Dealing with Empty Backhaul Miles

Select One, Inc. is a trucking company based in Alsip, IL. It focuses on high-density lanes across the United States. Primarily, Select One, Inc. operates east of the Rockies. One of the services offered by the company is freight transport.

Driving an empty truck when returning from delivery not only leads to lost revenue but is unsustainable. Unfortunately, a sizeable number of dedicated and private fleets have no alternative but to drive empty backhaul miles.

Data from the Department of Transport indicates that about 20 percent of the miles are driven during empty truck backhauls. Backhaul miles refer to the return trip a truck has to make after delivery. In most cases, these are covered with no cargo and are traditionally known as empty miles.

Truck carriers and freight brokers have traditionally tried to reduce the empty miles by scheduling individual pickups and drop-offs, but this has proved time-consuming, unwieldy, and often highly inefficient.

Freight AI has come up with a natural language AI platform to solve the last mile dilemma for truckers. The platform links with freight databases and communicates and through automated text messages to drivers, so they can conveniently find loads for their backhauls.

Purchase Programs Operate in Trucking?

Select One, Inc., is a McCook, IL, freight transport and logistics enterprise with a commitment to superior service. Maintaining a dedicated fleet of late-model tractors with reefers trailers, Select One, Inc., offers contracted drivers lease-to-purchase deals that combine competitive financing with full logistics support.

Lease purchase programs enable independent truck drivers to ultimately become owner-operators. A lease purchase truck driver holds the same basic responsibilities as a company driver. These include delivering a set quota of freight to a specified destination on time and following the safety protocol of the contracting company.

In general, the amount paid for this work is at the higher owner-operator rate, which is designed to accommodate the driver’s fuel, insurance, and repair and maintenance costs. This allows the driver to make agreed-upon lease payments on the vehicle, through the carrier.

One thing to be aware of is that lease operator and lease purchase programs are not the same. The former typically do not have any money-down requirements, and the vehicle is returned to the carrier after the contract ends. Lease purchase agreements, on the other hand, typically involve a substantial down payment coupled with higher continuing payments. The long-term benefit of this more capital-intensive approach is full ownership of the truck when the contract ends.