FTL and LTL—Which Road Freight Should You Choose?

1. FTL and LTL—Which Road Freight Should You Choose?

2. Freight transport comes in three categories—air, land, and sea. The most popular and sought-after choice for logistics is road transport. Thanks to the level of convenience and flexibility it offers. There is no denying that a vast majority of businesses and individuals choose road freight to ensure quick and smooth transportation. What Exactly is Road Freight? Commonly known as road haulage, road freight stands for cargo transportation through roadways. Being one of the most commonly used forms of transport in the world, road freight has become people’s favorite choice for all types of logistics transportation. Road freight could be used alone or in conjunction with sea freight in order to enable door-to-door delivery services whenever required. In this post, we will discuss the two most popular types of road freight services—LTL and FTL. Let’s take a look: LTL and FTL Road Freight LTL stands for the Less Than Truckload freight. It’s for businesses that need small-sized cargo to be transported to the target destination. LTL is basically for those who don’t have enough cargo to fill the loaded truck. If you choose the LTL, you have to share the space in the loading truck as well as the transport cost with other companies. It happens to be the most cost-effective method of transportation since you get to share the cost of transportation with other businesses. At the same time, it takes a lot of time to deliver the cargo through this method. The delivery takes longer than usual because the truck takes several stops on the way, and the packing and re-packing of the cargo could be really time-consuming.

3. FTL stands for the Full Truck Load Freight. As the name suggests, this method of transportation is for large businesses that have a large-sized shipment. If your shipment is heavy and big enough to fill the entire truck, you should consider opting for FTL. The method is mostly preferred for delicate goods. Even if the cargo size is not big enough to load the entire truck, people might consider FTL. It is also a great option for companies that need to deliver the cargo within a specific time limit. Choose Between FTL and LTL There are quite a few factors you must consider before choosing between FTL and LTL. Size of the Shipment: For small cargo delivery, LTL looks like the best and most viable option. This method works for all types of small shipments so long as they don’t fall in the high-risk category. Budget: There is no point in hiring a huge truck when you have to transport small freight. The rest of the truck will be empty, but you will end up paying the full cost of transportation. However, if you have large-sized cargo, you can consider FTL. It is the most cost- effective option for budget-conscious buyers. Time: It goes without saying that LTL is a more time-consuming process than FTL. Since the truck is loaded with a cargo of different sizes and types, it might take frequent stops. This makes the delivery a little complex. The vehicle stops at several points since the cargo has to be delivered to different destinations. You don’t have to worry about this problem with FTL. It involves one origin and only a single target destination, making the delivery faster and most cost-effective.

4. Shipment Type: Although the size of the shipment is an important factor when it comes to choosing an appropriate mode of transportation, it is definitely not the only thing to consider when transporting goods from one place to another. There are certain types of goods that can’t be transported with other goods. Put it this way, some dangerous, high-risk goods cannot share space with other items in the truck, which is why they need to be transported separately. Let’s say a company is transporting hazardous chemicals from one point to another. These chemicals can’t be shipped with other regular-use goods. That’s where FTL seems the most reliable option for transportation. Although there are many methods of transportation to choose from, the most flexible and viable one is road freight. It comes with its set of unique advantages.