4 ms·

> One of the differences between European and American trucking is that owners-operators are very common in US and not so much in Europe. These people own their

by thex10 5y ago

> One of the differences between European and American trucking is that owners-operators are very common in US and not so much in Europe. These people own their own trucks and pretty much live in them for months at a time. Semi-trucks with conventional cabs feature longer wheel base, which makes them a little more comfortable. Also, they tend to have a lot of room inside. Owners modify their trucks to include huge living compartments – something not common in Europe. I wonder why owner-operator truck drivers are more common in USA than Europe? Is it an externality of our lack of worker protections and safety net?

ptudan 5y ago
I'd guess that in Europe there are a lot less long-haul drives than in the USA. Those are the ones that can pay big bucks and make O/O efficient. If you're going on a 6 hour round trip there's no reason you can't drop off the truck at HQ and head home to your family.
- Teknoman117 5y ago
  Europe also kept maintaining their rail lines whereas the US has neglected ours because trucks were seen as a way to stick it to the rail companies. Our loss considering that freight trains are 4 times as efficient in terms of cargo ton-miles per gallon of diesel.
  - maxerickson 5y ago
    The US makes extensive use of freight rail. Like look at the per Capita number at the end of https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_rail_usage https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_rail_us... The modal share for rail is also relatively high. A lot of it is bulk commodities of course.
    - Teknoman117 5y ago
      It just seems like for the quantity of stuff we move around, we should have more rail. We have massive wide open flat spaces to build rail lines, yet, we don't. Transport by car or truck accounts for 20% of US carbon emissions, while freight rail is just 0.5%, and the freight rail is moving 28% of all cargo "ton-miles".
      - etempleton 5y ago
        Rail doesn’t get things to the last mile and can be slow. Efficient in volume not in time. America’s freight infrastructure is the envy of many country. It isn’t modern,fast, or even that well maintained, but it is extensive. Passenger rail is a completely different story in the US.
  - Armisael16 5y ago
    I’m guessing you’ve never looked at US rail in any aspect other than passenger rail? The US runs ~8x the rail freight that the EU does.
frenchy 5y ago
My kneejerk reaction would be the higher rural/urban ratio, but I don't think that's right, becaues Russia has even more rural space. It's probably more due to the fact that many of the roads in the USA were built a lot more recently, and were built to make it convenient to use larger tractor-trailers (and not so much for other road users). In Europe, truck operators had to fit into the existing road system.
- irrational 5y ago
  America has large cities scattered across the entire country. When I look at a map of the cities in Russia, the majority are in the far west and south with huge amounts of the country without any large cities.
- etempleton 5y ago
  The US Interstate system is extensive, well maintained, and fast. 60-80 mph will be the average speed for a truck on these roads. If you are a long haul trucker you spend 95 percent of your time on these roads. You want high speed stability that a longer wheel base provides and don’t care too much about tight menuevering, because you probably don’t have too much tight area navigating to do. You will drop at a large warehouse on the outskirts of a city that was built for trucks like the one you are driving and be back on the road to the next warehouse.
irrational 5y ago
Truck drivers often drive many thousands of kilometers on a haul, and I don’t mean in a loop. They might have a job to drive from LA to Memphis (almost 3000 kilometers), then they will pick up a load in Memphis and drive it to Miami. It might be many months before they are back in the LA area. Cheaper to sleep in the truck than in a hotel. Plus, time is money. Pull off the road, sleep for 8 hours, wake up and hop back on the road immediately.
- roelschroeven 5y ago
  It's not all that different in Europe. I think most drivers get home around once a month or so, so more frequently than in the US. But while on the road, they also sleep in their trucks.

by thex10 5y ago

ptudan 5y ago

I'd guess that in Europe there are a lot less long-haul drives than in the USA. Those are the ones that can pay big bucks and make O/O efficient. If you're going on a 6 hour round trip there's no reason you can't drop off the truck at HQ and head home to your family.

Teknoman117 5y ago
Europe also kept maintaining their rail lines whereas the US has neglected ours because trucks were seen as a way to stick it to the rail companies. Our loss considering that freight trains are 4 times as efficient in terms of cargo ton-miles per gallon of diesel.
- maxerickson 5y ago
  The US makes extensive use of freight rail. Like look at the per Capita number at the end of https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_rail_usage https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_rail_us... The modal share for rail is also relatively high. A lot of it is bulk commodities of course.
  - Teknoman117 5y ago
    It just seems like for the quantity of stuff we move around, we should have more rail. We have massive wide open flat spaces to build rail lines, yet, we don't. Transport by car or truck accounts for 20% of US carbon emissions, while freight rail is just 0.5%, and the freight rail is moving 28% of all cargo "ton-miles".
    - etempleton 5y ago
      Rail doesn’t get things to the last mile and can be slow. Efficient in volume not in time. America’s freight infrastructure is the envy of many country. It isn’t modern,fast, or even that well maintained, but it is extensive. Passenger rail is a completely different story in the US.
- Armisael16 5y ago
  I’m guessing you’ve never looked at US rail in any aspect other than passenger rail? The US runs ~8x the rail freight that the EU does.

frenchy 5y ago

My kneejerk reaction would be the higher rural/urban ratio, but I don't think that's right, becaues Russia has even more rural space. It's probably more due to the fact that many of the roads in the USA were built a lot more recently, and were built to make it convenient to use larger tractor-trailers (and not so much for other road users). In Europe, truck operators had to fit into the existing road system.

irrational 5y ago
America has large cities scattered across the entire country. When I look at a map of the cities in Russia, the majority are in the far west and south with huge amounts of the country without any large cities.
etempleton 5y ago
The US Interstate system is extensive, well maintained, and fast. 60-80 mph will be the average speed for a truck on these roads. If you are a long haul trucker you spend 95 percent of your time on these roads. You want high speed stability that a longer wheel base provides and don’t care too much about tight menuevering, because you probably don’t have too much tight area navigating to do. You will drop at a large warehouse on the outskirts of a city that was built for trucks like the one you are driving and be back on the road to the next warehouse.

irrational 5y ago

Truck drivers often drive many thousands of kilometers on a haul, and I don’t mean in a loop. They might have a job to drive from LA to Memphis (almost 3000 kilometers), then they will pick up a load in Memphis and drive it to Miami. It might be many months before they are back in the LA area. Cheaper to sleep in the truck than in a hotel. Plus, time is money. Pull off the road, sleep for 8 hours, wake up and hop back on the road immediately.

roelschroeven 5y ago
It's not all that different in Europe. I think most drivers get home around once a month or so, so more frequently than in the US. But while on the road, they also sleep in their trucks.