Gauges
18 OVERDRIVE NOVEMBER 2009 Gauges Numbers that affect and reflect your business INCOME $2.73 $2.65 $2.58 $2.53 $2.61 Oct. 12, 2009 11,000 10,000 9,000 8,000 7,000 2007 2007 2007 Quarterly data points represent three-month averages. MILES PER MONTH REVENUE PER MILE 2008 2008 2008 2009 2009 2009 $1.80 $1.60 $1.40 $1.20 $1.00 $.70 $.60 $.50 $.40 $.30 NET INCOME PER MILE National average: $2.60 $4.00 $3.00 $2.00 Oct. 13 March 16 Oct. 12 2008 2009 2009 DIESEL PRICES Dry van and flatbed clients of Denver-based owner-operator financial services firm ATBS maintained the same income per mile from the first to the second quarters of 2009, while reefer operators dropped 3 cents during the same period. Miles rose over the quarter for each hauling segment. DRY VAN FLATBED REEFER SHIPPING RATES Rates for dry van, flatbed and reefer haulers changed only a penny or two per mile from August to September, according to averages tracked by Internet Truckstop. The rates include fuel surcharges. Talking/listening on handheld phone Smoking Beverage Object in hand Food *Third quarter 2009; distraction as a percentage of total driving time 4.5% 2.7% 2.5% 2.4% 2.0% $2.50 $2.25 $2.00 $1.75 $1.50 $1.25 $1.00 September September September DRY VAN FLATBED REEFER DRY VAN FLATBED REEFER 2007 2008 2009 COMMUNICATION COSTS Owner-operators spend $140 per month for business com-munications, mostly cell phone expenses, according to s Overdrive' 2009 Owner-Operator Market Behavior Report. Independent contrac-tors estimated their average monthly cell phone bill was $125. Average U.S. diesel prices rose 1.8 cents Oct. 12 after a drop of five consecutive weeks in all regions that bottomed out at $2.58 a gallon nationally, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Index shows drop in driver distractions Handheld mobile phone conversa-tion ranks as the top driving distrac-tion, in terms of time, in an index developed recently by safety consul-tant SmartDrive Systems. The quarterly index evaluates video records of more than 25,000 com-mercial drivers, gauging distraction as a percentage of total driving time. The overall distraction rate dropped in the third quarter of 2009 from the second quarter. <50 50-100 101-200 201-500 >500 $160 $140 $120 $100 $80 $40 $20 $0 Average monthly business communication expenses Miles driven Smoking ranks as one of the top driver distractions.