₦airaland Forum

my ppl are too dubious to see the light and gave upper hands to the app that want to kill them just like they support leaders that make masters holders "active drivers" and their wives low key hookup professionals.

It's a shame indeed.

Gentlelife50:
Okay you wanted him to do 20 trips to make that amount

You want to make money but not ready for what it takes, your body go collect and car sef go collect.
No dey whine yourself

DZTech:
What Expenses Are Encountered By Commercial Interstate Drivers?

Hi all,
I plan to start a transportation business, but I need advice on the 'lay of the land'.
I need a list of expenses encountered on commercial interstate trips, as in what would you normally spend money on, apart from fuel and tolls?
Especially in these harsh times? 🙇🏾‍♂️

What are the levies involved if using a park/garage or picking up passengers along the way?
Routes- Lagos-Abuja, Lagos-Southeast
Also, what essential checks/maintenance tasks are needed before AND after reach trip?

I look forward to your kind response, especially from our seasoned drivers, operators and fleet managers. 🙏🏻
God bless 🇳🇬

Conner44:
Interstate transportation business is nice but you need to be prepared to do everything necessary to make your vehicle and passengers secure and safe at every point on each trip.

The vehicle you choose to use also depends on the distance you wish to cover. Some vehicles are better suited for short inter-city trips like from Lagos to benin or Ibadan (Toyota Previa, Mazda MPV etc) and others required for longer hauls (Sienna, Hiace etc). The basic mode of the business is very similar no matter the distances so far as it’s interstate travel.

First things first, your vehicle and its particulars/documentation has to be updated and complete no matter what. If you plan to have just one vehicle in the business which you will be managing yourself (and can be flexible enough to switch the use of the vehicle from business to personal at any time) you can settle for regular blue vehicle license plates but if you know you want to have one or more vehicles and use them strictly for business you’d best get the red commercial license plates. Both have their advantages or disadvantages on the highway.

Wether you’re using blue or red plates your vehicle licenses should always be updated, hackney permits intact, various state ‘park & garage’ emblems fully paid for and the driver must possess a valid license. As a highway driver your ‘legalized’ enemies on the roads are the FRSC officials, VIO inspectors and various state government agberos.

The road safety and Vio guys mostly look out for the same things to penalize you as a highway driver. Apart from checking all your vehicles documentation and their validity (they don’t care for emblems) they will also look out for your passenger/cargo manifest. If you are caught hauling human or cargo without a manifest it is a very bad situation. Try to print receipts and manifests for your passengers and cargos to be recorded and signed then a copy given to the driver to hold on him per trip. The other material things they check are your regular emergency apparatus, tyre condition and your rearward visibility (in case you’re hauling much cargo, never allow the height of the stacked goods reach that of your rear view mirror to block your view from seeing behind your vehicle) , it is also a nice offence they use in collecting money from a carefree/greedy driver. Don’t drive with a cracked windshield. If you are using a blue private plate number they can also ask you for some ‘Roja’ since you’re not supposed to be using your vehicle commercially, in this case just squeeze anything into their hands and continue your journey. It usually comes up after they have checked you and seen all your paperwork and vehicles condition is in order.

For the various individual state agberos (council men), those ones are a bit trickier to handle because they are not usually ‘gentlemanly’ in their own doings (in fact, the only state I know that their own council members ball is in cross river state. Those ones drive air conditioned flashy sedans on their rounds and dress very formally that you won’t even believe they are agberos ) theses guys can ‘cramp’ you at anywhere so far you have a red commercial plate number and are hauling on any journey. How to escape their own wahala is simply to have their states full emblems and these emblems are to be renewed annually. If you are caught picking up, dropping off passengers/cargo or even just sitting still and buying fuel at a filling station they can corner you and request you show them your emblems. If you don’t have it or it’s expired you can have your vehicle impounded and pay a hefty fine that would cost approximately what their emblem does. These guys are usually not in uniform so it’s hard to point them out on the roads. They can come out of nowhere and they could be looking like ‘hemp craving’ unkept looking youth or gentlemanly depending on the state you encounter them. Different states have different emblems both in design and prices (which can cost as low as N25k and as high as N40k in some states) The major states where they carry this their emblem matter on their heads well-well to generate revenue that I’m aware of down south are Lagos, Oyo, Edo, Delta, Anambra, Abia, Cross-River and Rivers states. If you’re serious in your highway business and don’t need problems you should purchase emblems for all these states depending on the routes you choose to ply. All states have their respective emblems but some don’t take their drive for it as seriously as others. Different states also have their own versions of LASTMA as we know them here in Lagos. If you park wrongly or commit blunders on their roads and you happen to have a red commercial number plate they will pursue you with all their might and catch you. Their own fees too can cut your heart out so be mindful of where you drop or pick passengers on your routes. If you have a red number plate you will be forced to pay tolls to pass some roads, like here in Lagos if you’re entering a big market like tradefair you must pay a gate fee wether you are hauling or empty so keep that in mind.

