What deadhead actually costs
Deadhead is the distance a truck runs empty between loads. Those miles burn fuel, hours, and tolls while producing no revenue, so they dilute the rate on the loads around them. A dispatcher evaluating a load has to look at the loaded rate and the deadhead to start it together.
Measured as a percentage of total miles, long-haul dry van operations commonly run in the low-to-mid teens. A number drifting toward 25 to 30 percent is almost always a planning problem, not bad luck.
Rebook before the truck is empty
The single highest-leverage habit is rebooking early. A dispatcher searching for the next load while the driver is still 200 miles from delivery has options and negotiating room. One who waits until the truck is empty at the dock is bidding from weakness and often has to reposition just to find something.
This is a process choice: the next load is worked while the current one is in transit, not after it delivers.
Lane selection beats load selection
A strong headhaul rate into a region with little outbound freight can net out worse than a moderate rate into a balanced market where the backhaul is easy. The load looks better; the round trip is worse.
The fix is to track your regular destinations by how well they reload. Weight the ones with easy backhauls when you accept freight, and treat a lane into a known dead end as paying less than its headline rate — because the empty miles home are part of the trip.
Standing backhauls for repeating freight
On lanes you run regularly, line up a standing backhaul with a broker or shipper so the return is covered before the truck leaves. A backhaul priced well below the headhaul still improves the round trip, because the truck was going to make that drive regardless.
Worked example: a carrier hauls a headhaul at $1.90 per mile and would otherwise deadhead 420 miles home. Booking a backhaul at $1.35 per mile adds roughly $560 of revenue to a trip that would have run empty — and turns a marginal lane into one worth repeating.
Making it measurable
Track empty percentage by driver and by lane, not just as a fleet average. A single lane or a single planning habit is usually responsible for most of the excess. Once the number is visible per lane, the decision about which freight to keep taking becomes obvious.
Key takeaways
- Evaluate loaded rate and deadhead together; a load is not priced until the empty miles are counted.
- Rebook the next load while the current one is in transit, not after delivery.
- Choose lanes by how well they reload, not just by the headhaul rate.
- Line up standing backhauls on repeating lanes; a low backhaul rate still beats running empty.
- Track empty percentage by lane and driver to find where the deadhead is coming from.
Related questions: How do I reduce deadhead miles?, How do I price a load?, How do I calculate cost per mile?
Terms: Deadhead, Backhaul, Linehaul, Load Board, Spot Rate
In Trailflow: dispatch.