Local CDL-A Position Dedicated Grocery Reefer

CDL-A Local Grocery Delivery Driver – Reefer | Lexington, KY

Hiring Area: Lexington, KY • Terminal: Central Kentucky Distribution Facility

Lexington, KY Local Dedicated 2021–2025 Tractors

Early-start multi-stop reefer runs move palletized dairy, frozen and chilled grocery products from a Central Kentucky warehouse to supermarket docks, paying $1,700–$2,200 weekly with home every night.

Typical Weekly Gross
$1,700–$2,200
Estimated Annual Range: $88,400–$114,400
Base / Overtime $30 / $45 per hour
Stop Pay $8 per completed stop
Home Time Daily
Schedule 45–52 hours/week
Sign-On Bonus Up to $1,500
Position Company Driver

Daily Delivery Focus

Store appointment windows drive the shift more than highway miles on this dedicated grocery account.

  • Confirms seals, reefer settings and paperwork before leaving the yard.
  • Maneuvers into tight retail approaches and waits for assigned docks.
  • Uses company pallet jacks only for positioning and empty exchanges.
  • Records shortages, damage and collects receiver signatures on POD.
  • Watches reefer alarms and reports any temperature exception at once.
  • Logs arrival and release times so detention claims stay accurate.

How Pay Adds Up

Forty regular hours at $30 equal $1,200. Five to twelve overtime hours at $45 add $225–$540. Forty to sixty completed stops at $8 contribute another $320–$480. The resulting weekly range of $1,700–$2,200 reflects a normal 45–52-hour week with consistent stop volume; higher figures require steady overtime and full stop counts rather than a guaranteed top rate.

Base Hourly $30
Overtime $45 after 40 hours
Stop Pay $8 each completed stop
Typical Weekly $1,700–$2,200
Annual Range (52 weeks) $88,400–$114,400
Detention $25/hour after 60 minutes documented wait
Sign-On $1,500 paid $500 at 30 / 90 / 180 days

Shift Pattern & Home Time

Home Time Home every night
Service Area Lexington and nearby Central Kentucky towns
Yard Central Kentucky distribution facility
Weekly Hours 45–52 on duty
Start Window 2:00–5:00 AM
Workweek Five shifts; weekend rotation may apply

Trucks, Trailers & Tools

Day Cabs Freightliner Cascadia and Kenworth T680
Age Range Primarily 2021–2025
Transmission Automatic on most assigned units
Trailers 53-ft refrigerated vans, 2019–2025 mix
Seating Assigned tractor preferred; controlled slip-seat when needed
Safety & Tech ELD, GPS, forward dash camera, collision mitigation

Lane-departure and adaptive cruise vary by unit. Pallet jacks come from the account. Defects are reported before dispatch; the shop or approved vendors handle repairs.

Freight & Route Geography

Temperature-controlled grocery freight—dairy, chilled meat, frozen items and packaged produce—leaves the Lexington distribution facility in palletized loads bound for supermarket and neighborhood store docks. Dispatch groups stops by corridor and receiving windows so an 8–12-stop day stays practical.

  • Primary north corridor: Georgetown via I-75 N / US-25
  • Primary south corridor: Richmond via I-75 S
  • East corridor: Winchester via US-60 E
  • South local: Nicholasville via US-27 S
  • West corridor: Versailles and Frankfort via US-60 W
  • Occasional extensions: Paris (US-68 N) or Mount Sterling (I-64 E)

Week Flow & Shift Sequence

  • Terminal check-in, pre-trip and reefer verification open the early morning.
  • Trailer may be preloaded or still finishing live loading depending on warehouse progress.
  • Dispatch sets the initial store order; windows and traffic can force mid-day changes.
  • Each stop includes check-in, dock wait, limited pallet assistance and POD completion.
  • Any delay that risks the next appointment is reported to operations at once.
  • Returns of empties or rejected product ride back; equipment is parked and post-tripped.
  • Post-holiday and Monday runs often carry heavier catch-up volume.

