How To Be A Trucker Lunenburg MA - Become a Commercial Truck Driver

How to Enroll in the Best Trucking School near Lunenburg Massachusetts

tractor truck in Lunenburg MA Congratulations on your decision to become a trucker and enroll in a trucking school near Lunenburg MA. Maybe it has always been your ambition to hit the open road while driving a monster tractor trailer. Or possibly you have conducted some analysis and have found that a career as a truck driver provides good wages and flexible work prospects. Whatever your reason is, it’s important to receive the proper training by selecting the right CDL school in your area. When assessing your options, there are certain variables that you’ll want to think about before making your final choice. Location will no doubt be important, especially if you have to commute from your Lunenburg home. The cost will also be important, but picking a school based solely on price is not the best method to ensure you’ll obtain the right training. Just remember, your objective is to learn the knowledge and skills that will allow you to pass the CDL exams and become a professional truck driver. So keeping that goal in mind, just how do you pick a truck driving school? That is what we are going to cover in the balance of this article. But first, we are going to review a little bit about which commercial driver’s license you will ultimately need.

Which CDL Will You Require?

Lunenburg MA long haul tractor trailer To operate commercial vehicles legally within the USA and Lunenburg MA, a driver must get a CDL (Commercial Driver’s License). The three license classes that one can apply for are Class A, Class B and Class C. Given that the subject of this article is how to select a truck driving school, we will focus on Class A and Class B licenses. What differentiates each class of CDL is the kind of vehicle that the driver can operate in addition to the GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) or GCWR (Gross Combination Weight Rating). Following are short explanations of the two classes.

Class A CDL. A Class A Commercial Drivers License is needed to drive any vehicle that has a GCWR of greater than 26,000 lbs., including a towed vehicle of greater than 10,000 lbs. A few of the vehicles that operators may be able to drive with Class A licenses are:

Interstate or Intrastate Tractor Trailers
Trucks with Double or Triple Trailers
Tanker Trucks
Livestock Carriers
Class B and Class C Vehicles

Class B CDL. A Class B CDL is required to operate single vehicles having a GVWR of greater than 26,000 lbs., or a GCWR of greater than 26,000 lbs. including a towed vehicle weighing up to 10,000 lbs. Some of the vehicles that operators may be qualified to drive with Class B licenses are:

Tractor Trailers
Dump Trucks
Cement Mixers
Large Buses
Class C Vehicles

Both Class A and Class B Commercial Drivers Licenses may also require endorsements to drive specific types of vehicles, for instance passenger or school buses. And a Class A licensee, with the proper required endorsements, may drive any vehicle that a Class B license holder is qualified to operate.

Click Here to Get Free Information on Truck Driving Schools Near You!

How to Research a Truck Driver School

Lunenburg MA truck driving school Once you have determined which Commercial Drivers License you want to obtain, you can start the process of assessing the Lunenburg MA truck driver schools that you are looking at. As already discussed, cost and location will certainly be your initial considerations. But it can’t be stressed enough that they should not be your sole concerns. Other variables, including the experience of the instructors or the reputations of the schools are similarly if not more important. So following are several more factors that you should research while conducting your due diligence before choosing, and especially paying for, your truck driver training.

Are the Schools Accredited or Certified ? Very few trucking schools in the Lunenburg MA area are accredited due to the demanding process and expense to the schools. However, certification is more common and is offered by the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI). A school is not obligated to become certified, but there are a number of advantages. Prospective students recognize that the training will be of the highest standard, and that they will be given lots of driving time. For example, PTDI requires 44 hours of actual driving time, not ride-alongs or simulations. So if a school’s program is certified (the program, not the school is certified), students know that the training and curriculum will satisfy the very high standards set by PTDI.

How Long in Operation? One indicator to help assess the quality of a truck driver school is how long it has been in operation. A negatively rated or a fly by night school typically will not be in business very long, so longevity is a plus. Having said that, even the best of Lunenburg MA schools had to start from their opening day of training, so consider it as one of multiple qualifications. You can also ask what the school’s track record is regarding successful licensing and employment of its graduates. If a school won’t supply those stats, search elsewhere. The schools should additionally maintain relationships with regional and national trucking companies. Having numerous contacts not only affirms an excellent reputation within the trade, but also bolsters their job placement program for students. It also wouldn’t be a bad idea to check with the Massachusetts licensing authority to make sure that the CDL trucking schools you are reviewing are in compliance.

How Effective is the Training? As a minimum requirement, the schools must be licensed in Massachusetts and employ teachers that are experienced and trained. We will discuss more about the teachers in the next section. Also, the student to instructor proportion should be no higher than 4 to 1. If it’s any higher, then students will not be obtaining the personal instruction they will need. This is especially true concerning the one-on-one instruction for behind the wheel training. And be critical of any school that professes it can train you to drive trucks in a comparatively short time frame. Learning to be a truck driver and to drive a tractor trailer professionally takes time. The majority of Lunenburg MA schools provide training programs that run from 3 weeks to as long as two months, depending on the class of license or type of vehicle.

How Experienced are the Instructors? As earlier stated, it’s imperative that the instructors are qualified to teach driving techniques and experienced as both drivers and instructors. Even though a number of states have minimum driving time criteria to be certified as an instructor, the more professional driving experience an instructor has the better. It’s also vital that the teachers keep up to date with industry advancements or any new regulations or changes in existing laws. Assessing instructors may be a bit more intuitive than other standards, and perhaps the best method is to visit the school and talk to the instructors face to face. You can also speak with a few of the students going through the training and ask if they are satisfied with the level of instruction and the teacher’s qualification to train them.

