Yeah, I get all that. I never said cargo vans aren't profitable. In fact, the first 5 words of my post said the exact opposite of that. All I said was, splitting cargo van revenue between an owner and a driver is probably the least profitable way to be in this business. I didn't say it definitely, is, I said it probably is, because I know some straights and tractors who aren't running profitable at all.
The same load in a straight truck at a straight truck rate or a tractor at a tractor rate will yield more money and thus be more profitable for the driver. And if you owned the van, there's no way you can convince me that not pocketing that $40 net the owner gets is more profitable than pocketing it yourself.
You are right about owning the van. You don't have to work as hard to make money when you own the van yourself. The short loads do pay more. I used to take the short loads and the long loads when I worked for a fleet owner. In my business model, all loads add up at the end of the week. I don't care if I get my miles in 1 2k mile load, three 700 mile loads, or 10 200 mile loads. The only negative aspect of running a bunch of shorter loads is that you have to work harder to make the money, and you definitely get less sleep. I think that with fuel prices being what they are right now, you can make a lot of money working for a fleet owner if you can get the miles. It's like Nitmevan said; if you aren't getting miles, it doesn't matter how high your percentage is, you're still not going to make any money!