About the Carrier

Retail grocery chains depend on predictable refrigerated capacity that keeps dairy, frozen and chilled products moving from regional warehouses to store back doors on tight receiving schedules. Mid-sized carriers operating dedicated short-radius fleets supply that link without the variability of open-market truckload. In the Lexington area the work centers on recurring customer accounts, planned delivery windows and a mix of live-load and staged trailers so stores stay stocked even when warehouse order completion fluctuates. The model prioritizes temperature integrity and daily terminal returns rather than extended over-the-road cycles.

Benefits Package

Health Coverage Employee medical options
Dental & Vision Optional enrollment
Retirement 401(k) with possible employer match
Time Off PTO accrues by tenure
Support Items Paid orientation, uniforms, safety-equipment replacement

Qualification Standards

  • Valid Class A CDL
  • Six months CDL-A experience preferred; qualified recent graduates may be considered with additional supervised route training
  • Acceptable MVR meeting carrier insurance standards
  • Current DOT medical card and required drug/alcohol screening
  • Accurate ELD use and HOS compliance
  • Ability to climb, inspect and operate authorized pallet jacks
  • Early-morning availability plus any assigned weekend or holiday coverage
  • HazMat and Tanker endorsements not required

Common Delay Factors

  • Busy receiving docks can stretch a stop past 90 minutes
  • Late warehouse release pushes the entire start time
  • Holiday and promo volume raises pallet counts and wait times
  • Winter conditions slow secondary roads and store approaches
  • Missing trailers or reefer alarms force same-day sequence changes

Hiring Steps

1
Apply
Submit CDL and work history
2
Screen
Recruiter call within one business day
3
Qualify
MVR, DOT checks, drug screen
4
Orient & Dispatch
Road test, account training, first route

Practical Questions

Q: How physical is the store work? ▼
Pallet positioning and empty exchanges with a company jack are common. Actual unloading is handled by the receiver or lumper service; full case-by-case unloading is not the standard expectation.
Q: Can I change the reefer set-point in extreme weather? ▼
No. Follow the load instructions. Report any alarm or deviation immediately so operations and maintenance can decide the next step.
Q: What if a store refuses the delivery? ▼
Call dispatch before leaving or rearranging the sequence. They decide whether to reschedule, redirect or hold the product under customer rules.
Q: May I leave a loaded trailer overnight at a store? ▼
Only if both the customer and dispatch explicitly authorize it. Store lots are for active delivery, not overnight staging.
Q: How are returns handled? ▼
Empty pallets, reusable containers and rejected product return with the trailer. Some accounts allow collection of approved packaging on later stops.
Q: Are brand-new CDL graduates considered? ▼
Yes, when the training program meets carrier standards and the driver completes supervised route orientation. Six months of experience remains preferred.

Lexington CDL-A Market Snapshot

Lexington’s CDL-A openings cluster around grocery distribution, warehousing, manufacturing support and retail replenishment rather than long-haul OTR. The I-75 corridor between Cincinnati and Louisville keeps local and short-radius demand steady year-round. Foodservice distributors, private-fleet retailers and regional carriers compete for drivers who can handle refrigerated multi-stop work and tight store approaches. Highway-only experience is less valuable here than proven ability to meet receiving windows and protect temperature-sensitive freight. The market stays moderately competitive: carriers that offer consistent early-start local schedules and maintained day-cab equipment continue to fill seats without extreme shortages or surpluses.

Why Grocery Freight Moves Here

I-75 and I-64 cross at Lexington, giving distribution facilities fast reach north to Georgetown, south to Richmond, east toward Winchester and west to Frankfort. New Circle Road and US-60 feed industrial pockets near Winchester Road and Palumbo Drive straight into retail receiving lots. Supermarkets and neighborhood stores require daily or near-daily replenishment of dairy, frozen and chilled product regardless of broader truckload softness. That steady consumer demand, combined with planned receiving windows, creates the recurring multi-stop pattern that defines local grocery reefer work in Central Kentucky. Holiday peaks and promotional cycles simply intensify the same underlying flow.

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