More than 200 hauliers signed up to Triple A Transport's return loads website in the first week of its relaunch as a subscription-based service. Established in 2001 as a free-to-use site for customers to advertise loads, and for hauliers looking for backloads, Returnloads.net grew quickly, reaching 1,000 regular users, with 500-600 loads per day posted on the site.
In order to bolster the service, Triple A MD Richard Newbold brought in a web-design team six months ago to make the site
more efficient. Unveiled on 1 May, the key change to the site is an automatic email alert sent to hauliers when a load becomes available in their area. With 211 registered subscribers signing up during the first week of the relaunch, Newbold anticipates attracting 500 members within the next couple of months and more than 1,000 by Christmas.
"A lot of other exchange sites require a large amount of information to be inputted and are quite complicated, whereas ours is very straightforward to use," says Newbold. Over the next few months more features will be added to the site and a European return loads service will also be launched.
Triple A is currently offering hauliers a free two-month trial of the service, after which it will cost £29.95 per month. Subscribers are free to cancel their subscription at any time without incurring a charge.
Acumen Distribution has launched a backloads website aimed at the recycling/waste sector. Called AcuFreight, only approved
hauliers holding a waste licence will have access to the site. No fee is charged for hauliers, just a small administration fee for customers.
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