Effects of Loading on
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HAULAGE RATES
SOME time ago I gave information to an operator regarding rates per mile for the carriage of bricks, and, in accordance with his request, did so on the basis of a 5-ton lorry. He now asks me whether that rate would apply if he were using vehicles of 12-ton or 14-ton capacity.
His second request touches on a point of considerable importance, as one of the difficulties of agreeing rates, especially on such a subject as this, is that, whereas a given rate may be profitable when a man is carrying 12-ton or 14-ton loads, it is not practicable when he is handling 5-ton loads.
On the contrary, if rates be assessed on the basis of a 5-ton load, the operator with 12-ton or 14-ton vehicles is likely to make excessive profits, or to Cut rates and become a thorn in the flesh of operators who run only 5-tonners and 6-tonners.
In order to deal with this problem, I have assumed that the load is bricks. I am not concerned myself with the number of bricks per ton, but am basing my calculations on tonnage.
My inquirer also wished to know whether there should be some allowance, when hauling bricks, for return loads. Apparently he is able to get a fair number of return loads when hauling this traffic, but I am not willing, as a general principle, to concede that brick-haulage rates should provide for the possibility of return loads.
As a preliminary, I have drawn up Table I, which gives operating costs for six different types of vehicle. Only two of these-the 5-tonner and the first of the two 6-tanners-are assumed to be petrol-engined. The remainder, a 6-tonner, a 7-8-tonner, a 12-tonner, and a 14-tonner, are all oilers.
Assessment of Depreciation . The initial cost of the vehicle is an average price which would have to be paid for the complete machine, painted and lettered and ready for the road. In assessing the price on which to calculate depreciation, I first deduct the cost of a set of tyres and then take what is called the residual value, which is what the operator might be expected to get for the machine on sale after he had used it for the five or six years taken as the period for depreciation. For the 5-tonners and 6-tonners I have assumed that period to be five years, but for the larger vehicles six years. The subsequent items in the standing charges do not require much explanation beyond that which is already presented in the table.
In the running costs it may be of interest to note that I have taken the fuel-consumption rate as being 8 m.p.g. on the 5-tonner and 7 m.p.g. on the petrol-engined 6-tanner. On the oil-engined vehicles I have allowed 16 m.p.g. for the 6-tonner, 15 m.p.g. for the 7-8-tanner, 12 m.p.g. for the 12-tonner, and 10 m.p.g. for the 14-tonner.
s42 I have assumed-which is, perhaps, asking a good dealthat the 6-tanners are equipped with 36-in. by 8-in, tyres and that in all cases the tyre mileage approximates to 20,000 per set.
The net results for cost per hour and cost per mile are given in the table. The important figures, so far as we are concerned with the assessment of rates, are, of course, not those for cost per hour and cost per mile, but charges per hour and per mile on a time and mileage basis. In arriving at those charges, I have allowed for profit equal to 20 per cent. of cost. Adding 20 per cent. to the cost figures per hour and per mile, I get the following figures for time and mileage charges for each class of vehicle:
For the 5-tanner, 9s. per hour and 51d. per mile; for the 6-ton petrol-engined vehicle, 9s. 9d. per hour and 6-id. per mile; for the 6-ton oiler, 10s. 3d. per hour and glid. per mile; for the 7-8-tanner, 12s. per hour and qd. per mile; for the 12-tonner, 14s. per hour and 61d. per mile; for the 14-tonner, 15s. 6d. per hour and 74d. per mile.
I am going to assume that each vehicle carries its rated _load. That is necessary in order to obtain fair assessment of the corresponding figures for rates. The next thing to consider is terminal delays. An average delay, apart from loading and unloading, of half an hour on each journey is a fair allowance. In addition, there is loading and unloading time, which, for the 5-tonner. I have taken to be lf hours, giving me a total terminal delay of two hours for the 5-tanner. For the 6-tonner, the total time is taken to be 2i hours; for the 7-tonner, 24 hours; for the 12-tonner, 3i hours, and for the 14-tanner, 31 hours.
The diminution in time with the larger vehicles is justified
by the fact that there is more help given for loading and unloading, because of the, impressive cpiantity.
The next subject to consider is that of. journey times, and in this it. is necessary, of course, to slit the six vehicles into , two groups. it is assumed that the 5-tonners and 6-tanners will have a licensing weight of less than 3 tons unladen. so that the speed of these vehicles will be 30 mph. The 7-8tanner, 12-tonner, and 14-bonner will be limited to a maximum of 20 m.p.h.
In assessing the journey time, the following assumptions, made in the previous article and applicable only to 30 m.p.h. vehicles; are made:-The first half-Mile in each direction will be covered in five minutes at an average speed of 6 m.p.h. That means, of course, that for the mile lead the time taken will be 10 minutes each way, or 20 minutes. in all. During the second half-mile in each direction the vehicle will travel at an average speed of 15 m.p.h. and will take, therefore, two minutes for each half-mile, four minutes for the mile, and eight minutes for a journey in each direction. Altogether, for the two-mile, lead there will be a total of 28 minutes travelling time.
The third mile will be run at an average speed of 24 m.p.h. and the mile will take 2i minutes; that is to say, five minutes during the journey of a mile each way. The total for the three miles each way..will thus be 20 minutes, plus eight,
plus five minutes, which is 33 minutes. After that the average speed will be at the maximum of 30 m.p.h.. or two minutes per mile run, or four minutes per mile lead.
