A same day delivery service is a big player in time-sensitive logistics. Driven mainly by consistently rising consumer expectations, high stakes supply chains and urgent B2B shipping demands, businesses need freight solutions that can move quickly and reliably. A successful same day delivery can help to prevent costly production downtime, manage last minute inventory and provide a competitive advantage through a superior and reliable service, ensuring your critical goods arrive when they’re most needed. All of these things and more make it an integral part of moving goods across the USA.

Many people assume that the best option for their urgent freight is to ship via an expedited air solution, such as “next flight out”. While in some scenarios, this is the truth, it’s also not always the case. Expedited road freight is often overlooked, but it can give air a run for its money in a lot of ways and can work out as the more fast moving, controlled and dependable solution for urgent freight.

But How? Air Freight Is The Fastest, Right? ✈️

Of course it is, if a truck and a plane were moving directly from origin to destination at the same time, the plane would win on speed alone. But, we must remember to always look at the bigger picture. There’s a lot more restrictions like, flight schedules, airport handling, cut off times, and unexpected delays and cancellations which all make air freight feel less controlled and it’s these factors that give road freight the competitive edge in certain situations. We cannot stress enough that although time critical shipments rely on speed, they also rely on reliability. Because speed matters, but so does certainty. Which is why we’re here to discuss what we think is an amazing alternative to expedite your freight and that is same day road freight!

What Is Same Day Road Freight? 🚛

Same day shipping via road freight is a premium, dedicated logistics service, mostly utilized by shippers when they have a time sensitive load that needs to be collected and delivered on the same day. This transportation service is particularly valuable across healthcare, legal services and manufacturing industries, where delays could have serious operational and financial consequences. But remember, no industry is immune to needing an expedited service at some point or another. Any industry that finds they need to move their freight directly, quickly and with as little disruption as possible will also utilize this type of service. Whether it’s an emergency part, or critical document, this solution helps businesses to respond quickly and with greater confidence in those sticky situations.

So, how does same day road freight actually work? It works by dedicating a vehicle to a sole shipment, we call it an EUV (Exclusive Use Vehicle) to offer a direct point A to point B delivery without any unnecessary stops, co-sharing of space with other cargo and ultimately minimizing any extra handling. Essentially it’s a tailored solution to distance, shipment size, urgency and destination.

What Is Next Flight Out (NFO) Air Freight? ✈️

A next flight out service, often abbreviated to NFO, is also a premium and time critical service. Like same day road freight, it is designed for high priority cargo and is available 24/7. Urgent cargo is picked up rapidly, where it then moves through the air network, it is then placed on the next flight out available to the closest suitable destination. Aiming to meet same day or next day delivery windows. To support these tight delivery schedules and speed up the process even more, this service also uses priority handling and fast tracked security through departure and arrival airports.

There are two ways a business can use this service: 1. As an airport to airport service, where the cargo is picked up right away by the consignee at the destination airport. 2. As an expedited door to door service, where upon arrival at the destination airport, the cargo is immediately transported to the final destination by a road freight solution, once again using priority handling, and an expedited final mile option.

While NFO is an effective solution for many urgent shipments, the delivery process is a lot more long winded. The extra steps mean, more handling, more dependence on airline schedules, and ultimately less control over a shipment compared to a dedicated same day road freight service.

Why Businesses Are Choosing Road Over Air For Their Urgent Shipments 

Next flight out air freight solutions can be highly effective in the right circumstances. But it is not always the most efficient option for urgent shipping like most people think. We’ve touched on it briefly, but flight schedules, handling points and the risk of flight cancellations are all factors that can introduce major delays that businesses cannot always afford. By comparison a dedicated same day ground solution offers a more direct and controlled alternative. Looking closer at both options can help to explain why PEI’s same day road freight solution can be a valuable choice for urgent shipping. Let’s dig a little deeper:

Ground Freight Offers More Control Over Shipments 🎯

A dedicated ground freight solution offers an unmatched level of control over urgent shipments. The main reason is simple, the freight moves directly from pick up to delivery in a dedicated vehicle. Unlike air freight that is restricted to movement around airline schedules, cargo cut-off times and airport processing. Without these lag times, and external dependencies businesses have more confidence and visibility on where their cargo is and when their freight will be delivered.

No Risk Of Flight Delays Or Cancelled Flights 🌦️

Flights are disrupted, delayed and cancelled daily due to many reasons: weather conditions, air traffic control problems, aircraft maintenance and crew availability. All of which can severely impact urgent shipments.  While it is possible for severe weather and road closures to affect a freight route on the ground, it’s also much easier to reroute and get loads back on track when it’s safe to do so and weather permitting. If a flight is cancelled, it’s not as simple to reroute, but a dedicated road service removes this layer of uncertainty.

No Dependence On Airline Schedules 🕒

When you’ve got an urgent shipment that needs to move today, working around flight schedules can be very limiting. You’re not guaranteed there will be available capacity on the next flight out, and the timing of the next flight out might not align with the urgency of your shipment. However, if you’re moving that urgent freight via road, there is no dependency on strict schedules, and less chances of disruptions. Freight can be matched with a truck, loaded and on its’ way within an hour or less of inquiring. As we mentioned earlier, there’s a much more direct route with dedicated road freight.

