Certified Supply Chain Professional (CSCP) Practice Exam

When payloads are partially full, how are transportation costs affected?

1. They decrease

2. They increase

3. They remain unchanged

4. They are difficult to determine

The correct answer is: They increase

When payloads are partially full, transportation costs typically increase due to several key factors associated with inefficiency in resource utilization. When a vehicle or carrier is not filled to capacity, the fixed costs of transportation—such as fuel, maintenance, and driver wages—are spread over a smaller amount of goods. This results in higher per-unit costs for the cargo being transported. Additionally, partially loaded vehicles can lead to the need for more trips to transport the same total volume of goods, further inflating costs. The increased frequency of trips and the necessity to underutilize resources contribute to an overall rise in the total expenditure of transportation, which makes it less efficient and more costly. In contrast, when vehicles operate at or near capacity, these fixed costs are distributed across more units, leading to a decrease in costs per unit transported. Therefore, understanding the dynamics of load factors is crucial for optimizing supply chain costs and enhancing overall efficiency.