D units hauling cargo van freight?

[rottie3007]

since freight has become so scarce in the past months I was wondering how often you straight trucks are getting load offers to haul our van freight just to keep you going? I understand the D units cost alot more to operate and are more valuable to the carriers so it is the norm when times are lean but just how often it occurs and do they offer you our rates as well I guess are my questions. Any feedback would be appreciated!

 

[Doggie Daddy]

We get B (cargo van) load offers quite regularly,and if they raise the pay enough to make it worth our time we take them.

 

[layoutshooter]

We never take true "B" loads. We have often taken loads that would fit on a van but they are loads that require dual driver protection and run more miles than a van with a single driver can handle. Many require the "Panic" button as well.They are often temp control loads. Just a normal van load we don't take them. I have yet had one of those brought up to my minimum that I like to run for. Layoutshooter

 

[blackwood666]

Must be some companies do team loads/ for single drivers you are a weak driver if cant do a 1000 mile load in a day in a van get out of the business!
I do them all the time safely!

 

[layoutshooter]

First off, there is NO legal way I can run 1000 miles in one day by myself. Second, these loads REQUIRE dual driver protection. It is a service bought and paid for by the shipper. One driver HAS to remain within 25ft of the truck and be awake at all times. I don't make up the rules. I am just doing what is required of me. It has NOTHING to do with putting vans out of business. There is only one BR unit that I know of so if a really small load needs temp control service either that van gets it or any other reefer truck. That is just the way it is. I am not trying to put vans out of business. Layoutshooter

 

[Doggie Daddy]

Must be some companies do team loads/ for single drivers you are a weak driver if cant do a 1000 mile load in a day in a van get out of the business!
I do them all the time safely!

I am sure it is a real pleasure for everyone out on the interstate highways to share the road with you at about the 700-1000 point of your trip.

You are the one that should get out of the business for everyones safety.

 

[layoutshooter]

Glad you said that, I was trying to be nice. Layoutshooter

 

[Wingnut]

My drivers quite often haul 'van' loads but get paid truck price. Alot of the times, while the load can fit perfectly in a van, the customer demands a 'dock high' vehicle, which is where the straight truck comes into play. It has nothing to do with favortism or thinking that the van driver(s) can't handle the run miles. The customer is the one who is basically the shots and the expedite company is the one who has to fulfill the customer's request/demands.

 

[miker]

more than likely most companies dont want a solo driver driving 1000 miles straight through even in a CV, because regardless of whether the individual doing the run can or cannot handle the 1000 miles easily or not, the fact is that if an accident occurs the carrier will ultimately be held responsible. And personally, I dont think that anyone should be doing 1000 miles straight thru.
Not to mention if you do them so often you must be making a great deal of money so why do you care if the straight trucks are getting some of the van loads?

 

[Doggie Daddy]

I really don't care what letter the Fed assigns to a load,as long as it meets our minimum rate or beyond we will accept it.

 

[TeamCaffee]

Yep the letter of the load means nothing the PPM is what I want to see. We really do not haul many B loads that are offered as a B load.

Year before last I kept track of how many loads were offered as a C load that were not HazMat but would fit into a van. Without knowing if the customer asked for a dock high truck I was really amazed at how few loads we did haul I felt should have been a B load.

 

[nightcreacher]

Do D units take B loads,of course they do.If company x has a B load to pick up,and the only truck available is a D What unit,guess what,D unit is going to be asked to do the load.
I was once delivered in Cedar Rapids Ia.I was about to dead head to Elk Grove Village,when beep,what at one time would have been an A load,was then a B load,and the pay was much better than the 220 mile dead head would have been to Elk Grove Village.So When you ask do D units take B loads,so would an E unit.

 

[cannedmeat27]

sorry to ask this here but
how do you make a new post?
I have hauled so called b loads it sometimes depends
on where you are and if u may b the only truck

 

[fastrod]

You are the one that should get out of the business for everyones safety.

Why? Maybe he can run 1000 miles safely. I have done many runs in the 700 to 900 mile range and some a little longer and done them safely. There are no mileage limits put on vans except by the carriers themselves.

 

[layoutshooter]

It may be legal for a van to run that many hours but I really would wonder about how safe it is. I know how you might feel. I understand that you feel you can run that many hours safely. I would love to see some real reaction time studies to see how safe you really are. I am not saying that you arer lying or anything like that. The body can only go so many hours without proper rest. Driving for 12-14 hours is really pushing it. I even remember when I was working at the "Agency" We worked a 6 day work week. 6 days on then 2 off. Then change shifts and do it again. We worked an 8 hour shift. The error rate on the 6th day was always 50-60% higher than the other 5. Some of that was attributed it being the last daly of the work week. Most was due to fatiuge. It evem made a difference which way we changed shifts. If we went Day/Mids/Afternoons the error rates were much hgiher than if we went Days/afternoon/mids. The human body is a funny animal. You can train and push it to do more than it should but only so far. Sooner or later it will catch up. Layoutshooter

 

[cheri1122]

My last load was a B load: 1 pallet, 1200 lbs. But it required a liftgate, so therefore, a D unit. As Wingnut & others stated, if the customer requires dock height, or dual drivers, or temp control, the size of the load is irrelevant - it generally can't be done in a van.
PS I don't accept van rates, either.

 

[CharlesD]

I wonder if the original post wasn't aimed at those instances where a carrier has a van and a straight in an area and gives the van load to the straight because things are slow and they have a higher priority placed on keeping the straight busy.

I can fully understand the situations like Cheri mentioned, or if the carrier doesn't have a van in the area and offers it to the D because it's the only truck they have there, but I have heard a few van drivers (and I've probably been guillty of griping about it myself) complaining about loads being put on larger trucks when there are vans in the area that could do it.

On the other side of that coin, I once heard a C unit driver complaining about Sprinters taking his loads. In his mind, the Sprinter was just another cargo van and it should only haul cargo van freight. I guess loads have always been put on vehicles other than the one most ideally suited for the size of the load, and people have always complained about it when they feel slighted. I catch myself sometimes feeling like people are taking "my loads", but in truth the only load I can say is actually mine is one that I already have on board. The way things are right now, I'm going to take anything that I can make a profit running.

 

[cheri1122]

I can't see too many carriers willing to pay a D unit rate, rather than a B unit, just to "keep them happy" - nor can I see D owners accepting B rates, just to keep moving.
I believe the freight goes on the closest unit that both fits the requirements (imposed by the shipper) and agrees to take the load - as DaveKC says, no need to complicate the simple, right?

 

[Doggie Daddy]

you are a weak driver if cant do a 1000 mile load in a day in a van get out of the business!
I do them all the time safely!

Translation:I haven't killed anyone yet.

 

[Yesteryear]

since freight has become so scarce in the past months I was wondering how often you straight trucks are getting load offers to haul our van freight just to keep you going? I understand the D units cost alot more to operate and are more valuable to the carriers so it is the norm when times are lean but just how often it occurs and do they offer you our rates as well I guess are my questions. Any feedback would be appreciated!

Yep, we sure do get those van loads. Sometimes they are a van rate and sometimes they aren't! And yep, I'm so greedy I slurp them right up! SLUUUURRRRRRRRPPP AHHHHHH There went that van load!