For some aspiring drivers, short-haul trucking may be the best option. Short-haul trucking mixes the open road freedom with the stability and home time that truckers with families desire. It’s a win-win situation. Short-haul truckers play an essential part in the supply chain, transporting trillions of dollars worth of goods each year. TMS-Tickets provide solutions for short-haul trucking and much more.
What is short-haul trucking?
Within a 150-mile radius, short-haul trucking transports shipments. Short-haul truckers stay closer to home than long-haul or “over the road” (OTR) truckers, who travel hundreds of miles.
Truckers can accomplish many journeys on the same day because short-haul routes are generally short. This serves to break up the monotony of the road and prevent drivers from sitting for lengthy periods of time, which can harm their health.
What are the types of short-haul trucking?
Regional and local trucking are two types of short-haul trucking. Local truckers specialize in smaller shipments of less than 100 miles, while regional truckers often travel between 100 and 250 miles. While regional and local trucking distances may be small, the driving experience can be vastly different.
Regional trucking is similar to OTR trucking in that drivers may be on the road for days and traverse state lines. During long drives, some regional truckers sleep in huge trucks with cabins. Drivers, on the other hand, stay in hotels.
Long-haul truckers rarely repeat the same route. Therefore regional truckers have more stable schedules. Short-haul drivers have consistent routes for the same customers, which allows them to develop stronger client relationships.
Local trucking: Because they frequently move merchandise inside their neighborhoods, local truckers enjoy the gratification of serving their community. Local truckers take on where OTR truckers left off, transporting goods from distribution facilities to local destinations. Others provide end-to-end transportation for regional specialties.
Local truckers frequently travel on city streets, which can be more stressful than driving on the highway. On the other hand, local truckers often drive smaller carriers and trucks rather than tractor-trailers. This makes navigating in cities a lot easier.
What are the benefits of short-haul trucking?
Because the truckers are driving in a short or limited radius, they have some benefits such as:
- Driving in a familiar area
- The drivers get more time at home
- Dedicated routes
- Superior quality of life
Why is short-haul trucking is in demand?
There has never been a better moment to start a career as a truck driver. According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA), there is a severe driver shortage. There aren’t enough drivers to fill orders, and short-haul truckers will face an even greater scarcity in the future.
The average age of a truck driver is 46 years old, while the average age of other workers is 41. As experienced drivers retire, additional vacancies will become available. To keep up with demand, the trucking industry will need to hire an estimated 890,000 more drivers over the next decade due to driver retirement and industry expansion. If current trends continue, the ATA predicts a shortage of 160,000 truckers by 2028. This severe scarcity, combined with the high level of stability in short-haul trucking, makes it a vocation that will last for many years.