What are trucking carrier types?
Load size refers to the amount of cargo a truck hauls from one or a variety of shippers. The types of load sizes can be broken down into four categories: full truckload, less-than-truckload, private, and courier, which can also be lumped in with final-mile delivery.
Full truckload: According to the National Motor Freight Traffic Association, FTL can simply be defined as a shipment that takes up the space of a full truck trailer. With FTL, cargo is loaded onto a truck and taken from Point A to Point B, usually with no other cargo stops. This method of shipping is typically popular for businesses needing to move a large amount of cargo. Each year, FleetOwner ranks the largest for-hire U.S. fleets in the FleetOwner 500: For-Hire.
Less-than-truckload: LTL shipments are like they sound—one batch of cargo from one source isn’t large enough to take up a whole trailer, so the trailer is instead filled with cargo from multiple sources. According to the NMFTA, the truck will make multiple stops to pick up and deliver cargo, or the cargo is separated at a distribution center and loaded onto smaller vehicles for delivery. LTL works best for shipments that are small and less time-sensitive.
Private: According to the National Private Truck Council, a private fleet can be defined as an in-house truck fleet operation, often incorporated as a separate company, in service to a parent corporation whose primary business, such as manufacturing or retailing, is not trucking. One example of a private fleet is Walmart, whose primary business is retail but also has its own fleet. Each year, FleetOwner ranks the largest corporations in the U.S. based on their private trucking fleet operations in the FleetOwner 500: Private.
Courier: Includes well-known carrier brands such as FedEx, UPS, DHL, and the U.S. Postal Service. It also can include private fleets such as Amazon and grocers who deliver their own goods directly to consumers. More recently, courier delivery is sometimes included within last-mile classifications that bring a delivery to its final destination, such as a front porch or mailbox. Most courier and e-commerce-related final-mile deliveries are completed with medium- and light-duty vans and trucks, as opposed to LTL and truckload operations that use tractor-trailers or heavy-duty straight trucks. Because parcel delivery drivers are operating smaller equipment, they usually do not need a commercial driver’s license, which opens up the hiring pool for these fleets.
See also: Fleets Explained: How the trucking industry works
What are trucking’s cargo types?
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