Full load rate from Montreal to Toronto

It can be done. Especially if it's primary award freight on autopilot because the hunt can be taken out of the equation. Of course, if you have $1400 it's a lot better. I've seen the P&L #s and it works.
 
Assuming a CPM of $1.85 (Which is conservative in my opinion) on a 675 mile trip, works out to almost $1250. So what your saying is, go out and invest $165,000.00 and you have the potential to make $50 per day. No wonder we all live in castles and drive big fancy cars...
 
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martinetav said:
Why would anyone quote to 'get a load' at a rate that doesn't cover costs? The same thing is happening with loads from Toronto to Montreal. We took a load at $625 a few weeks ago. We use to get that for a 1/2 load... Coming back empty is not a real option but that rate doesn't really cover what it costs to run. The cheap rate from MTL to TO is because there are a HUGE number of Ontario companies quoting loads out of MTL at ON rates. That's how they are underbidding Quebec companies now...
So now we are being paid 'to loose less money' rather than to 'make a little profit'. One day this is going to bite you all in the butt...
I know, I can hear you all now. We're all out to do business. BUT, When we base our business on just 'GETTING THE LOADS' instead of covering the costs... and no one is making money... WOW I might be stupid but that's not what I learned in Economics...
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You assume I get any freight direct from customers in Quebec, and I assure you that is not the case unfortunately. The rates are driven down not because of Ontario carriers 'underbidding' Montreal carriers, but because of PQ brokers offering cheap freight for backhauls.

I only end up in PQ because one of the big companies wants me to get their load to boucherville. Then I start hunting for freight from PQ and all the brokers out of PQ i speak to want to pay 600-650 on 1 or 2 drop reefer loads with 24 hours between pick and drop.

For instance, I had someone quote me 600$ CDN today for fresh 1 pick 2 drop to Brantford/London pickup Friday deliver Monday. I obviously turned it down but the cut and dry blame game is worn out on this website and I see people trying to lay the blame on the opposite party involved in freight transactions.

Everyone looking for someone to blame for the state of affairs, yet everyone wants to make the largest profits possible and will screw anyone along the way to do so. It all depends on how you frame the situation.
 
For the life of me I don't understand why $1400 round trip GTA/MTL is worth doing. Our local cartage trucks hauling 2 or 3 loads within the GTA do $600 to $750 per day. The cost of running older city day cabs as opposed to big highway trucks is a whole lot less not even taking into account the fuel savings. If you have a breakdown help is close to home instead of being stranded in the middle of nowhere.
 
Again, too many trucks concentrating on one lane. Granted, it is the busiest lane in Canada. Just take a night time drive from Toronto to Kingston and you will see the huge number of trucks in both directions ( I know, they are not ALL going to or from Mtl.) With that many players all competing for the same business, the rates have nowhere to go but down, and for that last 20+ years they have been stuck on the bottom.
 
Supply and demand always conquers, but the normal rate between MTL and GTA for van loads (no specific needs) is running around $700 at the moment. Maybe a $50-100 surcharge for a 'quality' carrier, but this is the norm right now.
P.s. Choose the 'quality' when you can. The cheap guys won't be around next time you need them. This is a bottom-feeder lane. Don't accept cheap.
Regards
Boss
 
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truckinon, All I know is that we have never quoted freight to and from Quebec, to so many Ontario companies as we have in the last 6 months or so. And we do business with reputable Quebec companies. They too have noticed the tenancy. And it's not the Quebec companies that offer us the Dollar store rates...
 
True enough.. but hard for her to avoid QC altogether.. Rates in the corridor are poor... until.. you sample some of the other lanes like to/from Thetford Mines, Sherbrooke, Drummondville etc.. all of QC is our equivalent of Florida..
 
It's not that Quebec is so bad ... but that particular laneway is. I would just triangulate the route. Outbound RPM to the US is generally better from QC than from ON.
 
I like QC, don't get me wrong. People are very friendly and the women are good lookin (ooops..sorry.. not appropriate). Most drivers hate the triangle because if one leg goes sideways the whole week is shot. Add to that the pressure of short hop next morning delivery on each leg with aggressive DOT enforcement. Triangles aren't always fun.
 
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lowmiler88 said:
Pretty simple answer don't go to QC then you will not have an issue.
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we are based out of the Beauce region near Quebec City. moving to another province is not an option... Your option is a little close minded in my personal opinion. Quebec is, after all, a part of Canada. I know that some Quebecers don't agree but 70% of us are sick and tired of their rhetoric and are proud to be Canadian. The new england option used to be an option but those rates are bottom of the barrel now too.
Also, we try not to take freight that goes back to ON out of respect for ON carriers. We usually get freight back home towards Montreal or Quebec City or the Beauce region being Ste-Marie, Beauceville, St-Georges. We also take loads back to western Canada when there is too much for them to handle. So we do look at all options...
 
I have nothing against Quebec we take the same attitude with Chicago we stay out of that lane also unless we get the right price going in (we are in Quebec 3 to 5 times per week but our inbound rate is not the normal so we can afford to go for those customers)
 
The real issue is that the 'Big Boys' are actively quoting $400-$450 a load from Montreal back to GTA. We're a 3PL and they have given me this price to help them out. These guys have a dozen trucks daily looking to return to GTA, they just want to cover fuel. Even with this ridiculous rate, I've only taken advantage of it a few times. The communication and service is appalling. So it's do-able, as long as you don't care when it picks up or deliver....but many bottom-feeder companies are ok with this, so let them have it.
Many or our customers are fine with paying $800 for the loads, because they don't spend two days wondering where their product is on a 330 mile run.
Stick to your guns!
 
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