Jan 20, 2017 • Carriers

Everything Truck Drivers Need to Know About Deadhead

If you are a new driver or maybe just received authority as an owner-operator, understanding what deadhead is can be critical when searching for the right load.

What is Deadhead?

Deadhead in trucking is when a truck driver is driving with an empty trailer. Since loads aren’t found in our backyards, deadhead is usually necessary for owner operators who must drive a certain distance to pick up a load.

Does the Trucking Company Pay for Deadhead?

Not necessarily. Some trucking companies will pay for deadhead mileage after the first 100 miles, although it isn’t required. For example, C.R. England pays independent contractors $.80 per deadhead mile. While company drivers typically get paid for deadhead mileage, owner-operators aren’t always as lucky and the cost could come out of pocket.

How to Limit Trucking Deadhead

The more often you haul cargo, the more you generally will earn. It’s a simple concept. In order to maximize earnings, it’s important for a trucker to stay loaded and avoid driving back empty. With the national average diesel prices forecasted to be $2.71 per gallon in 2017 (according to Gas Buddy),driving empty can become a costly issue for owner operators. At that price, a 200-mile deadhead with a Peterbilt or Mack truck that gets around 5 mpg could cost over $100, cutting into the profit a driver might earn. Deadhead might be the last resort if there are no loads nearby.

Dangers of Driving with an Empty Trailer

Trucking deadhead can be extremely dangerous for truck drivers. Trucks with an empty trailer weigh half as much as full ones. This can be problematic if a trucker is driving through an area with especially high winds. Not only can an empty trailer sway around and be difficult to control, it can flip open, causing serious injury. Be sure to always check the weather reports and wind conditions before heading out to pick up a load with an empty trailer.

Find Freight With Truckloads Free Load Board

Truckloads is a free load board connecting carriers with shippers. It features unlimited premium loads, customized search options and carriers can call brokers right from the app. Additionally, owner operators can search for over two million monthly loads nearby or based on deadhead. Carriers can also view the rate, days to pay and even view a brokers credit score.

Try Truckloads Free!

Highest Paying Truck Loads [p]Find the highest paying truck loads to maximize your trucking company's earning potential. [/p] [h2] Highest Paying Truck Loads [/h2] [p] Hauling the highest paying truck loads is essential to running a successful trucking company. <a href="https://truckerpath.com/blog/truck-freight-rates/">Truck freight rates</a> are based on the current market, therefore there is a week-to-week fluctuation of what a truck load is paying. [/p] [h2] Using Free Load Boards [/h2] [p] Free load boards like <strong>Truckloads</strong> provide a marketplace where owner-operators and <a href="https://truckerpath.com/blog/trucking-authority/">carriers with trucking authority</a> can search for loads that have been posted by freight brokers. Ideally, you will want to use a load board that has a mobile application as well. This way you can find truck loads anytime and limit those empty miles. [/p] [p] Imagine sitting at the dock waiting to get unloaded for hours (we know you've all been there) and you have over 1,000 miles to travel back home with no load. Wouldn't it be great if you could find a truck load to haul on your way back and earn a little more? [/p] [p]Well, with an app like <strong>Truckloads</strong> now you can. Don't believe us? Just ask one of the 150,000 carriers who use the app and rated it the highest-rated mobile load board on Google Play and the App Store![/p] [android-img src="/uploads/2017/09/Screenshot_20171116-110521-1.jpg" alt="My image"] [h2] Finding Truck loads - Location, Location, Location [/h2] [p] We all know that it's all about location in real estate and it's no different for finding truck loads. The location of a truck load plays a crucial role in determining how high the truck load will pay and often times, it may not be nearby. [/p] [p]You might have to be willing to increase your <ahref="https://truckerpath.com/blog/what-is-deadhead/">deadhead miles</a> in order to find the highest paying truck load. If you have a reefer truck, you can find the best reefer truck loads by focusing your search for locations where there are heavy volumes of agriculture such as Florida, California, and Texas. [/p] [h2] How are Truck Load Rates Calculated? [/h2] [p]Truck load rates are calculated based on a variety of factors of the current market conditions. This includes: [/p] [ul] [li]Load-to-Truck Ratio in an Area [/li] [li]Weight and size of a truck load [/li] [li]Shippers willingness to pay[/li] [li]Type of goods being hauled[/li] [li]Time constraint and a variety of other factors[/li] [/ul] [p]The truck loads posted by freight brokers are based on the amount the shipper agrees is fair to move the load. You must remember that the freight broker is paid based on his or her ability to profit from the price agreed with the shipper and the price agreed to the carrier. Therefore, there is ample opportunity to negotiate for a higher truck load rate, especially when the conditions of the market are in your favor. [/p] [h2] What is the Highest Paying Truck Load? [/h2] [p] On average, <strong>flatbed loads </strong> have the highest rates. Flatbed trucks are used as truck freight for construction goods, large manufactured parts, and various oversized loads. Due to the sheer size and value of such parts, shippers are willing to pay a bit more to ensure the freight is delivered without a scratch. (This isn't always the case but is based on typical averages). [/p] [p] An oversized load is any truck freight that is over 8.5 feet wide. This type of truck freight requires red flags and lights to help identify the oversized truck freight on the road.[/p] [video id=snyBYpnuhWw] [h2] Truckloads Load Board Offers: [/h2] [ul] [li] Mobile app and web versions [/li] [li] Over 3 million monthly truck loads [/li] [li] New loads posted every 60 seconds [/li] [li] Truck loads for 11 different equipment types [/li] [li] Custom searches by location, deadhead, and date [/li] [li] Unlimited access to premium loads [/li] [li] View a freight broker's credit score and days to pay[/li] [li] 100% Free to use and book truck loads! [/li] [/ul] [button text="Try Truckloads for Free" href="https://truckerpath.com/truckloads/free-load-board/?utm_source=Blog&utm_medium=truckfreight&utm_campaign=Aug10" width="250px"]

