Day or Night Trucking: Which is Best for Truckers
Choosing a nighttime trucking gig vs. daytime can be a major decision. It affects a lot of aspects of your life, sleep schedule, time with family, routes available, etc. However, it’s also important to consider other factors like visibility and traffic that may play a role in helping you decide which is right for you.
It’s difficult to say if night truck driving or day truck driving is best. It really just depends on what you prefer as a driver. Take a look at our comparison of truck driving at night vs. day and check out the pros and cons of each. You may find that some things don’t really matter to you that may be super important for other drivers. It all comes down to what do you want most.
Daytime Truck Driving
Pros:
- Daylight – An obvious pro for truck driving during the day is that it’s light out. This allows you to more easily see obstructions in the road and avoid accidents. Another benefit to daytime driving is that you can more easily see road signs. This makes it more likely that you’ll see important changes to the roads displayed on signs as well as any exit signs that will help you stay on course.
- Parking – Another difference between trucking in the day vs. night is that if you need to stop at a rest stop, you are more likely to get a parking spot during the day. Since many drivers park overnight at rest stops, parking can be scarce during the night. Day driving helps you to avoid the crowding that typically happens at rest stops overnight.
- Normal Sleep Cycle – Regardless of how late you can stay up or how confident you are in your ability to stay awake all night, it can be a difficult process to change your sleep schedule. With day driving, you don’t have to! Keeping a normal sleep schedule allows you to continue your body’s natural rhythm.
Cons:
- Traffic – One of the biggest cons of daytime truck driving is traffic. Depending on where you’re driving, this could be a big deterrent or it might not be a problem at all. It really just depends on where you live and the routes you typically drive.
- Family/Friend Time – Your daytime driving schedule could mean that you have very little time at home besides at night. Nighttime driving could mean that you’re gone all night and then not available during the day because you’re asleep. One schedule will work for some people and not for others, it just depends on what works best for you.
Nighttime Truck Driving
Pros:
- More Mileage in Less Time – A big benefit of nighttime driving is lack of traffic, which typically means that you can travel more miles in less time. This may mean shorter shifts or it could mean that you’re able to take on farther distances.
- Fewer Distractions – Nighttime driving means that you have fewer distractions. This is really important in helping you stay safe while on the road. Since it’s dark, you can’t really see the scenery around you, hence fewer distractions. You also are less likely to be distracted by other people as most people are asleep.
- Less Stressful – With fewer vehicles on the road, truck driving at night can be a little less stressful. Nighttime driving can also mean fewer accidents as well as less construction, which can make for a quicker and easier drive.
Cons:
- Visibility – An obvious downside to driving at night is that it’s more difficult to see. Depending on the route you’re driving, this can be very important or really not a factor.
- Tiredness – Another obvious disadvantage to driving at night is the disruption to your normal sleep schedule. Because you may be tired, it is extremely important that you’re fully awake while driving at night. This is essential for both your safety and the safety of others on the road.
If you’re looking to decide which schedule is right for you – nighttime or daytime driving – it really depends on what is most important to you. Does the lack of visibility of nighttime driving worry you? Are you deterred by the traffic found during daytime driving? Whatever you’re looking for, there’s certainly a truck driving schedule that will work best for you.