Taking as a preliminary a 10-mile lead, which is a total travelling distance of 20 miles, there will be 33 minutes for six miles out of the 20, plus 14 miles at two minutes per mile, which is 28 minutes, The total time for the journey will thus be 61 minutes, or, say, an hour for travelling.
Charges for 5-tonners This will be the same for the 6-tanner as for the 5-tanner. The difference between the two, of course, is the slight extra time required for loading and unloading on the 6-tonner. Working out the rate for the 5-tonner, we find that two hours are spent at terminals, plus one hour in travelling. Three hours at 9s. per hour represent £1 7s. To that sum must be added the charge for 20 miles run at 50. per mile, which is 9s. 2c1. The total charge must thus be £1 16s. 2d., which, to the nearest farthing, is is. 3d. per ton.
With a 6-ton petrol-engined lorry the total time is 31 hours, instead of three, because of the extra quarter of an hour needed for loading and unloading. The rate per hour is 9s. 9d., so that the charge for time is £1 lls. 8d. To that must be added the charge for 20 miles at 60. per mile, a total of 10s. 10d., so that the charge must be £2 2s. 6d. and for 6-tons that is 7s. ld, per ton,
For the 6-ton; oiler I have the same time and distance, but the ratesare different. The hourly rate is 10s. 3d. and for 31 hours that amounts to £1 13s. 4d. The mileage rate, howevei, iS only 40. and 20 miles at 40. equals 7s. 6d, The total charge should be £2 Os_ 10d., which is practically 6s. 10d. per ton, the lowest rate of the three.
Before proceeding to deal with the larger vehicles. 1 would like to build up a rates schedule for these three smaller ones, starting with a one-mile lead.
For the 5-tanner there will he the terminal time of two hours, plus 10 minutes each way for travelling, which is 20 minutes in all, The total time is two hours 20 minutes, and that. at 9s. per hour, equals Cl Is. Add for two miles at 5?,d. per mile, which is lid., and we get a total charge of ft Is. lid., which is a small fraction over 4s. 5d. per ton.
Schedules for 6-tonners With a Goonner there is a terminal delay of 21 hours, a travelling time of 20 minutes, so that the total time is 2 hours 35 minutes. At. 9s. 9d. per hour that is Li. 5s. 2d. Add Is. Id., cost of two miles at 6.F;d. per mile, and we get Cl 6s. 3d., and that is 4s. 4-,1d. for each of the six tons carried. For the 6-ton oiler the time is the same-2 hours 35 minutes-and that, at 10s. 3d. per hour, is CI Gs. 6d. Add 9d. for two miles at 4id. and we have El 7s. 3d., so that the rate in this case is 4s, 61d., the highest of the three.
A little consideration will enable the reader to come to the conclusion that this is because of the comparatively high standing charges which apply to the oiler. These make it comparatively more expensive for extremely short runs, However, as will be shown, this disadvantage is speedily wiped out as the lead mileage increases and the advantage which the oiler has in running costs comes more and more into the picture, For a two-mile lead we have to add eight minutes to the time-the vehicle during that extra mile is travelling at
15 tn.p.h.-and the cost of two miles. For the 5-tonner, eight minutes at 9s. per hour cost Is. 20.; two miles cost I Id., so that the total addition to the charge for a one-mile lead is 2s. Ud. That is a shade over 5d. per ton and makes the rate for a two-mile lead 4s. 10d. per ton.
For the 6-ton petroleengined vehicle, eight minutes at 9s. 9d. per hour cost Is. 3.W., to which must be added Is. Id. for two miles, giving us 7s. 40., or an addition of 41d. per ton. The rate for a 6-ton petrol vehicle is 4s. 91d. per ton for a two-mile lead.
For the 6-ton oiler the addition is Is. 40. for time and 9d. for mileage, which is 2s. lid. That is equivalent to 4;d. per ton and brings the rate per ton for a two-mile lead to 4s. ION. The oil-cngined 6-tanner is still the most expensive, but there is not so Much difference as there was for a onemile lead. For the third-mile lead we add five minutes of time and again two miles lead. For the 5-tonner five minutes at 9& per hour equal 9d., plus lid, for two miles (Is, 8c1.); that is 4d. per ton, bringing the rate for a three-mile lead to 5s. 2d.
For the 6-ton petrol-engined machine, five minutes at 9s. 9d. is 91d. plus Is. Id. for the two miles, which gives us Is. 101d., or 31.d. per ton, and brings the rate to 5s Id. for the three-mile lead on this vehicle. The 6-ton oiler costs us 101d. for five minutes, plus 9d. for the two -miles run, this making a total of Is. 70., which is slightly less than 31d. per ton and brings the rate to 5s. 2d. It should be noted already that the rate on the 6-ton oiler has dropped to the level of that on the 5-tanner. Beyona the three-mile lead the rate rises steadily by an amount equivalent to the rate for four minutes and two miles.
For the 5-tanner that is 71d., plus lid., which is Is. 61d., or 31d. per ton. For the 6-ton petrol-engined vehicle it is 71d., plus Is, Id., which is Is. 81d., or 30. per ton; for the 6-ton oiler it is Bid., plus 9d., or Is. 51d., slightly less than 3d, per ton.