Partial and LTL freight for shipments that do not fill a trailer

Two ways to share a trailer

Less than truckload, or LTL, is built for small shipments, usually one to about six pallets. The carrier picks up your freight along with other shippers' freight, brings it to a terminal, sorts it onto a line haul trailer and delivers it from another terminal near the receiver. Every dock on that path is a chance for delay or handling damage, but you pay only for your share of the trailer.

A partial truckload suits larger part loads, often around 6 to 12 pallets or several thousand pounds and up. It shares a truck with one or two other shipments, yet it stays on that truck the whole way, with no transfers. It is usually priced on the length of trailer floor it takes and its weight rather than on freight class, and it is the gentler choice for freight that should not be rehandled.

How LTL pricing works

An LTL rate is built from weight, distance and freight class. Class runs from 50 for dense, sturdy freight to 500 for light, bulky or fragile freight, and for many products it is set by density: the pounds per cubic foot of the shipment as it is packed. That is why accurate dimensions matter. When a carrier measures or weighs the pallets at its terminal and finds something different from the bill of lading, the class and the charge can change after delivery.

Extras are priced on top: a lift gate where there is no dock, a delivery to a residence or a business without a dock, a delivery appointment, inside delivery, or a limited access site such as a school, a church or a construction site. Tell us about each one up front, because an extra discovered at the door is billed afterward.

When to choose partial, LTL or a full truck

One to about six pallets that can be handled at a terminal: LTL is usually the cheapest. From about six pallets up to roughly half a trailer, or freight that is fragile, high value or awkward to rehandle: a partial keeps it on one truck. When the freight needs its own vehicle on a deadline, a box truck or a sprinter van is the dedicated option. And once a shipment passes roughly ten pallets or about 15,000 pounds, compare it against a full truckload before you book.

How we book it

We do not run LTL terminals, and our own trucks are tractors with 53 foot dry vans that haul full loads. For LTL and partial freight we act as your licensed broker: we find a carrier that serves both ends, book it for your date and follow the shipment until it is delivered. Partials go to truckload carriers with room on the right lane, and we screen every one of them on Highway before booking.

Inside the West, LTL networks reach nearly every ZIP code, so a few pallets can go almost anywhere in the 11 states we serve. Partials depend more on the lane. They are easiest to place on busy corridors like Los Angeles to Phoenix, Las Vegas, the Bay Area or Salt Lake City, where many truckload carriers have space to fill, and slower to match on thin rural lanes.

What we need to quote partial or LTL freight

• Pickup and delivery ZIP codes, and whether each address has a dock
• Pallet or piece count, plus each one's length, width and height
• Total weight, a description of the freight, and its class if you have it
• Whether the freight is stackable
• Any extras: lift gate, appointment, inside delivery or a residential address