Fewer Handling Points With Dedicated Road Freight  🫱📦

Air freight involves much more handling points than a dedicated road freight option. Here’s a list of air freight touch points:

• Pick up & load truck
• Unload at airport
• Airport intake
• Screening & security
• Loading onto plane
• Unloading from plane
• Load & transfer to final-mile handoff
• Unload at destination

vs. a dedicated road freight touch points:

• Load onto truck
• Unload at destination

The minimal handling of road freight makes it much less exposed to delays, damages and losses during transit, making it perfect for critical and urgent freight. ✅

Same Day Road Freight Is Typically More Cost Effective 💰

Both same day shipping by air and road freight have their own space in the market, but they come with very different price tags!

Same Day Road Freight Costs

For shorter, regional moves, same day road freight can work out as the most cost effective solution. As a dedicated road freight solution offers a direct door to door service it’s ideal for urgent, delicate, larger and heavier shipments that would be very expensive to fly. What else is great about road freight, is that it also avoids airport handling fees, multiple modes of transport, air fuel surcharges and customs documentation. These combined, generally makes moving freight on the roads between 300-500 miles in distance the smarter choice.

Next Flight Out Costs

On the other hand, air freight is considered more cost effective for longer hauls and international urgent shipments. The kind of moves where urgency is the primary value, but this cost efficiency tends to present itself in a different way than a lower quote. If the cost of a delay is huge, then the higher upfront cost of air freight can still work out as the more cost effective option, particularly when a long haul truck simply cannot complete the journey within the required delivery window.

Same Day Road Freight Benefits In A Snapshot 📋

Rapid collection and delivery: This is a speedy service, and pick up could be within 30 minutes of booking a same day delivery load and delivered directly to the destination within hours, as opposed to days or longer.

Dedicated and direct route vehicle: Same day shipping options are able to meet stringent demand by using a direct route and dedicated vehicle. Meaning, unlike traditional and more cost-effective solutions that would normally share truck space between multiple loads or pass through hubs to consolidate with other loads, a dedicated vehicle does not. This gives a greater control over route planning, time frames and significantly reduces problems from arising, like, losses, damages and delays.

24/7/365 availability: Emergencies crop up at any time of any day. It could be 5am on Christmas morning when you need an urgent, last minute solution. Same day road shipping has no boundaries. This service offers around the clock, and calendar, out of hours pick up and deliveries.

Multiple vehicle options: Specialists in the expedited freight sector can pair your freight with the most suitable truck type. From the smallest piece of freight you might have and right up to large, heavy and bulky freight, any truck and trailer type can be booked out for dedicated use.

Enhanced tracking and updates: Shippers have much better visibility over their loads when they’re on a dedicated vehicle and not sharing truck space.

PEI Same Day Delivery 

At PEI, we offer a same day delivery option. We do this, by finding the best match of equipment and vehicle for your freight, to offer you the most suited, cost effective option. We often use straight trucks for larger loads, sprinter and cargo vans for smaller pieces and hot shots for medium loads, making it possible to offer amazing same day, next day and two day delivery for any freight need. Here’s a breakdown of each truck and trailer type:

Straight Trucks

Straight trucks or commonly known as box trucks, are used for larger and bulkier pieces of cargo or for larger quantities of smaller items in one shipment. The name box truck comes from the rigid walls that keep the freight safe and protected from outside elements. They’re easier to manoeuvre through urban areas than semi-tractor trailers and are the perfect option for exclusive use vehicle hire. They can comfortably fit between 10-12 pallets and can haul a maximum gross vehicle weight of 26,000lbs for a non CDL driver and up to 54,000lbs with a driver with a CDL.

Hot Shot Truck

A hot shot trucking service is perfect for moving medium-sized, time sensitive shipments on an exclusive basis. It works by utilizing medium duty pickup trucks, like a Ford F250/350 or Ram 2500/3500 with trailers like, gooseneck, flatbed or dovetail. They can typically haul loads between 10,000 and 20,000lbs. Non CDL drivers are capped at a maximum gross combined weight of 26,000lbs, whereas CDL driver’s can haul upwards of 26,000lbs gross combined weight. The most common industries using hot shot trucks are oil, gas and construction, generally moving freight that is too large, heavy or an awkward shape for a van.

Sprinter & Cargo Van

Sprinter vans are commonly used in the US for high priority same day freight. They’re an efficient option for smaller loads than what straight trucks can accommodate, like LTLs, but made for larger loads than would fit in a normal van. They’re well suited to boxed or palletized freight, medical supplies, documents, replacement parts, electronics, etc. and generally offer a faster service than a standard larger truck, with quicker loading and unloading too.

Conclusion 💭

Same day road freight is a fantastic option that almost bridges the gap between expensive air freight solutions and next day delivery services. It’s a service offered to help customers move their urgent freight as quickly and safely as possible. For businesses looking for practical, reliable alternative expedited shipping options, same day ground freight could be the smart solution. ✅

Do you have a need for urgent shipping options regularly? In fact, even if you don’t, urgent shipments creep up on the most prepared businesses. So it’s always good to have a reliable freight partner in your back pocket. We understand that businesses not only need a speedy delivery, they need confidence that their shipping partner can fulfil last minute requests and get their goods to their destination on time, safely and directly with no unnecessary delays. And this is where we shine! Although urgent shipments might feel stressful to you, they’re just another day in the office for us 😊

Get in touch to discuss your shipping needs on: Phone: 888-SHIP-911 or use the link below ⬇️. We hope to hear from you!

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