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Drive time is not all that team truck drivers need to know before accepting and trip planning a load.
Today, there was a visitor on the #truckerstripplanningapp website visiting the #teamdrivers #tripplanning pages who posted; “Irvine Ca. To van ormy tx 1358 running team 2 fuel stops..how long it will take. It's 25hrs.” I responded to the chat message with “What’s your question?” and the visitor quickly left the website.
It was obvious to me that the visitor was attempting to impress upon whoever could see his message how quickly he could figure out the time required to run his load without the use of any tools.
After examining the message, I can quickly see that the team drivers had 1358 miles to deliver the load and needed 2 fuel stops. In determining how long the trip would take, the visitor determined that the team needed 25 hrs. Clearly, this is the drive time required by the load! Is Calculating Drive Time Enough?
Let’s examine this using the simple calculations that we all know so well:
“1358 miles” divided by “25 hours” = 54.32 miles per hour or maybe even “1358 miles” divided by “55 miles per hour” = “24.69 drive hours.” Would you accept this load if you as #teamdrivers had only 25 hours of service available?
How fast can you answer these questions before you make that decision?
Is the team Company Drivers, Leased Operators, or Owner Operators?
If the team is #leasedoperators or #owneroperators what is the rate per mile for the load?
If the team is leased operators or owner operators, what is the teams operating cost per mile?
If the team is leased operators or owner operators, what is the actual revenue generated by the load?
If the team is leased operators or owner operators, is the load profitable?
What time is the pickup appointment?
What is the latest time the team must start in order to pickup the load on time?
Can the Team pickup the load on time?
What is the date and time of the delivery appointment?
Can the Team deliver the load on time?
How many non-driving hours will the team need?
How many hours will the team need for #fueling?
How many hours #pretrips will the team need?
How many hours #posttrips will the team need?
How many load and unload hours will the team need?
What is the total #hoursofservice required by the load?
How many ½ hour #restbreaks will the team need?
Will the team cross any time zones while running the load?
What is the total time required to run the load?
What is the Estimated Time of Arrival at the Destination?
When will the team be available for another load?
How many hours of service will the team have available for another load?
Taking only in consideration the drive time we calculated, what are your thoughts? Is Drive Time all that Team Drivers Need To Know?