MOTOR TRANSPORTATION FOR RURAL DISTRICTS 9 
SCHEDULE WHICH SHOULD BE MAINTAINED. 
Number and capacity of trucks which probably would be needed. 
When would trucks leave terminals to best serve the territory? 
Probable running time over the route. 
How many stops should be made and where? 
Proposep MrEtHops OF COLLECTING AND DELIVERING. 
At how many and at what points would loads be collected? 
How would transportation charges probably be collected? 
What delivery should be effected both at city and country points? 
LocaL INTEREST IN THE ENTERPRISE. 
What persons or concerns are most interested? Why? 
Could private capital be induced to contribute toward an experimental 
service? — 
PERMANENCE OF PROPOSED ROUTE. 
Will territory support the proposed route when rail service is normal? 
Is there any reason why the route should not be permanently profitable? 
It is manifestly impossible completely to outline an ideal investiga- 
tion which would be satisfactory for all districts. It 1s necessary to 
correlate the preliminary canvass with local conditions. The items 
enumerated in the above outline, however, may offer some suggestions 
which will be helpful to those interested in the establishment of rural 
motor transportation routes. 
ADVANCE ESTIMATE OF OPERATING COSTS. 
One of the first questions to arise in the mind of the prospective 
motor truck operator is: “What will it cost to operate a truck?” Loads 
will be arranged, rates will be established, the route will be planned 
and the truck purchased on the basis of this estimated cost. If the 
business is to be intelligently planned, it is essential that some idea be 
secured in advance as to prospective operating costs. The importance 
of having an idea of these costs in advance can not be over-empha- 
sized. 
There are several sources of information which may be helpful to 
the man contemplating the purchase of a motor truck. Previous 
personal experience of the operator is exceedingly valuable. Experi- 
ences of other operators may often be secured for the asking. Motor 
truck manufacturers will be glad to furnish prospective purchasers 
with such information of this nature as may be available. Data 
secured from truck manufacturers very often do not indicate the con- 
ditions under which the figures were secured. Information thus 
offered is usually an honest attempt to aid buyers but almost invari- 
_ ably there is too much generalization to make such figures a very 
valuable basis of estimation. Many cost statements issued by truck 
companies do not take into consideration the varying classes of high- 
ways over which trucks run, variations in the load, total monthly or 
yearly mileage and other important factors. There is a tendency to 
submit data secured under unusual or ideal circumstances and thus 
