What it does
A rate confirmation tells you what a load pays. It doesn't tell you what's left once you count the empty miles to the pickup, the diesel, the tolls and the cost of running your truck. The load check in Fort Route, "Is this load worth it?", works that out before you commit.
You get four numbers: profit on the load, dollars per mile, dollars per hour and HOS days. Fort Route keeps your last 12 checks, so you can set the load in front of you against earlier offers.
How the numbers are built
Open the Money tab when you're parked and start a load check. Enter the pickup, the delivery and what the load pays. Fort Route then builds the estimate in this order:
- It truck-routes the trip from pickup to delivery, using the same truck-safe routing as your navigation.
- It adds the empty miles from where you are now to the pickup.
- It prices diesel at the EIA weekly on-highway average along the route.
- It adds tolls when they can be priced for the route.
- It applies your per-mile costs. The default is $1.854 per mile, the 2026 average from ATRI (the American Transportation Research Institute), and you can change it.
The result shows profit, dollars per mile, dollars per hour and HOS days. HOS days tell you how many days the load takes under hours-of-service limits, which matters when your 70-hour clock is getting short.
Make the costs yours
The ATRI default is a sensible starting point, but your truck isn't an average truck. If you know your own cost per mile from your books (truck payment, insurance, maintenance and the rest), enter it once in place of the default. Every check after that reflects your operation instead of the industry's.
If you plan your fuel stops with Fort Route, the fuel plan starts from the same EIA averages and adds prices drivers report.
What the estimate can't know
The load check is an estimate built from averages and the numbers you give it. A few things it can't see:
- Diesel is a weekly regional average, not the price at the pump you'll use. Your real fuel cost depends on where you buy and any discount you get.
- When tolls can't be priced for the route, they aren't in the result. Check the route options, which still show the tolled roads.
- HOS days are a planning estimate. Fort Route is a planning aid; your ELD record is the legal record of your hours. The hours-of-service planner shows the full break and reset plan.
- Detention, lumper fees and waiting at the dock aren't known in advance, so they aren't counted.
Fort Route doesn't find or book loads. It checks the ones you're offered, so you can say yes or no with numbers in hand.
Frequently asked questions
Does the load check count the miles to the pickup?
Yes, Fort Route adds the empty miles from your current location to the pickup. Those miles carry diesel and operating costs too, so leaving them out would make a load look better than it is.
Where does the diesel price come from?
Diesel is priced at the EIA weekly on-highway average along your route. The U.S. Energy Information Administration publishes these averages every Monday by region. Your actual price at the pump can be higher or lower.
Can I change the cost per mile?
Yes, the per-mile cost is a setting you can edit. It starts at $1.854 per mile, the ATRI 2026 average, and your own figure from your books gives a truer result.
Are tolls included?
Tolls are included when Fort Route can price them for your route. When it can't, the result leaves them out, so check the tolled roads shown on the route before you accept a load that runs on a turnpike.
How many checks does Fort Route keep?
Fort Route keeps your last 12 load checks. That lets you compare recent offers before you decide.