Quebec fleet saving $54,000 a month with trailer tails

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MONTREAL, Que. — Taking yet another step to reduce fuel consumption, Montreal-based Groupe Trans-West has installed trailer tails on the 120 trailers it uses for US-bound trips. The carrier values the monthly fuel savings at $54,000.

“You cannot really calculate the savings in percentages, because different tractors have different fuel consumption. In our tests, the best calculation was that for every 1,000 miles running you will save six to eight US gallons of fuel,” says Pierre Savard, director of training, Trans-West.

The carrier logs 90% of its miles in the US, where trailer tails are permitted. If Canadian regulations change to permit their use north of the border, fuel savings for Trans-West could increase another 10%.

(The company initially tried extending the tails in Canada as well as in the US but was warned against the practice by enforcement officers. “We are asking our drivers now to close the tails in Canada,” Savard says).

Trans-West began trials in May 2011 with 10 units it purchased from Hayward Calif.-based ATDynamics, under the product name TrailerTail. It added 50 more units in 2012 and then went into installation overdrive to equip all of its US-bound trailers with TrailerTails.

The units cost $2,000 each. Look for a full report on Trans-West’s experience with trailer tails in the March issue of Truck News.

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Truck News is Canada's leading trucking newspaper - news and information for trucking companies, owner/operators, truck drivers and logistics professionals working in the Canadian trucking industry.


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  • This “looks” like it folds flat againt the back of the trailer cargo doors? Does it fold to the sides of trailer to open the doors? May save $$ but it’s just another thing to add to driver or O/O tasks without pay!!

  • Just did the math, based on their stated numbers, $6.00 average a Quebec based Imp. gallon where fuel is horribly expensive and 6 gallons per 1000 miles. EVERY trailer would have to run in excess of 12000 miles a month to achieve their numbers. Interested to know just how they might do that….however, I do believe the concept works, maybe just not quite that well…

  • 54000 per month??!!!!

    I don’t believe that the trailer tails can provide that savings. Maybe all the low-resisitance tires, trailer skirts and the tail together may provide that number but it is still a very high number to believe.

    If that was the case all the big carriers everywhere would have them installed immediately.