Unpopular Opinion: OTR is more like luxury prison than a coffin
Posted by AndromedanPrince@reddit | Truckers | View on Reddit | 102 comments
I hear ppl call their cabs coffins, but its more like a luxury prison cell. If u ever been locked up then u know what i mean. Comfy bunk, all ur food and storage space, entertainment all on a confined spaced. Only difference is no bunkmate and u can drive ur cell and see lots of cool shit.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
It’s different if you’re an owner op. You can drop your trailer and PC to different places.
OTR for a Mega is like prison, absolutely.
Dahmer_disciple@reddit
Same church, different pew. Yeah, you’ve got more freedom, but just because you get “work release” doesn’t make it any less a prison.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
Well, earth is a prison planet, we’re all prisoners of our own bodies. You know you can Uber to a hotel, right? You can go to Disneyland any time you want.
If you own your truck, it’s not a prison. Prison is a state of mind at this point.
You’re choosing prison. Because that’s your mindset. You’re a prisoner of your own mentality.
Dahmer_disciple@reddit
So…weekend pass. Got it.
I assume because you commented on an OTR thread, you’re an OTR O/O, right? So when you’re out, can you hug a family member right then and there? Or can you only do that when you’re back home? That’s “visiting hours,” bruh.
Sorry, I’m not about the lifestyle, it’s just a job to me. You’re free to think of it as whatever you like, but a cell is still a cell.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
My family is dead, so there’s that.
This lifestyle isn’t for everyone.
Dahmer_disciple@reddit
I feel sorry for you, I really do. No friends to hang out with at a moments notice. No wife or girlfriend to spend time with. That’s just depressing af.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
Get out of this sub.
Dahmer_disciple@reddit
You first, princess.
Er1cDravn@reddit
Truth hurts I guess. Ole boy big mad.
OTR trucking is a shit lifestyle these days and is very much a prison with better amenities. It's prison with work release at best.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
You’re blocked.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
That is an extremely rude thing to say to someone.
You don’t know my situation. You don’t know my age, gender, religious practice or life experience.
I’m not offended by it because that doesn’t actually pertain to me, but it could. And a person in that situation wouldn’t appreciate that comment.
If trucking isn’t for you, you should go do something else. You should not lurk on this sub if you can’t be civil.
FileCareless@reddit
In company and pc all over the place I don’t have a limit I just have to follow the pc rules of the road. So pretty much just can’t advance the load. Not all companies are shit
Fluffy-Caterpillar49@reddit
Does any mega let you PC to wallmart?
Uneventfulrice@reddit
I'm swifty swift. For pc I put food, move to shade, walmart, shopping, so far so good 👍 2 years.
QuietRightSlick@reddit
The better ones do. Some Megas don’t even have an option for PC.
Fluffy-Caterpillar49@reddit
Which are the better ones.
I assumed they all didn't have the option
gear_jammin_deer@reddit
I've worked for Swift and Western Express, and currently work for CFI. All 3 allow PC with varying degrees of strictness; but for your specific question, all 3 would happily let you PC to Walmart
MastrChang@reddit
I was wondering about that, can o/o just pc wherever, whenever?
CleanSeaPancake@reddit
You can absolutely PC as much as you want as an O/O. You can't use it to advance a load or improve operational readiness, but you can 100% drive anywhere as long as it's for personal benefit only.
MastrChang@reddit
This makes sense
QuietRightSlick@reddit
I think it depends. DOT rules still apply if you’re actually under a load. You can’t PC to advance a load. If you’re not under a load, if you’re bobtailed, you can PC like 100 miles or something like that.
Mega companies are really strict about PC. Some companies don’t even let drivers pc at all.
If you’re an owner op, you’re not necessarily tied to some company’s policy that was invented to satisfy some insurance company requirement.
You are still subject to DOT, though.
Outlaw11091@reddit
Just to put it out there, the reason for strict PC policies has nothing to do with insurance. The insurance already covers you, you're driving.
Fuel.
The companies don't make money on wasted fuel. That's why they govern the trucks, too. Nothing to do with safety, that's just an excuse, all about the green-backs.
Even though they're making $2/mile on your ass...they could always make more.
MastrChang@reddit
I think that would kinda suck owning your rig and not being able to drive it wherever whenever. There must be some loophole
QuietRightSlick@reddit
Well, you can post a sign on the side of your truck that says “not for hire,” and you can drive it like a car. But you also can’t haul commercial loads. You can haul your own loads on your own property.
