Pricing local freight when loading time is the bottleneck
Operational worked example · Two used 33,000-lb GVWR 26-foot liftgate dry boxes; employed driver and paid owner-driver; commercial general freight
Price the time the route occupies a truck and qualified driver, then check how much of that time can actually be sold. When docks are the constraint, a mileage-only quote can underpay a whole shift even on a short route. Use measured loading and unloading time, contract-defined waiting and a minimum commitment; do not assume every waiting minute will be approved and collected.
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Measure the full dock-to-return cycle
Start the clock with dispatch and inspection, then record arrival, queue entry, loading start, departure, unloading and the empty return. A vehicle at a dock still occupies the shift even when its odometer is stopped. Separate unavoidable service from preventable waiting so the customer can see what changed and the dispatcher can improve the process.
Our linked fleet case has 80.0 loaded miles and 114.3 all miles per paid route-day, with 2.0 total handling hours. It bills 0.5 hours at $85 and assumes the rest of the quoted day charge covers the agreed service. Those values are hypotheses to validate through customer trials. Waiting physically suffered and waiting collectible are two different fields.
Two dock patterns can sell different numbers of drops
The article-local example uses a different short-drop service from the three-delivery fleet case: each drop has 0.6 hours of road time and 18.0 total road miles including positioning. There are 7.5 usable service hours after an inspection block, with no additional break deduction in this illustration. Each drop is priced at $210.00. Replace the usable time with a legally compliant actual shift schedule.
| Measure | Fast dock | Slow dock |
|---|---|---|
| Drive hours/drop | 0.6 | 0.6 |
| Handling hours/drop | 0.6 | 1.2 |
| Cycle hours/drop | 1.2 | 1.8 |
| Whole completed drops | 6 | 4 |
| Booked revenue | $1,260.00 | $840.00 |
| Fuel / maintenance / DEF | $108.47 | $72.32 |
| Contribution before paid roster / fixed costs | $1,130.93 | $751.29 |
Capacity is floor(usable hours divided by cycle hours): six drops fit the fast clock, while only four fit the slow clock. The slower route loses $420.00 gross revenue. It saves some mileage cost, so the contribution reduction is $379.64 instead. The retained driver wage and fleet insurance still need payment. This exact floor calculation is a scheduling bound, not proof of six real customers or feasible time windows.
A detention fee can recover cost without recovering the lost slot
If each slow drop has only 0.2 hours of approved paid waiting, the four drops add $85.00 and total shift revenue becomes $925.00. That does not restore the original fast-dock revenue. A customer can pay some detention while still consuming a delivery slot that another customer would have used.
At unchanged capacity, restoring fast-dock gross revenue would require $315.00 per slow drop. Restoring the fast contribution instead requires $305.87 per drop after this example’s credit-loss and mileage costs. Those are computed negotiation comparisons, not a market rate recommendation. A smaller minimum commitment may fit off-peak spare capacity; a peak appointment that displaces another paid job has a higher opportunity cost.
Write a rate card a dispatcher can apply
Define the base time or route scope, included stops, mileage geography, gate needs and freight weight. State when loading allowance begins and ends, which waiting is excluded, the charge unit, who can approve accessorials and the evidence required. Clarify what happens after a missed appointment, a wrong address, refused freight or a customer-requested return.
Use the same arrival/departure evidence in the dispatch log and invoice. If the receiving dock requires a queue ticket, keep it. If the contract requires approval before waiting is chargeable, obtain that approval instead of adding a disputed amount later. Agree the service window and safe unloading method before dispatch; neither a high price nor a detention charge makes overweight freight or unsafe handling acceptable.
Keep mileage, paid hours and customer risk on the same basis
Road cost in this example uses $5.96 fuel per gallon, 8.0 mpg, $0.24 maintenance and $0.02 DEF per all-road mile. EIA supplies a dated regional diesel observation; the consumption and repair coefficients remain case assumptions. Do not use loaded miles in the revenue denominator and silently use all miles only in the expense worksheet. Fuel evidence.
The paid roster is already a fixed monthly cost in the fleet model. For a one-off additional route, first determine whether an existing paid shift has usable capacity. If another driver or overtime is required, add that full incremental commitment. Loading can also require a paid helper or special securement; neither is included in this driver-only example, so a quote requiring it must be rebuilt.
Check whether the rate survives settlement
Track approved invoice amount, missing proof of delivery, rejected waiting, receivable aging and actual deposits by customer. High billed revenue is not valuable if accessorials are repeatedly refused. The shared case allows 1.0% credit loss, a modeling reserve rather than an observed loss rate. Truck liability and cargo insurance also have different scope; a quoted shipment must fit the policy’s commodity and value terms. Cargo coverage scope.
Use a defined pilot period covering both busy and quiet days. For each candidate contract, calculate contribution per constrained shift and the expected collection dates. A consistently slow dock may still fit a dedicated day contract with a workable price; a short mileage quote with uncapped unpaid service can make the same truck uneconomic. Read the billed-hour capacity example for a published comparison of paid capacity and sold units, and the cash-flow guide for the collection bridge. Keep the capacity and collection records on the same service basis before agreeing to the route.
Sources and scope
- Illustrative planning-case methodology · Checked 2026-10-05 · Prices, booked route-days, yard, insurance, maintenance, wages and financing remain explicit case hypotheses, not customer quotes.
- EIA on-highway diesel price update · Checked 2026-10-05 · Observed Gulf Coast PADD3 5.955 USD/gallon for 28 September 2026; release 29 September. Includes taxes; regional weekly average, not the operator fuel-card contract.
- BLS heavy truck driver occupation · Checked 2026-10-05 · May 2025 national median 58,640 USD/year and 28.19 USD/hour; broader occupational mix, not a Texas straight-truck hiring offer. Model wage 28 and owner salary 6000/month are assumptions.
- TxDMV intrastate motor-carrier registration · Checked 2026-10-05 · Nonhazardous non-household commercial trucks exceeding 26,000 lb trigger this registration category; USDOT identifier and insurer filings precede active authority.
- Texas DPS commercial driver license classes · Checked 2026-10-05 · Class B covers single vehicles GVWR 26,001+; case assumes two qualified CDL drivers, appropriate air-brake qualifications and medical/driver files. Verify each selected VIN.
- FMCSA USDOT and interstate-commerce definition · Checked 2026-10-05 · A movement entirely inside one state can form part of interstate trade. Case excludes such loads unless authority/safety scope is revised.
- Progressive motor truck cargo coverage scope · Checked 2026-10-05 · Cargo cover is separate from auto liability; insurer limits, deductibles, excluded commodities and operations require a quote. No quoted premium in this case.
- Progressive commercial trucking coverage types · Checked 2026-10-05 · Distinct liability/cargo/general liability/downtime products; not a complete two-truck premium quotation.