LTL vs Truck load

It pays significantly better than tl. The trick is putting it together and getting all your picks and drops done quickly. The 2nd part to it is to have multiple customers for the shipments. I.e. if you have one broker with all the ltl's he will offer you a "good" rate per mile but he is pocketing the lion's share..

 

Money isn't everything. In fact, for me it's not even 2nd consideration. Working conditions are big, independence is really big, and of course the money is why I'm out here. Well, not right now, basking at home for a few but you know what I mean.

I lease to Conway TL, 3 1/2 years now, it's been pretty good, considering. Their LTL division, Conway Freight, has 300 terminals around the country, and they have jobs. Note: Conway LTL jobs don't open up a whole lot, drivers stay, and earn $90K plus annual income, and the terminals are staffed with good attitude workers. That's a serious plus, I believe.

But all the dollars come from hours worked, overtime on the dock, and that's pretty tough every day, every night. But mostly, those LTL drivers are always rushing around on a tight schedule for deliveries/drops. Always. You've seen the UPS/FedEx drivers, they can get crazy pushing to be on time. I'd never be content with working under that kind of pressure on public roadways. Even if you get to know your customers, there's a lot of other factors in the mix, and a driver doesn't control many of those factors. It's tempting to think of a few more dollars, OK, maybe quite a few, but those conditions are with you every day, all day. Push, push, push? No thanks.

 

I find, as an independent booking all my own stuff, it only really works when I can book it far enough in advance that come the day of pickup it's just go like crazy getting it all loaded for the day. Add in drive most if not all of the night and for me it's all cross border so I have to deal with multiple customs brokers, it is a challenge. Do it consistently well, however, and it can pay very handsomely..

I typically only do it for my reloads home, and only sometimes. It is not always feasible. As in, if I can only get 2 partials, I might as well take the tl and save the time. My outbound is a good paying market while my inbound is not such a good paying market.

 

Where you wanting to start this gig?

 

Ltl is the way to go,pays way better less driving,less fuel consumption equals more money.aRun ltl out and tl back.

 

I know a driver that runs the same truckload out every week down to Florida then brings LTL reefer back. He has good connections broker and otherwise. Stays busy coming back with LTL at least 9 months out of the year. Stays busy taking the truck load down 12 months out of the year. The money is very good. Good luck making the right connections and finding consistency.