The police and army checkpoints are always on the roads. As for the police they are not usually an issue except you’re hauling contraband. Are you carrying bales of used clothes? Foreign rice? Etc . . . You will part with at least N500 per item that they ‘see’ in your boot during their stop and search operations. Apart from hauling contraband and having your vehicle’s particulars in order they will beg for ‘roja’ and decide to waste you and your passengers time if you deny them or play wise. They can tell your passengers to disembark and open their luggage one by one to waste your time and rile you all up. Sometimes they find unlabeled medication and interesting gadgets in passengers bags that can turn a stand-off into something else so it’s better you ‘roja’ on time if necessary. The army on the other hand don’t have any problems. If you know you’re hauling cargo and passing through their checkpoints just hold their N200 as your gate fee or their boys will cause issues for you and if you shine eyes for them too much they will call their oga aowa sitting in the shade to come and discipline you properly. So hauling cargo? Passing army checkpoints? Pay them their N200 jejely and go your way. The police and army will actually give you change if you don’t have small cash unlike road safety and vio guys. Those ones charge the highest as their ‘Bleep-up’ fee on the highways and you won’t be able to leverage well because they can actually impound your vehicle.

Then when it comes to your vehicle itself, highway driving is usually easier on your vehicles mechanical systems. Your main worry should be its cosmetic appearance both in and out. Before any trip guage your fluids and tyres. It is normal to change your engine oil after every 5th trip (go and come is calculated as a trip) and your gearbox/axle fluids should be replaced when due. The main wear and tear item on highway maintenance is your tyres. They degrade rapidly and a leave you stranded if you don’t keep a keep eye on their condition everyday. A useful rule is to always strive to buy commercial grade tyres and never use tubes no matter what (you can keep one in your boot just incase) and also stay away from winter graded tyres as they wear out faster while being much noisier on the roads. Regular replacement parts are your shocks, tie rods and bushings so try to buy oem replacements whenever you can for longevity. Your oxygen sensors and engine thermostat should be in order even if your fans are running directly from battery to help conserve fuel. Using air conditioning on highway journeys don’t use much extra fuel, if you do a journey of 500 kilometers with N35k fuel then with steady aircon you will do the same journey with N36k highest so don’t be hesitant to use it for yourself or your passengers comfort.

When it comes to loading and offloading, it is a generally good idea to have a sound vehicle and then register it with a company having a well known network of parks/pits (Tracas, Christian Praise, Ben flo etc) because you would just need to locate their parks at any city you get to and then take your turn to wait for your turn to ‘pit’ and load. Sometimes it can take days or even weeks depending on the season. In these type of companies you pay a registration fee for yourself and vehicle then you pay a small fraction of your seat ticketing fee to them every time you load. You would be mandated to brand your vehicle to reflect their company and also adhere to their own policies. Their advantage is that they are more networked and spread in many states so no matter where you decide to travel to you will always find an office where you will be welcomed to park and load.

On the other hand, if you’re using your own vehicle for highway haulage and you don’t wish to join with any company you can make acquaintances with some independent pit management in parks. They will give you a space/turn to pit your vehicle and load passengers from their space. You will usually not need to register formally with them. All they will require mostly is the complete ticket money for one seat (a standard fee for using their pit) , pay for the boys that shadow passengers for you (usually N500 per head) and you will pay the union/park loading fee before you leave on the trip. Remember these payments can vary depending on familiarity, location and negotiation. If you didn’t have a fully loaded vehicle and still want to proceed with your trip you will still have to pay the full price, some people decide to offload their passengers and reschedule their trip if they see another driver willing to awitch places on the que. The only people that like to embark on trips with few passengers are guys driving company vehicles (GUO, Young shall grow etc) because they can pick passengers along the way and pocket the extra cash for themselves. Private/independent divers don’t have that luxury because you pay in full for any trip you decide to embark on even if it’s just only 3 passengers you see.

