What You Need To Know About LTL Shipment Carriers

The acronym “LTL” is not strange to those who are familiar with the shipping industry. However, people who are not accustomed with activities in the industry may find it difficult to comprehend the phrase “less than truckload.” 

​For those who do not know, LTL is a commonly used acronym that has been used in the industry for some time. However, it may be one of the best-kept secrets in the industry. According to third-party logistics company Access America Transport, less than truckload freight (LTL) simply implies that since the load of a truck won’t fit either full-sized trucks, a truck doesn’t require a 48-foot or 53-foot trailer.

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Usually, LTL shipping is done between companies that are involved in shipping crates and pallets from one dock to another. However, there are many other services offered by these carriers including lift gate, residential and appointment services. 

Like full truckload carriers, there are many carriers that specialize in rendering LTL shipping services around the world. Even among the LTL carriers themselves, they specialize in rendering different services such as freeze protection, guaranteed services, bottom line costs, transit, deliveries, lift gate and residential pickups etc. 

Here, a number of different modes of transport – truck, water, rail and air – are involved in moving products from point to point. Due at a relatively low cost, shippers are offered infinite flexibility for the movement of goods by truck in the US.

​When compared with rail transport, truck transportations is known to move large items faster as the shipment is basically not dependent on the railroads timetable. In the US, two types of service are offered by general freight carriers namely Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) and Full Truckload (FTL). Unlike the FTL which majors in moving full trucks or containers of a particular product from a single customer, the LTL carrier specializes in moving goods from multiple customers on one truck. To this end, it (LTL) provides customers with a cheaper means of shipping goods. 

Generally, LTL carriers use van trailers which are either enclosed or covered trailers. Only a few refrigerated LTL carriers utilize temperature controlled trailers. Now a day, carriers feature roll up doors on the rear in order to gain easy access to the inside of the trailer. As a common trend, many trailers have entrances that are quite smaller than those with swing doors. 

In tandem, most carriers prefer to utilize pup trailers that can be hauled while shipments that cannot fit conveniently onto one pup trailer will not be accepted by LTL carriers. A majority of LTL carriers plying their line haul freight on the interstate commonly travel with two tandem trailers. Basically, this is done to ease transportation. As the freight travels across the country, it can easily be released at the coordination terminals as it has already been sorted for destination.

You no longer need to worry about freight class to get your logistics set up. Based on the density of your item, you can receive a price quote. All you simply need to do is enter your dimensions and you will get your LTL quote in just a moment. To receive more information about LTL shipping or request a LTL quote. Click Here