How to Apply to Marten Transport as a CDL Driver (2026)

How to Apply to Marten Transport as a CDL Driver (2026)

Marten Transport (USDOT #85962) is the Mondovi, Wisconsin-based refrigerated specialist. Public (NASDAQ: MRTN). Reefer dominates the business: produce, dairy, frozen, and grocery lanes. Marten runs OTR, Regional, Dedicated, and Intermodal reefer operations. If reefer is your target — grocery dedicated, produce regional, or multi-state OTR reefer — Marten is a direct fit alongside Prime and CR England.

TL;DR — What Marten wants

CDL-A, 21+, MVR within standard mega-carrier limits, DOT medical current, reefer-experience-preferred (but solid dry-van experience can transition). Dedicated grocery accounts want 3+ months verifiable experience; OTR reefer entry points available. Pay lands in a published CPM band with reefer-specific bonus considerations.

How the Marten application actually flows

1. Apply at marten.com/driving-jobs.
2. Recruiter phone screen within a few business days. Reefer experience comes up early.
3. Conditional offer + orientation scheduling at Mondovi WI or a regional orientation center.
4. Orientation: DOT paperwork, drug screen, physical, road test, ELD + reefer-specific onboarding, safety SOP including FSMA Sanitary Transportation Rule awareness.
5. Solo dispatch on reefer OTR / Regional / Dedicated.

Recruiter phone-screen script

• "Experience and miles." Years + recent miles + CDL-A.
• "Reefer experience." TRU platform fluency (Carrier Vector, Thermo King Precedent), setpoint-compliance history, cold-chain discipline.
• "Dedicated account preference." Grocery-dedicated vs. OTR vs. regional.
• "Home-time preference." Specific seat + region.
• "MVR / DAC in last 3 years." Factual.
• "Willingness to run the reefer pre-trip PM cycle." Weekly reefer PM (belts, fuel filter, defrost cycles, door-seal inspection) is real work; recruiters want to confirm you know this.

MVR and DAC tolerance — the honest read

Standard mega-carrier tolerance:

• No DUI inside 5 years.
• Moving violations severity-scored inside 36 months.
• Preventable accidents reviewed case-by-case.
• DAC flags reviewed; a single past termination + clean record since is workable.

Clearinghouse: standard FMCSA Part 382 query.

Pay band — with sources

Marten publishes seat-specific pay at marten.com/driving-jobs. Typical pattern:

• Solo experienced CPM: mid-$0.50s to low-$0.70s; reefer often adds a per-mile specialty increment vs. dry-van.
• Dedicated grocery CPM: competitive with regional; stop-and-drop pay structures for multi-stop lanes.
• Bonuses: safety / MPG / referral / tenure-based.
• Per-diem option.

Baseline: BLS OEWS May 2024 median $57,440. Marten solo reefer OTR typically lands near or above national median with reefer-discipline bonuses and stable utilization. Model offers with the CPM → Annual Salary calculator.

Home-time reality

• Reefer OTR: multi-week out, periodic hometime.
• Reefer Regional: home most weekends on defined multi-state lanes.
• Dedicated grocery: often home weekly or home-weekly-plus-midweek on defined store networks (Sysco / US Foods / regional grocery shipper accounts).

Equipment

• Dedicated-reefer fleet — this is Marten's specialty.
• Carrier Vector 8500 and Thermo King Precedent TRUs predominantly.
• 53' Utility / Great Dane reefer trailers.
• Automatic-transmission tractors (Freightliner Cascadia / Peterbilt).

Comparable carriers — who else to apply to in parallel

• Prime Inc — Prime Reefer division is a direct Marten peer.
• CR England — large reefer + team book.
• Stevens Transport — Dallas HQ reefer specialist.
• Schneider National — runs reefer on a portion of the fleet.

Private-fleet reefer alternative: Walmart Private Fleet for grocery / refrigerated DC-to-store work at above-median pay.

What your resume should emphasize for Marten

• Reefer-specific credentials: TRU platform fluency, cold-chain compliance metrics ("100% cold-chain compliance across 18 months"), FSMA Sanitary Transportation Rule awareness, pre-trip reefer PM weekly cycle.
• CDL-A + state + expiration.
• Recent 12-month reefer miles.
• Grocery DC customer names if applicable (Sysco, US Foods, Kroger, Publix, Walmart DC).
• Clean MVR window.

Full reefer bullet library in the reefer driver resume guide.

Frequently asked questions

Does Marten hire dry-van drivers transitioning to reefer?

Yes, with carrier-specific reefer onboarding at orientation. Naming any reefer-adjacent experience (pharma cold-chain, Walmart DC frozen, Sysco cross-dock) helps.

How does Marten compare to Prime Reefer on pay?

Close. Both publish comparable CPM bands with similar reefer-specific bonus structures. Specific seat + region + tenure shift the math more than the carrier choice.

Is Marten good for dedicated?

Yes — Marten has dedicated grocery and food-service accounts that are among the steadier home-time options in reefer.

Does Marten allow pets / passengers?

Verify current policy on the careers site. Typical mega-carrier policies apply (rider after a tenure threshold; pet with weight limit and deposit).

Does Marten run a lease-purchase program?

Marten's focus is primarily company-driver. If lease-purchase is your goal, Prime or CR England are more direct targets.

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CDL resume template + ATS analyzer. Lead with reefer TRU fluency.

Related guides

• Main Truck Driver Resume Guide
• Reefer Driver Resume Guide
• OTR Driver Resume Guide
• Dedicated Driver Resume Guide
• DAC Report Guide
• CPM → Annual Salary Calculator
• How to Apply: Prime Inc
• How to Apply: CR England
• How to Apply: Walmart Private Fleet

Last verified: 2026-04-20. Verify current seat-specific reefer pay + bonuses on marten.com/driving-jobs before applying.