The tale of a woman commercial truck driver
April Halter and her husband Matthew enjoy the time they spend together on the road in the trucking industry.
"It takes a certain type of couple to be able to travel and live in a small truck," said April Halter, female trucker
April Halter and her husband Matthew live in the truck. They will occasionally stay at their mother's house in Salt Lake City when they are in town.
The Halters' refrigerator is small but critical to their daily meals. The husband and wife team of April and Matthew Halter say they rarely eat fast food.
April and Matthew Halter have been team driving for Pride Transportation for two years.
April Halter is part of the 14 percent of women truck drivers at Pride Transportation.
April Halter enjoys being able to see the country as she works as a trucker.
Benjamin, the Halters' do,g travels with everywhere the husband and wife team of April and Matthew Halter go.
She lives in a truck with her husband and dog.
April and Matthew Halter have been driving for Salt Lake City-based Pride Transportation for two years.
“It started when Matthew thought about driving a truck and I mentioned that we would never see each other,” April said. “We then decided I could just ride along with him. Then we realized I could drive too and we could both get paid.”
April works for Pride Transportation, which says 14 percent of its drivers are women, while nationwide, 6 percent of professional drivers are women.
Since there are so few women drivers it is uncommon to spot them on the road. April has heard all sorts of comments regarding her occupation.
“I wouldn’t say I look like a truck driver,” April said. “I have had many male truck drivers tell me I am too pretty to drive a truck, or I look too young. I never know how to respond; it is pretty awkward.”
Nonetheless, April said she and her husband have enjoyed the opportunity to team drive.
“It is definitely something I would recommend to women in a similar situation in life as me,” April said. “I am newly married, no kids, and just enjoy seeing the country.”
April and Matthew got married in October and call their first home, their truck.
“We feel like we’re out here doing our own thing, we make our own schedules, and constantly travel to different states,” she said. “We have a boss but forget a lot of the time. We have a good thing going on here.”
April and Matthew worked together at the same company before doing so as truckers.
“We were store managers so we were always on call, but we never felt like we were compensated how we should’ve been,” April said. “There is so much more money to be made in truck driving. We are happy we went this route.”
One of the biggest downsides, however, according to the Halters, is the endless amounts of fast-food restaurants along the freeways and interstates. The Halters say they refuse to eat fast food for every meal.
“I think fast food should be looked at as a treat, a once in a while meal,” April said. “Maybe this is why Matthew and I don’t look like the stereotypical truck driver. We have always enjoyed eating healthy. Just because we live in a truck doesn’t mean I can’t cook.”
April said her meal planning and trips to Whole Foods Market is an art in and of itself.
“I only have a limited amount of space to use,” she said. “The fridge is tiny so I have to be creative with my shelf-stable foods and plan ahead.”
The truck-driving job has given her experiences she otherwise wouldn’t have had.
“We were assigned to deliver to the Bronx,” she said. “I was so excited because I had heard so much about it before. It was scary, it was intense, we almost wrecked, but it was a good experience.”
Once April and Matthew start having kids she will retire from the truck-driving industry to be a mother.
“I plan to stay at home with my kids and raise them there,” she said. “This is just such a perfect fit for my lifestyle and situation right now. If I could tell young couples who are in debt or are looking to make some good money I would tell them to do team driving. It has been amazing for us.
“Honestly if couples could commit for a few years, they could really get ahead in life,” she said. “I was living paycheck to paycheck and couldn’t really put any money into savings, so this has been great for me to earn a good amount of money doing something with a lot more freedom.”
Don’t forget that it takes the right couple, relationship, friendship and team to drive together seven days per week, 24 hours per day, she said.
“We have heard of a couple getting a divorce because of their team-driving experience,” April said. “It isn’t for everyone, but if you and your spouse can make it work, it’s worth it.”