Sep 21, 2017 • Carriers

Worst Traffic Bottlenecks in America [p] Which locations landed on American Transportation Research Institutes [a href="https://app.appsflyer.com/com.sixdays.truckerpath?pid=Social Facebook"]top 100 worst traffic bottlenecks in America[/a]?[/p] [p]Bottlenecks, no not the Budweiser kind. Rather the worst traffic bottleneck that causes extreme delays can derail a truck drivers schedule. Let's take a look at the list of places where drivers are bound to be waiting in triaffic. [/p] [h2]1. Atlanta Spaghetti Junction[/h2] [p]Winner winner, spaghetti dinner! After analyzing over 600,000 heavy-duty trucks, the ATRI deemed the intersection of [b]Interstates 285 and 85 North in Atlanta[/b], known as the “Spaghetti Junction” is the most congested freight bottleneck in America.[/p] [ol] [li]Atlanta Spaghetti Junction[/li] [li]I-95 at State Route 4 in Fort Lee, New Jersey[/li] [li]I-290 at I-90/94 in Chicago, Illinois [/li] [li]I-65 at I-64/71 in Louisville, Kentucky[/li] [li]I-71 at I-75 in Cincinnati, Ohio[/li] [li]SR 60 at SR 57 in Los Angeles, California[/li] [li]SR 18 at SR 167 in Auburn, Washington[/li] [li]I-45 at US 59 in Houston, Texas[/li] [li]I-75 at I-285 North in Atlanta, Georgia[/li] [li]I-5 at I-90 in Seattle, Washington[/li] [/ol] [giphy]<iframe src="https://giphy.com/embed/3o7qE3a5YpLpCdeq0U" width="480" height="269" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe>[/giphy] [h2]Which State Has the Worst Bottlenecks?[/h2] [p][b]Texas has the most bottleneck of any state[/b], with nine locations ranked among the top 50 worst. Washington has six locations in the top 50, California has five – primarily in the Los Angeles area, while Georgia has four.[/p] [h2]Which City Has the Worst Bottlenecks?[/h2] [p]Staying in the Lone Star state, the city with the worst bottleneck congestion is [b]Houston[/b]. Not only does Houston have three locations in the top 15, it has six in the top 40. Seattle is another city with major bottleneck traffic congestion with five locations on the top 100 list.[/p] [h2]Difference Between Traffic Jam and Bottleneck[/h2] [p]A bottleneck differs from a traffic jam because a bottleneck is caused by a road design or flaw in the timing of traffic lights. Bottleneck traffic can be limited if there is a proper redesign of the roadway, something that is extremely costly and time-consuming. The most common causes of bottlenecks are:[/p] [ul] [li]Traffic Interruption – the most common causation of bottleneck traffic that includes railway crossings, tolls, stop signs or traffic lights.[/li] [li]Lane Reduction – a merge caused by the reduction in the number of lanes.[/li] [li]Merging – specifically when two major highways intersect.[/li] [/ul] [p]American Trucking Association President Chris Spear sees the results of the ATRI study as an indication of infrastructure issues that the Trump Administration should address.[/p] [quote]“With President Trump expected to press for significant long-term infrastructure spending, this ATRI analysis should be a key guide for deciding what projects are worthy of funding,” Spear said. “Ensuring the safe and efficient movement of goods should be a national priority and this report draws attention to the places where our highway network needs improvement in order to meet that goal.”[/quote] [giphy]<iframe src="https://giphy.com/embed/2bgR8ybgyJU6Q" width="480" height="269" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe>[/giphy] [button-white href="http://atri-online.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/2017-ATRI-Bottleneck-Brochure.pdf"]Full List[/button-white]

