Driver Guides › New Drivers: Your First Year

New Drivers: Your First Year

The questions every new driver asks: routes, trucks, trainers, the rules on the road.

Someone Hit Your Truck: What to Do First (Step by Step)

A not-your-fault crash is still your scene to manage. The order that matters: stop safely, check for injuries, call 911, put out triangles, call dispatch, document everything, and keep calm with the other driver.

Also useful

Life on the Road

Back Pain From the Truck Seat? How to Set Up Your Seat in 5 Minutes

Long hours in a badly set seat are a common cause of driver back pain. Here's a simple seat setup - height, knees, seat pan, lumbar, backrest, wheel and mirrors - plus habits that help.

Choosing a Carrier

How to Read a Truck Driving Job Ad: CPM, Percentage, Weekly Pay and the Fine Print

Cents per mile, percentage pay, weekly minimums, sign-on bonuses and accessorials explained, plus the questions that turn an ad's top number into what you'll actually take home.

Rules & News

Hours of Service Explained: The 11, 14, 30-Minute and 70-Hour Rules

The federal hours-of-service rules for property-carrying CDL drivers in plain words: the 11-hour and 14-hour limits, the 30-minute break, 60/70 hours, the 34-hour restart and sleeper-berth splits.

Experienced Drivers

Detention Pay and Bad Dispatch Info: Why You Get It in Writing, Every Time

Hours lost at a dock come out of your 14-hour clock and your paycheck. How detention pay usually works, what to document, and how to protect yourself when dispatch gets it wrong.