Why you want an LTL job

Discussion in 'LTL and Local Delivery Trucking Forum' started by Hotplate, Aug 17, 2019.

  1. Aug 17, 2019 #1
    Hotplate

    Hotplate Medium Load Member

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    The less-than-truckload ‘oligopoly’ drives on - FreightWaves

    This article pretty much nails it. Here we have today's LTL market in “a state of limited competition, in which a market is shared by a small number of producers or sellers”.

    This shows the differences in rates/wages between OTR and LTL. In OTR, anyone with a little capital and somewhat decent credit can buy a truck and become a competitor. In LTL, the great recession knocked alot of companies out of the box and they never came back. Recently, NEMF shut their doors and who replaced them? Nobody. The freight they were hauling got distributed among the remaining players, making them stronger.

    You just can't start up an LTL business from scratch. It takes years and alot of capital to build up a nationwide network of terminals and to have enough inbound and outbound freight to operate them profitably.

    So if you're a young guy or gal starting out, try to eventually shoot for an LTL job. It's in my opinion the best combination of pay, benefits, and hometime you will find driving a truck these days. And the future is looking good!
     
    Hotplate, Aug 17, 2019
    Hotplate, Aug 17, 2019
    #1
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  3. Aug 17, 2019 #2
    Russian Rabbit

    Russian Rabbit Road Train Member

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    Generally agree but,

    1) Was NEMF still making money, but Paul decided it just wasn't worth it to keep it going? Much like GM and Ford when it came to making class 8 trucks?

    2) i agree that it's going to very difficult, if not impossible, to start an LTL company from scratch that will have nationwide coverage to compete with the established players. BUT, if one were to get a tandem axle straight truck with sleeper, AND have someone at home who is good at organization booking loads for you (should be able to find good loads of the net?), one could make quite good numbers running up and down the east coast, for instance?
    Therefore, one person COULD enter the LTL market and do good for themselves, maybe grossing 250,000 plus per year and not running a huge amount of miles?
     
    Russian Rabbit, Aug 17, 2019
    Russian Rabbit, Aug 17, 2019
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  4. Aug 17, 2019 #3
    DTP

    DTP Road Train Member

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    LTL is definitely the way to go. Wish I’d have done it years sooner instead of wasting time jumping from one pain in the ### OTR job to another.

    We run our routes every night regardless if there’s 42,000 in the box or 5000. And we just gobbled up some of LME’s business after they shut down operations so things aren’t looking bad. Love running linehaul.
     
    DTP, Aug 17, 2019
    DTP, Aug 17, 2019
    #3
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