INDUSTRY OPERATIONAL COSTS ON THE RISE AGAIN


BY REBECCA M. BREWSTER Guest Writer


Benchmarking fleet financial per-


formance is a key way that carriers keep costs in check and identify areas where operational efficiencies can be gained. Since 2008, the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) has provided the industry with a key benchmarking tool through its publication, Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking. ATRI recently released the findings of


its 2015 update to the “Ops Costs” report and motor carrier costs are on the rise again this year. The research, which identi- fies trucking costs from 2008 through 2014 derived directly from fleets’ financial and operational data, serves several critical functions. First, motor carriers can use the findings to assess their own fleet’s financial


Motor Carrier Costs


VEHICLE-BASED Fuel Costs


Truck/Trailer Lease or Purchase Payments


Repair & Maintenance


Truck Insurance Premiums Permits and Licenses Tires Tolls


DRIVER-BASED DriverWages Driver Benefits


TOTAL 28 2008 $0.633


$0.213 $0.103 $0.055 $0.016 $0.030 $0.024


$0.435 $0.144 $1.653


performance against that of their peers in the industry. Second, the data provides an important input for public sector transpor- tation analyses to better quantify the value of future infrastructure investment utiliz- ing real-world data rather than modeled or speculative motor carrier costs. The average marginal cost per mile


to operate a truck in 2014 was $1.70, representing a 2.7 cent increase over 2013. Fuel prices fell throughout 2014,


which reduced the fuel cost per mile from the previous year — $0.583 per mile down from $0.645 per mile in 2013. Even so, fuel costs still represent the costliest line item, representing 34 percent of the total cost per mile. Combined, fuel and driver costs (wages


and benefits), account for 69 percent of the total cost per mile. Driver wages saw an increase in 2014, up to $0.462 per mile from


2009 $0.405


$0.257 $0.123 $0.054 $0.029 $0.029 $0.024


$0.403 $0.128 $1.451


2010 $0.486


$0.184 $0.124 $0.059 $0.040 $0.035 $0.012


$0.446 $0.162 $1.548


2011 $0.590


$0.189 $0.152 $0.067 $0.038 $0.042 $0.017


$0.460 $0.151 $1.706


TENNESSEE TRUCKING NEWS


TRUCK IN 2014 WAS $1.70, REPRESENTING A 2.7 CENT INCREASE OVER 2013.


MARGINAL COST PER MILE TO OPERATE A


THE AVERAGE $0.44 the previous year. It is expected that


this figure will continue to increase as fleets compete to recruit and retain the best driv- ers in the face of a growing driver shortage. In this year’s analysis, the overall


increase in the cost per mile was primar- ily driven by increases in truck and trailer lease and purchase payments, as well as higher truck insurance premiums. ATRI’s analysis breaks out costs by industry sec- tor and the higher truck and trailer lease


2012 $0.641


$0.174 $0.138 $0.063 $0.022 $0.044 $0.019


$0.417 $0.116 $1.633


2013 $0.645


$0.163 $0.148 $0.064 $0.026 $0.041 $0.019


$0.440 $0.129 $1.676


2014 $0.583


$0.215 $0.158 $0.071 $0.019 $0.044 $0.023


$0.462 $0.129 $1.703


Q3 2015


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