Picking passengers along the way is not usually profitable all the time except seasonally and it will depend squarely on what side of the trip you are taking off from. Like for example from the first week in December you can pick passengers from Lagos toll gate along ijebu-ode going to benin/delta/east for as much as N10-N13k per head and settle any loaders you see at the bus stops the price for a seat. But if you were returning from the east at that same moment you will pick passengers from Onitsha-asaba toll gates coming to the west for as little as N5k on some good days, some times you can even see grown people pricing you N3k to carry them from delta to Lagos with full morale so picking passengers along the road is something not very profitable depending on the season and divide you are on.

I think I have covered all your inquiries. Sorry for the long post guys, there’s no thread for trailer or highway drivers on nairaland yet so near with my Cho-Cho-Cho this evening

Josephase:
I want to do only one trip and net this much.

mejai:
Conner44........ U win!! What a writeup.

Gentlelife50:
I tried reading but got tired along the way, abeg someone should summarize it for us.
What the Guy wrote there is terms and conditions.
I mean who reads that?

Blackbishop:
See now you don curse ya sef with your write up. Go skool you say NO. Get sense you still talk NO, ok proof read your write you still refuse. Imagine your own write na yourself you Dey curse.

Feli my guy pause now. No follow person wey no follow you fight drag now

mejai:
Conner44........ U win!! What a writeup.

Raw2:
.

Mon - 45,600
Tue - 40,100
Wed - 40,800
Thurs - 41,600
Fri - 45,200


Offlines 12,400

Total 225,700 commission 10% I'm yet to drive today and tomorrow..

Conner44:
If you want to pinpoint your vehicles fuel consumption issue without spending more than you have to. You need to narrow down your problem.

First, do your radiator fans start running with battery power once the ignition key is turned without the engine started? Is your engine still having its thermostat intact? ,while driving look at your instrument cluster. Do you see your check engine light on? (1st pic below)

If your check engine light is on then you will need to buy a cheap Bluetooth scanner to be able to read the problem codes out of your vehicles brainbox. (2nd Pic below)

After getting the current problem codes off of your vehicle you can then go to the car-talk section on nairaland and post on the general vehicle maintenance thread for a knowledgeable person to interpret the codes and tell you where and where the issue is that is affecting your vehicle right now.

See the thread to post the codes below

https://www.nairaland.com/1788778/maintenance-tips-cars/476

Or alternatively you can tell your mechanic to introduce you to an auto electrician he knows that has a car scanner so you can negotiate and pay him to use his own scanner and read out any stored codes for you.

Once you know where the problem is you can then easily direct your mechanic on ‘where and where’ to look in order to solve your vehicles issues once and for all.

Good luck

BAZ001:
You self like fight ooh..
u say inDriver, drivers - CheerfulGiver na slave ?
Bolt - pearl1910 na hire killer
Dt means we have been brainwashed on dis thread cos CheerfulGiver has made all of us feel inDriver is better than bolt-pearl.
For u to mention Uber 99% of us reading dis will think u need to join d telegram group or don’t know what you talking about.

Howdy boss! I'm seeking for a car to drive on rentals. Kindly contact me if you know anyone who has a vehicle.

izzou:
[color=royalblue]If you are driving it yourself, then you may succeed

If you want to give it out on rentals, you may cry hot tears.

Local government papers is as important as Vehicle papers. Always put your ears on the ground. They fit release new one this week, and if you no get am, dem go chop you

As a guy with just one Sienna, you will be indirectly working for Agberos. Lagos to Warri park in Iyana Ipaja, agbero dey collect pass 12k on dues for one Sienna per trip. Do the maths.

Lastly, business is dull. It would take a miracle to do 3 trips in a week (Park to Park). People no dey travel like that.