It beats being a company driver by a long way.
MastrChang@reddit
10 4
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
yea im with a mega unfprtunately.
Montavious_Mole@reddit
Ngl im like 50/50 on this since im currently with swift and sometimes it does feel like a mobile prison with luxuries but then again this is the only job ive ever had where I have this much freedom. Coming from previous warehouse work and being micromanaged it is way better since i can manage my hours however i want and can take a break whenever but then again living OTR can be very mentally exhausting which is why i moved into a dedicated account.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
i dreaded it when i was local, but i enjoy it enough to do it long enough to go back to local work.
Justaguy222444888@reddit
lol it’s a job man where you live in your workspace. You forgot the difference of nobody is forcing you to work this job, you get paid for it and you have the free will to get out and walk/scooter/uber wherever when you have time.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
i like what i do. just a comparison, its not a negative one.
truck_it@reddit
Nothing beats driving alllll day then shutting down and getting in jams and hopping in bed. On the side of some random shoulder. It's awesome.
JGRACEFAN95@reddit
It’s all about mindset. I just see it as my apartment I have behind me. I can get out go for a walk, plan my stops in an area I can go do things in and Uber, etc.. in the end I get to see more of the country most people will ever get to see and experience the different cultures that exist across the country. I won’t do it forever but I’m enjoying it while im in this stage of life.
Bald-Eagle39@reddit
I love otr. It what you make out of it. Some people are just whiny by nature and can’t handle it.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
if i didnt have a family, id prob never come home. just take a couple days off to golf then back at it.
Bald-Eagle39@reddit
I’ve had a family every day I been trucking. Home on the weekends, gone during the week. It is what it is. They all grew up knowing what I did and how important it is so hasn’t been an issue.
Frenchie1001@reddit
So many people in here doing what they aren't cut out for. It's a life style not a job
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
who said i didnt like it? im an introvert, nomad at heart, and have no problem with small spaces. idk why ppl dont like it, shit is fun. lots of good feels behind the wheel of 80k lbs of steel.
Frenchie1001@reddit
The comment wasn't directed at you
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
my bad fam
Motor-Maximum-8185@reddit
You were just fed that "it's a lifestyle" bs so you'd be a more willing and docile slave/prisoner
Frenchie1001@reddit
Dog shit way to look at it. Somehow liking your job makes you a prisoner lmao
BrentTse@reddit
You're right, Frenchie.. it is a lifestyle. It was for me. I enjoyed OTR very much! I chose the job and embraced it.. didn't take a job to hate it.. OTR ain't for everyone..
Frenchie1001@reddit
It's definitely not for everyone. It is definitely overall a shit job but it's a calling for alot of people
BrentTse@reddit
Geezer here... from what I read here on this sub and chattin with OTR guys today, OTR has really gone downhill. I could talk a bunch of "back in the day" stories.. I'll assume that coupons for a free steak dinner at the Detroiter just for fuelin up are no longer? Lol
Frenchie1001@reddit
Na, trucking has gotten a lot worse for the operator. It's the same here in aus as it is in the US. A whole bunch of reasons behind it.
BrentTse@reddit
Ahh.. that's a shame. I started at the tail end of the "hay days" back in 1990.. 11 years of good times, and then it went off.. quit OTR in '06 and have been local since.. are you long hauling in Aus?
Frenchie1001@reddit
I think the 2010s is about when it all started falling over. The trucks got to safe and boring, the contracts undercut to nothing and all the safety shit killing competence.
It's really sector specific in aus. I cart grain which is usually only 3-4.5k km a week but very hour intense. Some of the general guys are up amount the 5-7k km mark per week
BrentTse@reddit
Loading and unloading eatin your hours? The rule of thumb, back in the day, was "a drop, a pick and a thousand klick" per day, and you're makin a good cheque.. but that was usually an 18 hour day.. electronic log books wouldn't accept this..
Are electronic log books used in Aus?
Frenchie1001@reddit
Yeah kinda, grain doesn't travel super long distances here so you can generally do 1.5 loads a day which is around the 16/17 hour mark.
Yeah ewds are here but not everyone uses em
BrentTse@reddit
Long day for a load and a half! Are you pullin B-train type trailers?
Outlaw11091@reddit
I think you got it confused.
There used to be 'coffin sleepers'.
