As of 2016, there were 225 million licensed drivers in the United States. That’s about 70% of the country.
Why are so many people getting behind the wheel domestically? Because some folks need to drive to get through their days and others just love driving!
For those of you that feel comfortable in your driving skills and enjoy getting out on the road, we’ve got good news for you… You can make a good living as a vehicle operator.
Not sure how? Below, we break down ten jobs that involve driving that you might love.
1. Truck Driver
Any time that you’re on the freeway, you probably see a big-rig truck cruising down the middle lane. You’re liable to see more of those sixteen-wheelers in the near future given the increased demand for shipping services that e-commerce has put on the world.
To become a truck driver you’ll need a commercial driver’s license. Once you obtain one, job opportunities should be abundant.
2. Chauffeur
Do you live in major cities like Los Angeles or New York? If you do, there’s demand for chauffeurs that you can cash in on.
As a chauffeur, you’ll typically be responsible for driving one or two people around over the course of a day. In addition to driving regular compact cars, some clients may require you to operate specialty vehicles like limousines or larger, SUV-style vehicles like Escalades.
Chauffeurs typically don’t need anything other than their standard driver’s license to perform their job responsibilities.
3. Taxi Driver
A cab driver’s life is by no means an easy one. You’ll be at the beck and call of a dispatch operator when pickups are ordered and when you don’t have any formal assignments, you’ll spend a lot of time waiting in popular areas for fares.
Despite that, some taxi drivers make an okay living despite pressure from ride-sharing services which have become a preferred choice among many consumers.
4. Ride-Share Professional
In our opinion, if you’re open to driving a taxi, you should first experiment with driving for a ride-share service like Uber or Lyft. Rather than getting calls from a dispatcher, as a ride-share professional, applications on your phone will inform you of pickups that you have to make.
The advantage of being bossed around by an application as opposed to a dispatcher is that with ride-share companies, you can work when you want to work and stop working when you’re fed up. Compare that to the schedule that cab companies require and the anatomy of ride-sharing may end up looking very attractive to you.
5. Food Delivery Driver
The same applications that allow you to pick up passengers for ride-sharing purposes will also allow you to deliver food. Uber, for example, offers an Uber Eats service that allows customers to order food from restaurants and then asks drivers to pick up what was ordered for delivery.
If you don’t want to work with mobile delivery services, you can also find work as a delivery driver via brick-and-mortar operations like Pizza Hut or smaller non-chain restaurants.
6. School Bus Driver
The prospect of picking up, managing and dropping off 30+ kids at school every morning and then picking them up again in the afternoon may not be for everyone. If that responsibility doesn’t send you running for the hills though, being a school bus driver could be a good gig.
School bus drivers don’t get paid a lot on paper but given the fact that many get hours between the morning and afternoon off, pay is relatively good when you consider the number of hours be worked. Drivers for certain districts might also qualify for healthcare benefits.
7. Delivery Driver
Delivery drivers work across several niches. There are government postal delivery drivers, private package drivers and even professionals that work for companies like ATC Driveaway that delivery heavy machinery.
Depending on the nature of your cargo, you may need a special license to be a delivery driver. In general, the more specialized your cargo, the more money that you’ll be able to earn in this line of work.
8. Tow-Truck Operator
Tow-truck operators are called in to handle everything from transporting vehicles to dealing with repossessions. While the work of a tow-truck operator might not seem difficult, you’d be surprised by how hard it can be to navigate your truck and hitch vehicles in densely populated areas.
Tow truck professionals can make a median income working an eight hour day. Drivers may be required to work nights though and others could be on call for emergency jobs, even on weekends.
9. Stunt Driver
Behind all of the great car moments that you’ve seen in movies are outstanding stunt drivers. If you’ve always wished that you could make a living drifting or crashing cars for media production, being a stunt professional could be your perfect jobs that involve driving pick.
In order to qualify for this position, you’ll want to go to a stunt driving school and from there, find an agent that can help connect you to movies and TV show tapings.
10. Professional Race Car Driver
Perhaps the mecca of all jobs that involve driving is becoming a professional race car driver. Getting into racing is about as difficult as breaking into any professional sport. In some ways, it’s harder since before you get sponsorships, you’ll have to self-fund getting a car on the track.
If you’ve got driving talent though and can foot the bill as you get your career off of the ground, racing for a living could be a dream job.
Jobs That Involve Driving Are a Dime a Dozen, So Get Behind the Wheel
The jobs that involve driving that we’ve shared with you barely scratch the surface of your options!
We hope that we’ve helped get the wheels turning in our head regarding which driving professions you might be interested in and welcome you to check out more of the business/employment advice on our blog if you’re in need of more direction.
