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Freight operations

LTL (Less Than Truckload)

Freight from several consignors sharing one vehicle, each paying only for the space used.

Also calledLess Than Truck LoadPart load

LTL consolidates consignments from multiple customers into one vehicle. Each pays for their share by weight or volume, which makes it far cheaper than booking a whole truck for a small shipment, and it is how most sub-tonne freight moves.

The trade-off is handling and time. LTL freight typically routes through consolidation hubs, gets sorted, and may be transhipped more than once before final delivery. Every touch adds transit time and a damage opportunity, so LTL transit is slower and less predictable than FTL on the same lane.

Costing LTL properly is genuinely harder than FTL. The vehicle's cost has to be apportioned across consignments that differ in weight, volume and drop location, and a light bulky consignment can consume space out of all proportion to its weight. This is why LTL tariffs are almost always weight-or-measure, charging on whichever is greater.

Same category

Freight operations

The movement patterns and service models behind road freight.

3PL (Third-Party Logistics)

An outsourced provider that executes logistics — transport, warehousing, fulfilment — on a company's behalf.

4PL (Fourth-Party Logistics)

An orchestrator that manages a company's whole logistics network, including its other providers.

Backhaul

Freight carried on the return leg, converting an otherwise empty run into revenue.

Cross Docking

Transferring goods straight from inbound to outbound vehicles with little or no storage in between.

Empty Running

Kilometres driven with no load — pure cost, and the largest avoidable waste in road freight.

First Mile

The initial leg — moving goods from the seller or plant into the transport network.

FTL (Full Truckload)

A shipment that occupies an entire vehicle, moving direct from origin to destination.

Last Mile Delivery

The final leg to the recipient's door — the most expensive segment per parcel and the only one the customer sees.

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