It's literally a bed in a bin on the back of the cab. You open a hatch and crawl on in...from the outside.
first Google image on a search
Not enough head room to sit up or move around. Only reason to go in there was for sleep.
Also, you need to work on your headspace. Sitting in an apartment alone will do the same shit. You start to notice how restrictive shit is when you're lonely and have nothing better to think about.
Get some friends that drive. Go to places people hang out and fucking engage with other humans. Find someone to make the sex with. Maybe make some humans together. Whatever. Then bring them with you. If your company doesn't allow it, then fuck them, find another.
I've got three teenagers in a suburban hellscape of my crafting that call me dad and a wife that can kick my ass if need be. This truck is my man cave. No prison bars here. Just...peace. Sweet, sweet, peace.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
just a comparison man, im totally fine out here 😂
Outlaw11091@reddit
You're comparing a sleeper to a prison cell...this shit isn't even remotely close.
No one's taking your lunch or your pride.
It's like comparing people to cuts of meat.
It's a huge red flag that something isn't right.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
man what are u on about? the setup is very similar. nobody is talking about te actual stay in prison, just how the sleeper is setup. its a red flag u reading this deep into a jovial comparison.
Outlaw11091@reddit
A bed with cabinets is a prison?
That makes even less sense.
By that logic, a bunk bed is like prison.
There's not any cabinets in prison. The beds are much smaller and are essentially gym mats. The one window you might get to look out of has bars...there's no personal TV in prison...
Red flags, bud.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
youve never been. there is storage and u can have a trunk to put stuff in, there are personal tvs in prison if u pay for one, my window didnt have bars just a small slit with frosted glass. the beds are about the same size just much better mattresses. but can get double mattresses if u cool with somebody or a guard that will overlook it.
Top-Confidence4496@reddit
This is quite true, that's why It's important to get off the road eventually. Save up the money you need to save and get out
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
i got 8 months left of this, just getting my tanker experience to be able to haul fuel. 8 month sentence is light work
Motor-Maximum-8185@reddit
Why does every otr driver want to haul fuel?!?
BrattyBookworm@reddit
Good money in it, why not?
Motor-Maximum-8185@reddit
Won't be for long....
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
i was never truly otr. i got into the industry to haul fuel. was goal from day 1. only otr so i can get tanker experience
Jermaphobe456@reddit
I have a feeling that anyone who firmly believes OTR is close to prison on any scale, hasn't been to prison before
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
i think anyone that cant see the similarities hasnt been. its very much like a cell. we are not talking the bad parts of prison, just the cell comparison. everything in arms reach, the double bunk, all ur food stored in one place, all your amenities are in one confined space. u even go to the bathroom in this space. its very similar, except u have more luxury and freedom.
i did fed time so it wasnt exactly a shithole like state prison.
LilMerkEm1889@reddit
Definitely depends. When I was with C.R. England, oh yea. Luxury prison for sure. Literally did everything in their power to keep me away from home forever essentially. The mega I’m with now? Literally regularly PAYS ME to head to my home terminal if I need to. Furthest I was away from home was 900 miles, and they said “Fuck it, bobtail home. We’ll put the move on you”. And all my miles pay the same, 84CPM.
Outlaw11091@reddit
Who are you with now?
bugani@reddit
crickets
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
thats awesome at 84 cpm
Maleficent_Rate2087@reddit
It’s a lifestyle more than a job. Kinda of ridiculous to do when you can do Uber Lyft and still make more even using own car.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
u absolutely cannot make more money in Uber. and uber is an O/O with no comfort or perks and all the hassle.
Maleficent_Rate2087@reddit
Most major markets if you drive 11 hours a day the same as truck driving. 1800-2500 a week
Uknow_nothing@reddit
I used to drive for Lyft, those numbers are very rare. $250 a day average? You’re going to have days where you work 12 hrs, make $80 and burn half a tank of gas not getting rides.
Maleficent_Rate2087@reddit
Nah I ve worked Atlanta and Nashville overnight never made below 250 for 12 hours. You listen to naysayers working 25hr a week thinking they should be making 1500.
ForcesEqualZero@reddit
300? Maybe, if you drive a 60 gpm hybrid, otherwise gas alone is a lot more than that. You're also likely short on maintenance and car depreciation, but that's also car dependent.
