How to Successfully Travel with your Truck Driving Spouse 

 

Interested in joining your spouse OTR (on the road)? You’re not alone! In fact, more and more spouses are joining their significant other on the road — and loving it — stating it can be a great time to bond and spend quality time together. And while it may not be for everyone, most drivers will agree that it’s much nicer to have their best friend with them on the journey. If you’re still not convinced that trucking with your spouse is a good idea, stay tuned as we cover the pros and cons of trucking with your spouse, including ways you can contribute if you’re not driving.

 

PROS

1. Strengthen Your Relationships & Companionship

Even if one spouse doesn’t do any of the driving, most drivers will agree that it’s amazing to have their best friend with them on the road — both for general companionship and for their relationship itself. Many spouse comments in forums actually suggest that traveling together, but not team driving, strengthened their relationship.

2. Reduce Living Expenses

If you make your truck your home, you can significantly reduce your living expenses by downsizing and selling unnecessary things, selling your home, or moving out of a rental.

3. Adventure

Life on the road, and with your favorite person, is always an adventure.

CONS

1. Small Living Spaces

Small living spaces and confined areas leave little room for dealing with things that could be overlooked in larger living spaces — annoyances, smells, and daily tasks, to name a few. So, if you and your spouse don’t do well together in small, confined spaces, traveling together for long periods of time may not be for you. Small living quarters also means that you will need to pack lightly and get creative with organization.

2. Living on One Salary

If only one spouse is driving, make sure you can comfortably live on just one salary.

3. Hygiene and Bathroom Breaks

From brushing teeth to going to the bathroom, life on the road has its own hygiene and bathroom break challenges. Most of these challenges are pretty easy to face, however, if you’re willing to follow these trucker hygiene and bathroom tips.

Non-Driving Ways to Help Your Spouse On The Road

If you’re going on the road with your spouse, the most obvious way to help with trucking responsibilities is to share in the driving and become team drivers. However, if that’s not the plan, here are some non-driving ways you can help your truck driving spouse:

1. Be someone to talk to or lovingly argue with.
2. Help use ELDs and your ELD app features.
3. Complete any ELD supporting documents.
4. Handle any electronic paperwork.
5. Be a second set of eyes on the road.
6. Help navigate and operate mapping systems.
7. Secure better bypass rates.
8. Call shippers and receivers.
9. Secure loads through GoLoad.
10. Check out fuel discounts on GoFuel.
11. Communicate with dispatch.
12. Respond to messages.
13. Handle repairs.
14. Cook food or pick it up while one spouse is refueling.
15. Make coffee.
16. Help keep the truck clean (inside and outside).
17. Help with chaining.
18. Be a backing spotter.
19. Scan loads.
20. Do laundry (possibly while the driving spouse is sleeping).

Life Together on the Road

Spouses that get along well in small, confined spaces (and can live comfortably off of one income) tend to rave about their experience traveling with their truck-driving spouse. It’s these partners that call their truck home, and they wouldn’t have it any other way. If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, test it out by joining your spouse on a section of their next long haul — just remember to use the tips above so that you feel less like “a seat warmer” and more like a partner. Finally, if you’re a seasoned traveling companion that has exhausted the tips above and still wants more responsibilities — and more income — consider completing the process to become a team driver with your spouse. Just keep in mind that this usually means you’ll see less of each other, as one person drives the day, the other the night.