I wish you God's speed[/color]

Raw2:
Update

Saturday - 31,500
Sunday - 51,200

Grandtotal - 308,400

Net income - 277,560

Josephase:
No vex bros.. you did 90 trips on bolt in a week? 4days Nna men!!!!

Pearl1910:
I make 25 - 35k Net of fuel and commission a day. So any driver that comes to tell me horse dung should just be ready to drop the keys.
My rentals remains fixed fuel hike or not. If u no do again come drop key.

As for you saying "Ehailing is dead","u r just barely making your fuel money back" blablabla... I sympathize with u, my advise is drop the car and look for something else to do. No stress yourself, No stress your partner, No stress us for this thread.
They say if u no get evidence/proof, u go explain tire. So na only evidence I go dey post now to motivate people that really want to do the business.
Below is my activity for just 4 days. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Not including offlines and few Indrive trips.
I used 15k fuel daily so subract 60k from the Net, and that leaves me with 145k in 4days.
Bolt is now 20%, I don't know if Bolt has hidden charges but all the money I made is accounted for, either in cash, money in bank or expended. Funny how nobody has said anything about this reduction, but if they increased it by a fraction of a percentage guys will notice it and announce that bolt is now charging 26.8%

If I was on d road today, I will still make minimum 30k profit. Nothing except God can stop that from happening.
If I can do it, u can do it too.

Conner44:
Interstate transportation business is nice but you need to be prepared to do everything necessary to make your vehicle and passengers secure and safe at every point on each trip.

The vehicle you choose to use also depends on the distance you wish to cover. Some vehicles are better suited for short inter-city trips like from Lagos to benin or Ibadan (Toyota Previa, Mazda MPV etc) and others required for longer hauls (Sienna, Hiace etc). The basic mode of the business is very similar no matter the distances so far as it’s interstate travel.

First things first, your vehicle and its particulars/documentation has to be updated and complete no matter what. If you plan to have just one vehicle in the business which you will be managing yourself (and can be flexible enough to switch the use of the vehicle from business to personal at any time) you can settle for regular blue vehicle license plates but if you know you want to have one or more vehicles and use them strictly for business you’d best get the red commercial license plates. Both have their advantages or disadvantages on the highway.

Wether you’re using blue or red plates your vehicle licenses should always be updated, hackney permits intact, various state ‘park & garage’ emblems fully paid for and the driver must possess a valid license. As a highway driver your ‘legalized’ enemies on the roads are the FRSC officials, VIO inspectors and various state government agberos.

The road safety and Vio guys mostly look out for the same things to penalize you as a highway driver. Apart from checking all your vehicles documentation and their validity (they don’t care for emblems) they will also look out for your passenger/cargo manifest. If you are caught hauling human or cargo without a manifest it is a very bad situation. Try to print receipts and manifests for your passengers and cargos to be recorded and signed then a copy given to the driver to hold on him per trip. The other material things they check are your regular emergency apparatus, tyre condition and your rearward visibility (in case you’re hauling much cargo, never allow the height of the stacked goods reach that of your rear view mirror to block your view from seeing behind your vehicle) , it is also a nice offence they use in collecting money from a carefree/greedy driver. Don’t drive with a cracked windshield. If you are using a blue private plate number they can also ask you for some ‘Roja’ since you’re not supposed to be using your vehicle commercially, in this case just squeeze anything into their hands and continue your journey. It usually comes up after they have checked you and seen all your paperwork and vehicles condition is in order.