IRMacGuyver@reddit
Some European sleeper cabs are pretty damn small. Like how some trucks in before the 80s were. At least you don't have to crawl through the tiny hole like you did in the 70s cause they're built that way and not just converted day cabs.
https://d1dcnte8mfzkpv.cloudfront.net/uploads/2021/06/7da1e267d92d29472a4dc5bcac8.jpg
TheTallestTales@reddit
Seeing as how I can go wherever I'd like via rideshare during my breaks, I'd have to completely disagree. Your time is what you make of it.
jabber1990@reddit
Oh no! We have it so bad with the fact we can listen to whatever we want on the radio, talk on the phone any time we want to whoever we want
If I want to pull over for 5 minutes I can! No company has ever said anything about it. I used to ask for permission to use the bathroom at previous jobs
flnmnl@reddit
To the person not built for it, yes it's luxury prison.
To the person built for it, a desk job is prison and this is freedom.
It's all perspective and mindset.
Commiefornian@reddit
I once ran team with a felon, for a few months. From what I could gather, he seemed to think it was very similar to his time in prison.
One night, he didn’t feel like driving, and stayed in the bottom bunk. He got spooked when I got into the top bunk and closed the curtains to keep out the light. Insisted the curtains remained open so I wouldn’t rape him. After that he started keeping a KaBar on him. At that point I decided it was time to part ways. It wasn’t much longer until I decided team driving just wasn’t for me.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
bruh im dead 🤣 he thought u were gonna rape him. he had a traumatizing time in the box.
Commiefornian@reddit
Yeah, I really felt bad for him, he wasn’t a bad guy, but I also didn’t want to risk getting stabbed while he worked through his trauma.
Er1cDravn@reddit
I'm serving a 1 yr bid with a dog shit carrier bc a four wheeler squeezed in and I clipped him as I was executing a tight turn.
Cop came out didn't cite me, said I was at fault tho. The company camera also was installed shittily and didn't capture a damn thing 🤦
March 2025 I can get on with a better carrier and hopefully be making decent money and then make some progress on my goals.
Averaging 2k miles/wk at 47cpm with an otherwise decent record, no violations, no tickets, 4 1/2 yrs experience..
Oh and i was supposed to be home this weekend and I'm stuck about 8hrs from home can't even get to the shop to fix the inverter that the mechanic in Asheville didn't hook back up because 2 hours is too far even though my load doesn't pick up til Monday ..and it's Saturday 🤦🤦
Few more months of this bid tho
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
youre gonna make it out fam. sucks it went down like that, but at least u got a chance to get better opps.
Er1cDravn@reddit
Can't keep a good driver down bro. Stay up homie 🤘
azziptac@reddit
Then don't do it lol? No one made you sign that contract but yourself.
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
man im going to haul fuel in 8 months. this isnt even bad, its actually fun.
Adventurous-Koala-36@reddit
How are you sure you’re going to haul fuel? Do you live in a high demand market for fuel haulers? Do you know a guy who knows a guy in a company ?
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
Ive already talked to a company and they said as soon as my year is up to call them. i live in the south and fuel haulers are everywhere. im moving to the gulf where even more fuel haulers are. i also have this weird way of having my goals work out. i said ill be in a tank in 3 months when i started schneider and here i am.
Adventurous-Koala-36@reddit
I mean I live in the south too and it seems like fuel hauler is pretty tight now at least with the big carriers like Gemini or pilot .
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
Eagle transport just put up a post to hire. in the gulf several have job postings. even if itsnot fuel, amy jome daily tanker job i take. but i have my eye on a couple companies so far.
Adventurous-Koala-36@reddit
Hmm I may need some pointers. Hell I just need to move atp lol
ConditionYellow@reddit
He can still pontificate. Don’t be a shit.
Adventurous-Koala-36@reddit
Lmao yessir
NJPokerJ@reddit
You've missed the point
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
totally
Weak_Pause177@reddit
im new and im liking it so far. im used to the solo life in a confined place. feels like the barracks tbh. idk
oic38122@reddit
I just did about 12 years…. I traded that for a rolling cell… my food options are way better, oh and I get paid! I’m glad I’m not the only one that associates this to another type of sentence!😂
Garet44@reddit
"only difference" you forgot the part where you can take a day off
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
that too. u right
halfcow@reddit
I've never been in prison, but can we just agree to call it summer camp? Please? Thanks in advance?
AndromedanPrince@reddit (OP)
ill do that fam, ur welcome
southmost956@reddit
I have been saying this forever.