You have the trailer. We have the truck and the driver.
Power only is the simplest thing we sell: a tractor and a qualified driver hooked to your equipment. It suits shippers with their own trailer pool, 3PLs repositioning empties, and any operation whose dock schedule works better with a trailer sitting on it than a truck waiting at it.
Illustrative photography — not Prime Trans equipment.What is power only trucking?
Power only means the carrier supplies the tractor and driver while the customer supplies the trailer. It is used for drop-and-hook programmes, moving a shipper's own trailer pool, repositioning empties, and yard work, and it is priced per move or per hour rather than as a full truckload rate.
Four honest cases.
- Drop-and-hook programmesYour trailer lives on our customer's dock, gets loaded on their schedule, and we collect it when it is ready. Nobody waits.
- Trailer repositioningEmpties moving from where they piled up to where they are needed. Unglamorous, constant, and cheap to do well.
- Yard and spotting workMoving trailers around a plant or distribution yard on a scheduled basis.
- Overflow capacityA 3PL or shipper with more trailers than drivers for a season, which is a staffing problem solved by a truck.
Your trailer, our liability.
A power-only move puts our driver and our authority behind equipment we did not maintain, so there is a short list we go through and do not skip: current annual inspection, tyres and brakes visibly serviceable, lights and ABS working, a legible registration, and the trailer interchange agreement signed. If the trailer fails the walk-around, the driver will say so and it will not move. That is not bureaucracy — a defective trailer is a violation on our USDOT number and a claim on our insurance.
Per move or per hour.
| Equipment supplied | Tractor and qualified driver, 6 trucks in the fleet |
|---|---|
| Equipment you supply | Trailer with a current annual inspection, serviceable tyres and brakes, working lights and ABS, and current registration |
| Interchange | A signed trailer interchange agreement before the first move; we will send the form |
| Rate basis | Per move within a defined radius, or hourly for yard and spotting work, plus fuel |
| Insurance | Auto liability $1,000,000 · General liability $1,000,000 · Workers' comp [Statutory / on file] · trailer interchange coverage confirmed on the certificate |
| Tracking | [ELD provider] ELD on the tractor |
Honest scope: power only is capacity we sell when the trucks are not committed to vehicle work, which is the core of the business. For a steady programme, put it on a Dedicated lanes agreement so the capacity is actually reserved instead of hoped for.
Straight answers
Do I need a trailer interchange agreement?
Yes, before the first move. It sets out who is responsible for the trailer while our driver has it, and it is what our insurer needs to see. We will send the form and it takes minutes.
What condition does my trailer need to be in?
Legal. Current annual inspection, serviceable tyres and brakes, working lights and ABS, current registration. Our driver does a walk-around and will refuse a trailer that is not roadworthy, because the violation lands on our USDOT number.
How is power only priced?
Per move within a defined radius, or hourly for yard and spotting work, plus fuel. It is cheaper than a full truckload rate because you are not paying for a trailer you already own.
Can you do drop-and-hook on a regular schedule?
Yes, and that is where it works best. Put it on a dedicated agreement so the trucks are genuinely reserved for it rather than available when nothing else is booked.
Where to go next
Dry van
Dry van capacity on our scheduled lanes to Texas and the Upper Midwest, and on dedicated shuttles around BMW Spartanburg, Michelin and Inland Port Greer.
Read onDedicated lanes
Put Prime Trans on a lane: committed trucks, backup capacity, a 12-month rate with a fuel-surcharge table, and quarterly reviews.
Read onManufacturers
Dedicated van and step-deck shuttles for the BMW supplier park, Tier-1 plants, tire and DC lanes, and Inland Port Greer.
Read on3PLs & brokers
Prime Trans as a carrier partner for 3PLs and brokers: onboarding paperwork, the registrations we hold, how we handle tracking and check calls, and what we will and will not accept.
Read onA unit on the lot costs you every day it sits there.
Tell us the origin, destination, units per week and first pickup date. A written quote comes back the same business day.