There’s a sign not far from my house advertising for CDL tanker truck drivers.
The trucking companies I deal with are mostly flatbed heavy haulers of lumber, plywood and other commodities out in the Pacific Northwest. They typically are not reefer(refridgerated) haulers. Their business has been increasing for the last three years. At first they brought back equipment that had been mothballed. Now they are buying new equipment.
As I stated in my previous post, the biggest problem is trying to hire qualified drivers. Being a long haul trucker is a very difficult job. My dad was an owner operator tanker driver. Long hours and phyiscally exhausting and sometimes days away from home and family. Flatbeds are even harder because you may be required to tarp the load, especially in the winter. That means climbing up on the flatbed and the product on the trailer and straping down a 50 x 20 full tarp. Sometimes drivers fall off and get hurt.
You need to have a clean driving record to get insurance coverage. The more dangerous commodity you are hauling the higher the insurance and pay. My dad hauled everything from rocket propellant, acids, blue indigo dye, palmolive dish soap to liquified sugar. He frequented places like Hooker and Dow Chemical, WR Grace and an air base in Alabama, where they built missiles. Of course he died of cancer.