Commercial driving can be a very well-paying job and lifelong career if you find the right employer.
There are many different types of CDL driver jobs. You can work for larger shipping companies, or you can work for a local business. Local CDL driver jobs are typically better since you do not have to be away from home for months at a time like you would with most national companies.
The type of CDL driver job you can find in your local area may depend on where you live. Most of them will involve driving either a box truck, a city bus, or a school bus. Bigger jobs that are not local are the ones in which you would drive large semi-trucks. For these local CDL driver jobs, since you would drive smaller commercial motor vehicles, you should only need a Class B CDL rather than a Class A and if you’re still unsure the difference, we broke down the difference between the different CDL classes here.
If you are unsure what CDL driver job to apply for in your area, here are some ideas to consider; these are the 20 best local CDL driver jobs trending in 2019.
Painless Local CDL Driver Jobs
School Bus Driver
Driving a school bus is probably one of the most enjoyable CDL driver jobs you could have; maybe not so much if you are driving high school students and they are loud all the time (it’s a joke of course), but it would be fun to see cute kiddos every day and be able to make their day better by being a friendly bus driver. Keep in mind, you would need the S endorsement if you are going to be driving a school bus.
UPS Truck driver
Any shipping company, not just UPS, are great CDL driver jobs to have. Most shipping companies provide benefits and health insurance. Even though some shipping companies deliver nationwide, they also have local jobs for delivering to residential houses, which is the type of job you should consider.
Amazon Delivery
Like UPS, Amazon delivers to residents in their home. Amazon has a different type of delivery system than other shipping companies, but they are better to work for so you might enjoy this job quite a bit.
Deliver for A Tool Supply Store
Large tool supply stores do a lot of local deliveries to homes and businesses on a daily basis. Drivers are always needed.
City Bus Driver
Most large cities have a relatively large system of public buses, and they need drivers for them. It may not be an option to be a city bus driver if you live in a rural or less populated area.
Shuttle Bus Driver
Drive a shuttle bus at your local airport or zoo to carry passengers back and forth on a set route.
Dry Van Driver
As a dry van driver, you would transport non-perishable items to local grocery stores and restaurants.
Refrigerated Food Truck Driver
You can drive small or large refrigerated trucks to local grocery stores and report back to a distribution center. It’s a niche that has grown exponentially lately due to the demand. For example, Prime Inc’s refrigeration trucking division is one of the top trucking carriers in this niche. This job is very straightforward, and the only problem you may ever have is if the refrigerator stops working; but you are working locally, so most businesses provide you with maintenance help.
Local Pickups
Similar to how there are people who make deliveries, there are CDL drivers who make pickups for companies as well, whether it is for a small business or a corporate one.
Work for a Moving Company
Local moving companies use straight trucks or box trucks to help people move out of their home and into a new one. This type of job may require you to lift heavy items.
This is the first place to start your search.
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Messy Local CDL Driver Jobs
Residential Driver for Waste Management
It may not sound like a fun job to work in sanitation, but it provides you with the same paying salary as most other CDL driver jobs.
Asphalt Distributor Truck
This is undoubtedly one of the messiest CDL driver jobs you could have, but it pays great. Work for local construction jobs by driving an asphalt distributor truck to where they direct you.
Haul People’s Junk
When residents throw out large junk to their curb, like furniture, it does not usually get picked up by waste management, so you can be the person who offers the service of picking up people’s junk with your commercial vehicle, and you will get paid a lot to do it.
Other Local CDL Driver Jobs
Drive a Flatbed
Experience with driving a flatbed truck is a desired trait by some local companies; although, some of them prefer that you have a Class A CDL, not a Class B.
Distribution Center
Around your area, whether you realize it or not, there are one or a few distribution centers for large online retail companies. They have large semi-trucks that bring in shipments, but they also need drivers for shipping to local stores.
Transport Liquids
You may not always find a job in your local area that needs a driver for transporting liquids, but it is an incredibly important job to have since you would be used mostly in emergency cases.
Lumber Shipment
With so much construction happening all of the time, there will always be a need for CDL drivers who will ship lumber. As a driver, you would pick up a load from a local lumberyard and transport it to the customer on a job site.
Specialty Cargo Hauler
Make deliveries for furniture stores and other local businesses to city residents.
Heavy Equipment Operator
At local construction sites, you can provide your skills as a CDL driver by operating large equipment or cranes.
Highway Maintenance Technician
Use your CDL to operate machinery used to repair roads and highways; these positions are usually for nighttime shifts.
How to Find the Best Local CDL Driver Job
A simple trick to finding a local driving job is to do this Google search here and the results will auto-populate based on local jobs near you.
Want to find paid local CDL training programs?
If you are having trouble finding the best CDL driver job for your skillset and level of experience, you can always look online at job listing sites that provide a quick way of viewing all of the available CDL driver jobs in your area.
You can also contact local construction companies or distribution centers since both are usually in demand for local CDL drivers. Ultimately, it will come down to what type of CDL driver job you want to have and what kind of people you want to deal with every day. Do what you enjoy.