Sufficient Driving Time? Above all else, an excellent truck driver school will provide plenty of driving time to its students. After all, isn’t that what it’s all about? Driving time is the real time spent behind the wheel driving a truck. While the use of ride-a-longs with other students and simulators are necessary training tools, they are no replacement for real driving. The more training that a student receives behind the wheel, the better driver he or she will be. Although driving time differs between schools, a good standard is 32 hours at a minimum. If the school is PTDI certified, it will furnish a minimum of 44 hours of driving time. Contact the Lunenburg MA schools you are looking at and ask how much driving time they furnish.

Are they Captive or Independent ? It’s possible to get free or discounted training from some trucking schools if you enter into an agreement to be a driver for a specified carrier for a defined time period. This is called contract training, and the schools that provide it are called captives. So instead of maintaining associations with numerous trucking lines that they can refer their students to, captives only work with one company. The benefit is receiving free or less expensive training by surrendering the flexibility to initially work wherever you have an opportunity. Obviously contract training has the potential to limit your income prospects when starting out. But for many it may be the best way to get affordable training. Just make sure to ask if the Lunenburg MA schools you are looking at are independent or captive so that you can make an informed decision.

Provide Onsite CDL Testing? There are a number of states that will allow third party CDL testing onsite of truck driving schools for its graduates. If onsite testing is permitted in Massachusetts, ask if the schools you are looking at are DMV certified to offer it. One benefit is that it is more accommodating than battling with graduates from other schools for test times at Massachusetts testing facilities. It is also an indicator that the DMV believes the authorized schools to be of a higher quality.

Are the Class Times Flexible? As earlier mentioned, CDL training is just 1 to 2 months in length. With such a short term, it’s essential that the Lunenburg MA school you enroll in provides flexibility for both the scheduling of classes and the curriculum. For example, if you’re having difficulty learning a certain driving maneuver, then the instructor should be prepared to devote more time with you until you are proficient. And if you’re still employed while attending training, then the class scheduling must be flexible enough to fit in working hours or other commitments.

Is Job Assistance Offered? The moment you have received your commercial driver’s license after graduating from truck driving school, you will be anxious to begin your new career. Confirm that the schools you are reviewing have job assistance programs. Find out what their job placement percentage is and what average salary their graduates start at. Also, find out which national and local trucking companies their graduates are placed with for hiring. If a school has a lower job placement rate or not many Lunenburg MA employers hiring their grads, it may be a clue to search elsewhere.

Is Financial Assistance Available? Trucking schools are similar to colleges and other Lunenburg MA area vocational or trade schools when it comes to loans and other forms of financial aid being offered. Find out if the schools you are assessing have a financial aid department, or at least someone who can help you navigate the options and forms that must be submitted.

How To Be A Trucker Lunenburg Massachusetts

Lunenburg MA long haul truck Choosing the appropriate truck driver school is an important first step to starting your new occupation as a long distance or local truck driver. The skills that you will learn at school will be those that forge a new career behind the wheel. There are a number of options available and understanding them is vital to a new driver’s success. You originally came to our website because of your interest in How To Be A Trucker and wanting information on the topic Commercial Driver Training. But first and foremost, you must receive the necessary training in order to operate a big commercial vehicle in a safe and professional fashion. If you are short on funds or financing, you might need to consider a captive school. You will pay a lower or even no tuition by agreeing to drive for their contracted carrier. Or you can select an independent truck driving school and have the option of driving for the trucking firm of your choice, or one of several associated with the school. It’s your choice. But no matter how you obtain your training, you will in the near future be entering an industry that helps our country move as a professional trucker in Lunenburg MA.

Truck On in These Other Massachusetts Locations

Truck School Menemsha MA

CDL Class B Training Chicopee MA

School For CDL License Harwich Port MA

Schools For Truck Driving Newbury MA

Get CDL License Petersham MA

CDL Truck School East Mansfield MA

CDL Training Programs Plainfield MA

Schools For CDL Training Acushnet MA

Certified CDL Truck Driver Training Middleton MA

Schools For CDL Drivers License Winchendon MA

The location could not be found.

Lunenburg, Massachusetts

Lunenburg was first settled in 1718 and was officially incorporated in 1728. The name stems from one of the titles of King George II of Great Britain, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.[1] During King George's War, natives raided the village and took settlers captive to Quebec.[2] Areas of neighboring Fitchburg were once part of Lunenburg, but broke away around this time because the walking distance to church and town meetings was too great for many. Closed in 2000, Whalom Park on Whalom Lake was a famous amusement park in Lunenburg. It closed with the rising popularity of Six Flags New England in Agawam. It was home of the famous Flyer Comet, now demolished.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 27.7 square miles (72 km2), of which 26.4 square miles (68 km2) is land and 1.3 square miles (3.4 km2), or 4.59%, is water.

Lunenburg is bordered by Townsend to the north, Shirley to the east, Groton to the east, Lancaster to the southeast, Leominster to the south, Fitchburg to the west, and Ashby to the northwest. Three state highways pass through Lunenburg. Route 2A follows Mass Ave from the Shirley line to the Fitchburg line. Rt 13 follows Electric Ave from the Leominster line to Mass Ave. Rt 13 then follows Mass Ave/Rt 2a for 0.3 miles. Rt 13 then follows Chase Rd to the Townsend Line. Rt 225 begins in Lunenburg, at an intersection with Rt 2a/Mass Ave near the Shirley line. Rt 225 follows West Groton Rd from Rt 2a to the Shirley line.