Choosing a trucking company for all your transportation needs can often be a challenge. Your cargo is precious, but at times, your options are too varied and complicated.
Rest assured that transportation by trucking is one of the quickest and most efficient ways of shipping.
Truck routes are well developed and exist linking all major and smaller towns and cities all over North America. For example, one can easily go from Canada’s major transportation hub of Toronto to New York City in a matter of 8 hours.
What Services Do Trucking Companies Provide?
Trucking companies typically transport goods and raw material overland through the various truck routes all over North America.
For example, they can help you move across country, or ship your company’s products from warehouse to warehouse.
Trucking companies can provide short-haul or long-haul services.
Many trucking companies offer trailers, trucks, mobile warehousing units, and intermodal containers for customers to ship across North America quickly and efficiently.
Intermodal containers consists of both truck and rail, or truck and ship, and usually back to truck, as a fast way to transport goods.
For those short on time, many trucking companies offer expedited services. Your product is picked up and delivered to its destination, with no additional stops in-between. A team of 2 drivers, ensures 24-hours of driving time, reducing chances of delays and loss of products in transfers.
In addition, hot shot services are popular especially in the oil and gas industries, and provide rapid delivery of material or personnel to remote locations.
Trucking Company Safety
Knowing that your cargo is in good hands is important. Luckily, the trucking industry is very heavily regulated by governments. Drivers possess special licenses and often go through truck driving school, ensuring that your cargo is safe.
For instance, regulations for both Canadian and US drivers licenses are very similar. In Canada, provincial and territorial regulations stipulate what type of license class is needed, while in the US, licenses are regulated by state governments.
Choosing a Trucking Company
Choosing a company depends on a variety of factors, including location and price. Are you shipping locally, within province or state, or are you shipping international across borders?
Do you usually choose an internationally or nationally recognized brand name, or prefer to support the local small-businesses in your community?
Search options exist on the web to help you find the perfect trucking company. Search by province or state, city, company name, and what type of trucking is needed. For example, a search inputting Toronto, Ontario results in 76 matches for all types of truck companies.
The Better Business Bureau allows you to check the reviews of a specific company, all over North America, including Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
A search under the term “trucking” in Toronto, Ontario reveals 96 results, while inVancouver, BC, the search reveals 117 results. These can be further refined by BBB rating and by category. These include logistics, transportation, freight forwarding, heavy haul and light haul trucking, couriers, and delivery service.
In the US, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), offers options for users to search about a company’s safety record. All that is needed is the Motor Carrier (MC) number and company name.
In Canada, federally regulated Transport Canada does not have jurisdiction over commercial transportation; this is administered provincially and territorially.
Trucking Company Costs
Many companies provide free quotes for their services, so do not hesitate to give them a call. Prices vary for large international companies, to more local family operations. In addition, the price is often higher in larger cities.
Choosing A Type of Truck
Refrigerated or Reefer Trucks– are temperature controlled and keep items cool/frozen during their journey. Additionally, it can keep items warm when shipping during winter months.
Multiple Temperature Control Trucks– are heated or refrigerated. They also come separate compartments that have their own individual temperature control. Multiple products such as alcohol, fruit, and frozen foods can be shipped at the same time.
Double-drop or Specialized Flatbed Trailers – can accommodate overweight and oversized cargo.
Trucking Company Locations
A quick Google search reveals a concentration of trucking companies in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, and Québec. Several are available in Manitoba, and one each can be found in the Yukon and Saskatchewan as well.
In the Unites States, trucking companies are available in all states, however, a concentration exists in the Pacific Northwest and the Midwest regions.
Truck Routes
One curious about various truck routes can easily access city maps on the web. For example, Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton all offer this option.
In addition, major highways routes and itineraries can be planned out on the web as well.
In the United States, interactive maps can be accessed by state and the US Department of Transportation also provides a handy map of the various routes.
Choosing the perfect trucking company can be difficult; however, varied options exist and can easily be accessed on the web.
Video – Logistics