Our recent transport of a 2026 Ram 2500 inoperable truck from Fredericksburg, Virginia, to Indian Orchard, Massachusetts, was completed recently and it was for 425 miles on open trailer at the rate of $1,489.00 or $3.50 per mile.
This is the highest per-mile rate that we have ever posted, surpassing the $3.34 that we had for service truck previously. This is due to the fact that the vehicle is both a heavy-duty truck and inoperable, and the distance is also relatively short.
The route
The distance from Fredericksburg to Indian Orchard is about 425 miles long and is the northeast corridor end to end.
Fredericksburg lies along I-95 between Richmond and Washington. One travels north from Fredericksburg through the DC metro area and then goes through Baltimore. The driver continues through Delaware, passing Philadelphia on his way.
The path moves to New Jersey Turnpike and skirts around the New York metro area and picks up I-95 through Connecticut and beyond New Haven.
Then one takes the load north on I-91 to Hartford and then continues to Springfield, Massachusetts. Indian Orchard is a suburb east of Springfield.
Short as this route is, this route has some of the heaviest traffic in the country.
The hardest combination to book
Inoperable vehicles were discussed individually in another blog post as was heavy trucks. The combination of them together creates the smallest possible carrier pool in this industry and is something that should be understood.
Not all carriers have a winch. This is the first of filters and removes the bulk of the carrier pool immediately. The problem with an inoperable vehicle is that it needs to be towed into position and a truck that does not have a winch cannot do it.
Not all winches are rated for this sort of work. This is the filter that many do not understand. The winch that has no trouble towing a 4,000 pound sedan is not necessarily rated to tow a 3/4 ton crew cab pickup that can go above 7,000 pounds. The capacity is a specification and not a suggestion.
It still has to roll and steer and brake. As was stated when covering the Range Rover, “inoperable” refers to the engine. In terms of towing, what is important is the ability to roll, steer, and brake.
The weight takes two bites out of the deck. It not only eats up weight capacity for a load on top of the federal weight limits per axle but also, when you factor in the winch time and the special handling involved with a dead weight trailer, makes it both less profitable and slower.
Say everything about that in your quote. The weight itself and the cab layout, whether it is rolling, steering, or braking. A quote based on an “inoperable Ram 2500” and a trailer that doesn’t roll is a bad quote.
Why $3.50 per mile
There are three factors at work here, and the short distance increases their effect even more.
Distance acts as the multiplier. With the total distance being 425 miles, this becomes a short trip. The costs associated with picking up, winch-loading, securement, coordination and delivering will be about the same either way, be it 425 miles or 2,600 miles. In this case, there is no long distance where those costs will be distributed. The total $1,489.00 is the important figure for the customer.
Inoperable loading is the second factor. Time of winching, accurate positioning and specialized equipment all fall into that fixed cost and increase its value, as compared to the vehicle which can drive by itself.
Weight is the third factor. With 2500 crew cab included, there is less space for other items to be loaded under the axle cap, therefore the rate needs to take this into account.
The corridor is not the issue here. There are plenty of trucks traveling on I-95 through the northeast. What is in short supply is the appropriate equipment.
Open transport
Ram was transported using an open trailer, which is the only viable solution to transport cargo of this weight and size.
There are restrictions in terms of height and length for enclosed trailers, and those that can carry a load of this size and weight are expensive. The open trailer is the right choice for such a truck anyway.
For loading, winch was used instead of a ramp. As for the securement, soft straps over the tires were used, and it is particularly important since it is a dead-weight vehicle.
Transport summary
- Origin: Fredericksburg, VA 22408
- Destination: Indian Orchard, MA 01151
- Distance: 425 miles
- Service cost: $1,489.00
- Cost per mile: $3.50
- Vehicle: 2026 Ram 2500 crew cab
- Condition: Inoperable, winch loaded
- Trailer type: Open
- Route: Fredericksburg, VA → I-95 north through Washington DC and Baltimore → Wilmington, DE → Philadelphia, PA → New Jersey Turnpike → New York metro → I-95 through New Haven, CT → I-91 north through Hartford → Springfield, MA → Indian Orchard, MA
