I’ve found the most important factor is the company you work for and how they look after their drivers, I’ve driven class 1&2 for the same company for almost twenty years now and their public face is disconnected from the way they interact with their own workforce, there has never been a problem with having the right tools for the job or access to the appropriate training but there is a definitive air of favouritism which causes real arguments between drivers.
I don’t like giving advice because even after twenty five years in the industry I don’t know everything and I’m not a driver trainer but I always try to tell the new girls and guys that it’s your licence and livelihood and despite the fact we are woefully underpaid as a sector we are responsible for ourselves and everyone around us when we take a 7.5/12/18/26/44 ton truck on the road with everything that that entails, DON’T rush,DO make sure you do your vehicle checks and keep an eye on all your vehicle systems during your working day and if it doesn’t feel right don’t do it no matter who or what piece of technology tells you different.
The most important thing is to park that truck up at the end of your shift knowing you did the best job you could in the safest way possible.