For the various individual state agberos (council men), those ones are a bit trickier to handle because they are not usually ‘gentlemanly’ in their own doings (in fact, the only state I know that their own council members ball is in cross river state. Those ones drive air conditioned flashy sedans on their rounds and dress very formally that you won’t even believe they are agberos ) theses guys can ‘cramp’ you at anywhere so far you have a red commercial plate number and are hauling on any journey. How to escape their own wahala is simply to have their states full emblems and these emblems are to be renewed annually. If you are caught picking up, dropping off passengers/cargo or even just sitting still and buying fuel at a filling station they can corner you and request you show them your emblems. If you don’t have it or it’s expired you can have your vehicle impounded and pay a hefty fine that would cost approximately what their emblem does. These guys are usually not in uniform so it’s hard to point them out on the roads. They can come out of nowhere and they could be looking like ‘hemp craving’ unkept looking youth or gentlemanly depending on the state you encounter them. Different states have different emblems both in design and prices (which can cost as low as N25k and as high as N40k in some states) The major states where they carry this their emblem matter on their heads well-well to generate revenue that I’m aware of down south are Lagos, Oyo, Edo, Delta, Anambra, Abia, Cross-River and Rivers states. If you’re serious in your highway business and don’t need problems you should purchase emblems for all these states depending on the routes you choose to ply. All states have their respective emblems but some don’t take their drive for it as seriously as others. Different states also have their own versions of LASTMA as we know them here in Lagos. If you park wrongly or commit blunders on their roads and you happen to have a red commercial number plate they will pursue you with all their might and catch you. Their own fees too can cut your heart out so be mindful of where you drop or pick passengers on your routes. If you have a red number plate you will be forced to pay tolls to pass some roads, like here in Lagos if you’re entering a big market like tradefair you must pay a gate fee wether you are hauling or empty so keep that in mind.

The police and army checkpoints are always on the roads. As for the police they are not usually an issue except you’re hauling contraband. Are you carrying bales of used clothes? Foreign rice? Etc . . . You will part with at least N500 per item that they ‘see’ in your boot during their stop and search operations. Apart from hauling contraband and having your vehicle’s particulars in order they will beg for ‘roja’ and decide to waste you and your passengers time if you deny them or play wise. They can tell your passengers to disembark and open their luggage one by one to waste your time and rile you all up. Sometimes they find unlabeled medication and interesting gadgets in passengers bags that can turn a stand-off into something else so it’s better you ‘roja’ on time if necessary. The army on the other hand don’t have any problems. If you know you’re hauling cargo and passing through their checkpoints just hold their N200 as your gate fee or their boys will cause issues for you and if you shine eyes for them too much they will call their oga aowa sitting in the shade to come and discipline you properly. So hauling cargo? Passing army checkpoints? Pay them their N200 jejely and go your way. The police and army will actually give you change if you don’t have small cash unlike road safety and vio guys. Those ones charge the highest as their ‘Bleep-up’ fee on the highways and you won’t be able to leverage well because they can actually impound your vehicle.

Then when it comes to your vehicle itself, highway driving is usually easier on your vehicles mechanical systems. Your main worry should be its cosmetic appearance both in and out. Before any trip guage your fluids and tyres. It is normal to change your engine oil after every 5th trip (go and come is calculated as a trip) and your gearbox/axle fluids should be replaced when due. The main wear and tear item on highway maintenance is your tyres. They degrade rapidly and a leave you stranded if you don’t keep a keep eye on their condition everyday. A useful rule is to always strive to buy commercial grade tyres and never use tubes no matter what (you can keep one in your boot just incase) and also stay away from winter graded tyres as they wear out faster while being much noisier on the roads. Regular replacement parts are your shocks, tie rods and bushings so try to buy oem replacements whenever you can for longevity. Your oxygen sensors and engine thermostat should be in order even if your fans are running directly from battery to help conserve fuel. Using air conditioning on highway journeys don’t use much extra fuel, if you do a journey of 500 kilometers with N35k fuel then with steady aircon you will do the same journey with N36k highest so don’t be hesitant to use it for yourself or your passengers comfort.

When it comes to loading and offloading, it is a generally good idea to have a sound vehicle and then register it with a company having a well known network of parks/pits (Tracas, Christian Praise, Ben flo etc) because you would just need to locate their parks at any city you get to and then take your turn to wait for your turn to ‘pit’ and load. Sometimes it can take days or even weeks depending on the season. In these type of companies you pay a registration fee for yourself and vehicle then you pay a small fraction of your seat ticketing fee to them every time you load. You would be mandated to brand your vehicle to reflect their company and also adhere to their own policies. Their advantage is that they are more networked and spread in many states so no matter where you decide to travel to you will always find an office where you will be welcomed to park and load.

