How Aggregates Are Transported
Aggregates are transported to the point of
use. The preferred method of transportation depends on a wide variety of factors,
including delivery and schedule requirements, distance to the site, volume of material to
be delivered, loading and unloading facilities, and the availability of different
Transportation by truck is the most
common method. Trucks can quickly be loaded at our locations and can dump or drop their
loads unassisted at the destination. They can deliver practically anywhere there is a
road. From small pickups to tractor trailor rigs, trucks are filled to match their weight
load requirements, making deliveries more economical.
At Rogers Group, our scale operators help to enforce weight laws by making sure trucks do
not leave the scale overweight. We encourage all trucks to tarp to help reduce the
possibility of loose rock chips falling from the truck when the truck is on its way to a
delivery. Tarping can help control dust and keeps asphalt mix hot.
Another type of truck used in transporting rock is a haul truck. Haul trucks are never
driven on the road. Depending on the size of the haul truck, they can carry between 30 to
90 tons of stone. Haul trucks move the rock to the jaw crusher of the plant, conveyor
belts and stock piles. The wheels of the truck can be 8 to 12 feet high. Two pickup trucks
could hide in the bed of a large haul truck. A driver sitting in the cab of the truck
would be thirty feet off the ground. A haul truck can cost anywhere from $500,000 to
Rail shipping may be more economical than truck transport. Typically, rail shipment is
used to transport stone to areas of the country where the quality of the local stone
product is poor, or they have limited natural stone resources available locally.
Aggregates can be loaded into either 100-ton bottom dump hopper cars, gondolas, or moved
in a single car.
When a quarry has access to a navigable river, aggregate can be moved by hopper or flat
deck barges. Hopper barges commonly hold 1,500 tons of aggregate.
Source: The National Energy Foundation, from the Out of The Rock
program. Iif you would like addtional educational information and materials, stop by
and see them at http://www.nef1.org or call them at