Freight Transportation in Vans Based on Minibuses

Minibuses, thanks to their maneuverability in complex urban conditions and sufficiently large useful volume, have long and firmly gained popularity among consumers. The transport, originally created as a route taxi, is increasingly and more widely used for cargo transportation. Let's find out what cargo vans based on minibuses are designed for and how they are used.

Configuration and Characteristics of Cargo Vans-Minibuses

Initially, all minibuses were created on the basis of serial cargo or passenger cars using their chassis, aggregates, and spare parts. Vans and their predecessors share common chassis and practically all spare parts.

However, not all minibuses were created on the basis of vehicles with a load-bearing body. Some minibuses, or as they are commonly called, vans, were built on the basis of SUVs or small trucks with a frame structure. When trucks began to be created on the basis of vans, such models gained a certain advantage. If the body of the van is load-bearing, all the designer can do is separate one or two rows of front seats from the cargo compartment with a partition. If the van is framed, then in addition to such a transformation, a full-fledged cabin can be formed from the front part of the vehicle, and a body or van of any type and purpose can be placed on the free section of the frame. This is the path that designers took when creating trucks based on framed minibuses.

Vans of various types are installed on such vans:

• Tarpaulin.
• All-metal.
• Isothermal.
• Other types.

For urban conditions, highway trucks are poorly adapted. Due to their large length, they have difficulty maneuvering in dense traffic. Due to their large height, width, and turning radius, highway trucks can hardly maneuver in the limited space of yards. This often simply prevents them from approaching unloading points at small retail outlets.

All these shortcomings are absent in vans created on the basis of vans. Considering that small retail outlets do not require large batches of goods, van-vans for supplying small shops or cafes and restaurants are practically the ideal transport.

Depending on the model and type of van, trucks based on minibuses have a carrying capacity of 1 to 3 tons. The useful volume of the cargo van ranges from 8 to 17 cubic meters.

When Not to Use Van-Vans for Cargo Transportation

If in urban conditions, for supplying from nearby bases, small van-vans are practically ideal, then their use for long-distance transportation is questionable. The reason is that, due to their small useful volume and carrying capacity, the unit cost of transportation (the cost of transporting one kilogram of cargo) on such vehicles is higher than on highway trucks.

If you need to send a small batch of goods, it is better to send it on a large truck as part of a groupage cargo. The use of van-vans for long-distance transportation can only be justified when it is necessary to urgently deliver a batch of expensive goods. In this case, the transportation cost will constitute a negligible part of the price of the unit of goods.