your truck driving school should be able to help you find a good job in the industry.

Are you interested in becoming a truck driver? Contact HDS Truck Driving Institute of Tucson and Phoenix. We can provide aspiring truck drivers with crucial information and help them launch their careers. Call our Tucson school at (520) 622-0419 or our Phoenix school at (602) 484-7901 to find out if you have what it takes to be a truck driver.

Travelling the country is one of the many perks of life on the open road, and there are plenty of scenic routes for long haulers—if you know where to look. For Tucson drivers, there are plenty of sights to see beyond Mt. Lemmon and the Sonoran Desert. Below is a brief look at some of the most popular truck routes in the Southwest.

To the East Coast…And Back Again

The I-10 isn’t just the main vein between Tucson and in Phoenix. It actually starts in Los Angeles, CA and winds throughout the southern U.S. all the way into Jacksonville, FL. Aside from plenty of open spaces, it has the distinct advantage of being the only highway free of snow all year round. If your travels take you through the Midwest or upper East Coast, the I-40 through Flagstaff can take you through the Appalachian, Ozark, and Rocky mountains—just watch out for traffic jams near Oklahoma City and snow during midwinter months. For ventures further up North, merging with the I-80 will take you straight to New York City.

Places to Avoid

If your travels venture north, drivers suggest avoiding the congestion in areas surrounding Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; and Brooklyn, NY. Strong winds, dust storms, and the occasional monsoon are among some of the most common highway hazards that Arizona truckers have to face, but steep grades and snowy roads can be deadly for desert drivers. Either avoid them entirely or brush up on your CDL training. And as always, check ahead for reports of severe weather or traffic closures. When in doubt, contact your dispatcher and follow recommended routes.

From training to job placement, the HDL Truck Driving Institute is committed to providing students with resources and experience to pursue a successful career as a professional truck driver. To receive more information about our CDL programs in Tucson, AZ, contact us online or call (877) 205-2141 today.

When driving on the interstate, you’ve likely seen trucks stopped at weigh stations, waiting to be weighed. These stations are essential for maintaining traffic safety. Once you attend a Tucson driving school, obtain your CDL, and begin driving semi trucks, your rig’s weight must be in the back of your mind at all times. Here’s a brief look at the importance of truck scale accuracy.

Weighing Goods

As you begin your trucking career, you’ll learn that some goods are measured by weight. After your truck is loaded with a particular product, you’ll likely weigh your truck before hitting the road. Once you subtract the weight of your truck form the number on the scale, you’ll know the total weight of your cargo and determine how much to charge for your transportation services. An accurate scale is essential for ensuring that you get paid a fair price.

Obeying the Law

The federal government imposes strict weight limits on large vehicles traveling on interstates. Single axle trucks cannot weigh more than 20,000 lbs., tandem axle trucks cannot weigh more than 34,000 lbs., and the gross vehicle weight of any truck cannot exceed 80,000 lbs. If your truck violates any of the federal weight standards, you will be fined. That’s why it’s important to weigh your truck on an accurate truck scale before driving on the highways.

Staying Safe

Federal weight limits exist to prevent trucks from suffering damage or causing damage to roads and bridges. If your truck is carrying too much, you risk an axle overload, which could lead to a breakdown or accident. For the sake of your own safety and the safety of everyone on the road, it’s important for your transportation firm to have an accurate truck scale.

HDS Truck Driving Institute can teach you everything you need to know about federal and state weight standards. Call our Tucson driving school at (520) 622-0419 or our Phoenix driving school at (602) 484-7901 to find out how you can get started on a great career in the transportation industry.

If you’ve grown tired of your current career, you might consider going back to school and learning a new trade. Before you devote valuable time and energy to beginning a new career, however, you want to make sure that the industry you’re switching into will provide you and your family with a good living. Fortunately, the Arizona trucking industry is very prosperous, and you can expect to make a good salary as a truck driver in Arizona.

Employment Prospects

Before you spend time and money on trucking school in Phoenix or Tucson, you should have a good idea your employment prospects in the trucking industry. You’ll be glad to know that the Phoenix, Mesa, and Glendale metropolitan area has one of the highest truck driver employment rates in the country. As Baby Boomers retire, more and more trucking jobs will be available all over the country; according to one estimate, U.S. trucking companies will hire over 100,000 drivers every year through 2016.

Average Trucker Salary

You can earn a great living as a truck driver based in Arizona. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Arizona pays truck drivers more than most other states. The average salary range for Arizona truck drivers is between $41,000 and 52,000 a year. Compare that with the national mean annual wage, which is just over $40,000.

Cost of Living in Arizona

An Arizona truck driver salary can provide you and your family with more than enough to live a comfortable life—especially since the cost of living and fuel prices in Arizona are so reasonable. Phoenix and Tucson have consumer price indexes of 50.34 and 56.92. To put those numbers into perspective, New York City has a consumer price index of 100.

If you have any questions about beginning a career as a truck driver, contact HDS Truck Driving School. You can reach our Tucson driving school at (520) 622-0419 or our Phoenix driving school at (602) 484-7901 to discover how to earn your CDL and land a lucrative job in the trucking industry.

The trucking industry is a major part of the U.S. economy. Billions of units of product are shipped to the U.S. every year, and semi trucks are largely responsible for distributing those products throughout the country. If you’re thinking of becoming an Arizona truck driver, you might be interested in learning a few key facts and statistics.

Semi Trucks on the Road

Semi trucks get their name from semi trailers, which do not have front wheels and rely on tractors for transportation. There are nearly 2 million semi trucks in operation in the U.S., and around 5.6 million semi trailers. Semi trucks and semi trailers are also known as tractors and tractor trailers, respectively.

Semi Truck Size and Weight

Most semi trailers are 53 feet long, though some semi trucks pull multiple trailers at once. Some semi truck engines weigh as much as 3,000 lbs., and can tow tens of thousands of pounds. Federal regulations state that semi trucks and trailers cannot weigh more than 80,000 lbs.—anything heavier could potentially damage roads and bridges.

Number of Miles Driven

Truck drivers drive an estimated 140 billion miles every year, and a single semi drives about 45,000 miles a year on average. According to the Federal Highway Administration, long-distance trucks travel upwards of 100,000 miles a year. 42% of all miles driven by commercial vehicles are driven by semi trucks.

Impact on the Economy

Semi trucks provide essential transportation services for the U.S. economy. Though trains provide efficient transportation, semi trucks are better at taking smaller loads to specific places. 68% of all goods are transported via semi truck. That works out to an astonishing 60,000 lbs. per American per year.

The truck driving instructors at HDS Truck Driving Institute can teach you anything else you’d like to know about the trucking industry. To find out which steps you need to take to earn your CDL, call our Tucson location at (520) 622-0419 or our Phoenix location at (602) 484-7901. With our help, you can earn your CDL and be well on your way to a promising new career.