On the other hand, if you’re using your own vehicle for highway haulage and you don’t wish to join with any company you can make acquaintances with some independent pit management in parks. They will give you a space/turn to pit your vehicle and load passengers from their space. You will usually not need to register formally with them. All they will require mostly is the complete ticket money for one seat (a standard fee for using their pit) , pay for the boys that shadow passengers for you (usually N500 per head) and you will pay the union/park loading fee before you leave on the trip. Remember these payments can vary depending on familiarity, location and negotiation. If you didn’t have a fully loaded vehicle and still want to proceed with your trip you will still have to pay the full price, some people decide to offload their passengers and reschedule their trip if they see another driver willing to awitch places on the que. The only people that like to embark on trips with few passengers are guys driving company vehicles (GUO, Young shall grow etc) because they can pick passengers along the way and pocket the extra cash for themselves. Private/independent divers don’t have that luxury because you pay in full for any trip you decide to embark on even if it’s just only 3 passengers you see.

Picking passengers along the way is not usually profitable all the time except seasonally and it will depend squarely on what side of the trip you are taking off from. Like for example from the first week in December you can pick passengers from Lagos toll gate along ijebu-ode going to benin/delta/east for as much as N10-N13k per head and settle any loaders you see at the bus stops the price for a seat. But if you were returning from the east at that same moment you will pick passengers from Onitsha-asaba toll gates coming to the west for as little as N5k on some good days, some times you can even see grown people pricing you N3k to carry them from delta to Lagos with full morale so picking passengers along the road is something not very profitable depending on the season and divide you are on.

I think I have covered all your inquiries. Sorry for the long post guys, there’s no thread for trailer or highway drivers on nairaland yet so near with my Cho-Cho-Cho this evening

Conner44:
Chai! donbrowser come and see what your agbado movement has caused a member to confess on this thread oh

Just imagine the wicked ‘shade’ Kai!

It is well.

donbrowser:
Anybody that's driving Uber with a masters should blame himself or his village people and not the government because there are jobs in Nigeria for skillful people and not masters holders. I currently work with 2 Nigerian firms as a digital marketer and I don't have a masters. I don't wait for the government to provide for me, you don't need a masters degree, you need skills.

donbrowser:
Anybody that's driving Uber with a masters should blame himself or his village people and not the government because there are jobs in Nigeria for skillful people and not masters holders. I currently work with 2 Nigerian firms as a digital marketer and I don't have a masters. I don't wait for the government to provide for me, you don't need a masters degree, you need skills.

izzou:
[color=royalblue]So, we should scrap the Masters program from our curriculum?

A person with a Masters in Psychology does not have skills, right?[/color]

izzou:
[color=royalblue]So, we should scrap the Masters program from our curriculum?

A person with a Masters in Psychology does not have skills, right? [/color]

donbrowser:
Let me tell you a short story. When I was studying in school, I had a friend that I used to advice about getting an employable skill instead of masters, she studied guidance and counseling (educational psychology) while I studied computer science. I studied a course that gives a wide range of opportunities to become a software developer, database manager, graphics designer, website developer application software developer etc. I decided to settle for digital marketing because I funded the major part of my education myself.

Today she's stuck with her masters in a school teaching kids because she doesn't have skills but certificates but I'm here with 2 jobs and lots of side hustles without a masters.

I return all glory to God.
Everything is not about bad government, if you open jobs portal today, there will be vacancies there but the question is can you do the job?

Dangote recently employed about 11,000 youths from India, do you know why?

Good morning to you

Conner44:
I understand what you’re saying perfectly bro.

It’s just that anytime an unfortunate member comes on here to ‘vent’ his misfortunes against the present government I will always have this sudden urge to mention you to come and take scores while doing your possible best to put him/her straight (without much baba-blu-bula-ba

I hope the unfortunate member reads this your comment and has a sincere reflection of certain aspects of his/her life presently. Have a nice day

fk001:
That corner guy wetin you use type that "terms and condition"

E be like you dey use ChatGP

donbrowser:
Feel free, I voted for Tinubu because he was the best amond the candidates, any day he messes up, I will join you to protest but for now. He's on track

izzou:
[color=royalblue]So Educational Psychology is not employable?

Then the course should be scrapped then. Let only tech skills be taught in schools.

And if you think Dangote employed 11,000 Indians because he could not find 11,000 employable Nigerians, then i have Lekki-Ikoyi link bridge to see to you at a discounted rate[/color]