mercer transportation

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Why are you looking to sign on with someone? If it's for better rates, I just can't see it being worth the effort. With almost anyone, your going to pay approx. 25 percent of the gross to handle things for you. Yea you will get slightly better rates being signed on but not 25 percent better.
At Mercer Flatbeds do better than steps. Mercer is just more of a flatbed company. I've heard LS is more step.
Might want to keep in mind, changing who you work for is costly to you and the companys you work for.

 

That's my problem I can't find stepdeck freight that pays what it should when I got this stepdeck loads paid $.50 a mile more than a flatbed now I don't see a split at all most loads I haul are flatbed loads that will work on a step. I call on 30 or more loads a day it's to much weight or it don't pay but $1.50 a mile my biggest problem is finding freight under 46,000 I need to get a dif trailer but I don't have the money!! So what can you do I can't make people pay more money soon as I call on a load if you don't take there price it's gone in the next min
I don't need anyone to hold my hand I know how to do all the billing taxes safety and I even do my own IFTA but it's like this I have a buddy that's been out of work for five years he tells people he makes $32 a hour but don't work and won't take a job under that pay but with me my fixed cost can't go down unless I run more than 100,000 miles a year and even with that it don't move much I'm just not going to run my truck if I can't make what a company driver makes

 

Being a Co. driver is not a bad thing.

 

Trust me it sounds like the stupidest thing in the world but I'm looking at driving jobs also .50 a mile on a 3,000 mile week $1,500 to me gross after taxes say $1,200 take home that's way better than I'm doing now my check Friday was $410

 

Where is THAT company driver job?

 

I have talk to a few that pay .48-.54 a mile and that's not even doing flatbed I just don't want to swing doors

 

Open deck got flooded in the past couple of years. With the drought and the money hay was paying more companies held these trailers and brought O/O's in the run them. Now as things are a bit slower they still have people leased on willing to run cheap. Your biggest challenge is your market. Excess capacity reports all around TX and that region doesn't look any better than dry van.

 

Almost everybody running stepdeck now has been seeing the same thing and it gets worse as winter comes on. It's not more flat bed freight but lack of stepdeck freight, then so many stepdeck guys getting into the flatbed freight lowers those rates as well.
That is why Mercer recommends flatbed over stepdeck to guys. Also a step is heavier than a flat.
If you have a step and are wanting to switch to a flat, just advertise it that way. Since steps are worth more you shouldn't have any problem finding someone with a flat willing to trade. Then you could haul more weight and have more freight available.

 

Comparing O/O with company driver rates will drive you crazy and it's been that way for years. Most O/O don't make much more on average, that just have different advantages with less benifits. If it's just the money that drives you, you would be better as a company driver. I know a lot of company drivers making 1000-1500 week and home weekends.

 

Many flat bed loads can go on a step deck. Rates may not be as high, but some are. You may also need to do some deadheading to get out of the state and find something worth hauling. As a last resort, you may need to haul something cheaper in order to get moving. It isn't usually a problem to find freight going into Texas. It is getting out that can be the problem. There are some good paying rates staying in the state. I just saw one going from Fort Worth to Laredo that paid over $3/mile.