Jan 26, 2017 • Community

Misconceptions of Truck Drivers [p]The misconceptions you hear from 4-wheelers [a href="https://app.appsflyer.com/com.sixdays.truckerpath?pid=Social Facebook"]about truck drivers[/a] can be laughable and frankly, absurd. At Trucker Path, we like to refer to these misconceptions of truck drivers as “Tales of an Uninformed 4-Wheeler”. Some are so crazy that all you can do is laugh at them.[/p] [h2]Tales of an Uninformed 4-Wheeler – Volume 1[/h2] [p]Sometimes 4-wheelers just don't understand what it's like being a truck driver. Trucking requires learning an all new set of laws, regulations and the skill to drive an enormous big rig in some of the tightest spaces. It's unlike any other career.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/McD-Pay-me.jpg" alt=""] [p][b]Why do trucks pass each other on the highway?[/b][/p] [p]You hear this all the time. A 4-wheeler gets stuck behind a truck for a few seconds while the truck driver passes another big rig. There are several factors that play into this. It's partly because some trucks are governed at a certain speed (some 60 mph) and some are governed at a higher mph or not at all. Also, some trucks carry much heavier loads than others. An incline in the road can also factor into this occurrence as some trucks hauling cargo uphill struggle to even go 50 mph. Due to this, some truck drivers have no choice but to pass a slower or heavier truck but at times, can only go a certain speed to pass.[/p] [p]Now the Department of Transportation has proposed a speed limiter for all commercial trucks weighing over 26,000 pounds. If the proposed truck speed limiters mandate passes, you will see a dramatic increase in this “inconvenient truck passing”.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/Speed-limiters-traffic.jpg" alt=""] [p]Then there are some 4-wheelers who think trucks are an inconvenience on the road altogether. Not only do truck drivers deliver 80 percent of all cargo in America, but they are used for disaster relief and various other tasks to make life easier for 4-wheelers.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/snow-plow-2.jpg" alt=""] [p]Or the ones who think driving a truck is a simple job because all truck drivers have to do is sit in a chair.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/I-have-skills-TAKEN.jpg" alt=""] [p]Did we forget to mention that [a href="https://truckerpath.com/blog/trucks-delivering-cargo-in-the-usa/"]driving a truck is the deadliest job in America[/a]. In 2015, there were 745 truck driver fatalities, more than any other.[/p] [p]<iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTruckerPath%2Fvideos%2F1045972602215688%2F&show_text=1&width=560" width="560" height="463" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>[/p] [p]It's time we debunk the myths about truck drivers. Don't like trucks? Better rethink that one. Without truck drivers, shelves would be full of dust within a few days.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/Thank-a-Trucker-hotdogs.jpg" alt=""]

Jan 12, 2017 • Community