MOTOR TRANSPORTATION FOR RURAL DISTRICTS 1p 
a basis is more nearly accurate than an estimation of costs on a mileage 
basis where no consideration is given to the load. It is obvious that 
the truck operating with no load, costs Jess per mile for operation than 
one that is loaded. The wise operator will keep this basis well in mind 
in considering his costs of doing business. 
Few motor truck owners foresee all of the cost items which will 
arise under actual operating conditions. Still fewer farmers, who 
have embarked in the motor trucking industry either as an individual 
enterprise or as part of a community effort, have a clear understand- 
ing of what factors must be considered in estimating costs of motor 
truck operation. Attention will be directed, therefore, to some of the 
more important items of cost. No attempt has been made to arrange 
these items in order of importance. 
GASOLINE, OIL AND GREASE. 
The costs of gasoline, oil and grease represent the first expense items 
which naturally occur to the mind of the prospective operator. The 
customary error made in considering them is shown in a tendency to 
emphasize unduly this character of expense. The cost of gasoline, oil 
and grease, of course, is dependent directly upon local prices. In some 
districts prices for these supplies are invariably higher than in other 
districts, and the prospective operator will naturally investigate his 
local market. The cost of these supplies is of course heavier when 
the motor truck is loaded and is one of the variable items of expense 
in motor truck operation which can be estimated with considerable 
accuracy. Most operators have a fair idea of the consumption of 
gasoline, oil, and grease by their own trucks. Operators who have 
had some experience in truck operation will find little difficulty in 
arriving at a reasonably close estimate of these costs. The data col- 
lected by the Bureau of Markets show a very wide range in the gasoline 
mileage for trucks of different sizes under varying conditions. A 
study of about 60 typical motor routes showed a mileage of from 
5 miles to 9 miles per gallon of gasoline for two-ton trucks, 4 miles to 
6 miles for three-ton trucks, and 3 miles to 5 miles for five-ton 
trucks. These figures are not conclusive but will serve to indicate a 
range which was found under actual operating conditions. 
DRIVERS’ WAGES. 
The wages paid drivers vary in different sections of the country and 
for trucks of different sizes. In districts where the cost of labor is 
high, operators have found it necessary to pay relatively high wages 
for drivers. Information gathered by the Bureau of Markets on a 
number of routes indicates a daily wage range of from $2.75 to $7.50. 
The higher wages were paid for expert drivers of heavy motor trucks 
in industrial regions where the general scale of wages was high. Drivers 
of small trucks in general farming districts were content with the 
