Delivery Run Timing and Fuel Budget
A courier must cover a 168 km route. For the first 96 km the van averages 64 km/h. Roadworks then slow the remaining 72 km to an average of 48 km/h, and a mandatory 15-minute rest is taken at the 96 km mark. The van consumes fuel at 8.4 litres per 100 km. Fuel costs 1.45 per litre, and the driver is paid 14.00 per hour for the whole journey including the rest. The client was promised a door-to-door time of 3 hours 15 minutes and a fuel cost under 20.00. The dispatcher needs to know whether either promise is broken and by how much.
1. Compute total journey time and compare it with the 3 h 15 min promise.
Read the worked answer
Leg 1: 96 / 64 = 1.5 h = 90 min.
Leg 2: 72 / 48 = 1.5 h = 90 min.
Rest: 15 min.
Total = 90 + 90 + 15 = 195 min = 3 h 15 min.
The promise is met exactly, with zero margin. Any delay at all breaks it, so the schedule is fragile even though it is technically on time.
2. Compute fuel consumption and fuel cost, and test the 20.00 limit.
Read the worked answer
Total distance = 168 km. Consumption = 168 × 8.4 / 100 = 14.112 litres.
Fuel cost = 14.112 × 1.45 = 20.46 (about 20.46).
The 20.00 limit is exceeded by about 0.46. To stay under 20.00 the van would need at most 20.00 / 1.45 ≈ 13.79 litres, i.e. about 8.21 L/100 km - roughly a 2.3 percent efficiency gain.
3. What is the driver's wage cost for the run, and what is the total operating cost?
Read the worked answer
Journey time = 195 min = 3.25 h. Wage = 3.25 × 14.00 = 45.50.
Total operating cost = fuel 20.46 + wage 45.50 = 65.96.
Judgement: the fuel figure is the one that breaches a stated limit, but it is a small slice of the 65.96 total; the labour cost dominates. Reporting only fuel would understate the run's true cost by more than two-thirds.