Truck Cycle Time Calculator
A haul truck repeats a fixed loop, so its cycle time is simply the sum of the phases: spot/queue at the loader + load + loaded haul + dump/manoeuvre + empty return, all in minutes.
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Before you rely on this: First-pass guide only. Verify safety-critical or regulated work against the relevant standards, your project requirements and a qualified professional.
How to use this calculator
- Enter each segment of the haul cycle in minutes: spot/queue, load, loaded haul, dump/manoeuvre and empty return. Use the same conditions (loaded vs empty grades) you are planning for.
- Read the cycle time and trips per hour for a single truck. Optionally add the truck payload in tonnes to get gross t/h, and the productive minutes per shift to get loads and tonnes per shift.
- Treat the result as a gross best case for one truck at 100% of the productive time entered — apply availability, utilisation and bunching, then multiply by the number of trucks, for a planned production rate.
How it works
A haul truck repeats a fixed loop, so its cycle time is simply the sum of the phases: spot/queue at the loader + load + loaded haul + dump/manoeuvre + empty return, all in minutes. The number of trips one truck can complete in an hour is 60 ÷ cycle time. Multiplying trips per hour by the truck payload gives a gross productivity in tonnes per hour, and dividing the productive minutes in a shift by the cycle time gives the loads (and hence tonnes) a single truck moves per shift.
These are idealised figures: they assume the loader is always ready (no truck waiting beyond the spot/queue time you enter) and that the truck works 100% of the productive time. Real haulage is reduced by mechanical availability, operator utilisation, queuing when trucks bunch at the loader, weather and road condition. Planners therefore take this gross rate, discount it by availability and utilisation factors, check the loader-truck match factor, and multiply by fleet size to arrive at a defensible production rate.
Worked example
90 t haul truck on a 6-minute one-way haul. A rear-dump truck spots and queues for 0.7 min, loads in 2.5 min, hauls loaded for 6 min, dumps in 1 min and returns empty in 4 min. Cycle = 0.7 + 2.5 + 6 + 1 + 4 = 14.2 min, so trips/hour = 60 ÷ 14.2 = 4.23 trips/h. With a 90 t payload that is 4.23 × 90 = 380.3 t/h for one truck. Over 600 productive minutes per shift it makes 600 ÷ 14.2 = 42.3 loads, hauling 42.3 × 90 = 3,803 t. To size a fleet or a planned rate, discount this by availability, utilisation and queue bunching.
Common mistakes
- Using a single round-trip travel time instead of separate loaded haul and empty return times. Loaded trucks are slower on grade than empty ones returning, so splitting the two gives a more accurate cycle.
- Forgetting the spot and queue time. The seconds spent lining up and waiting at the loader are part of every cycle and materially reduce trips per hour on short hauls.
- Treating the gross tonnes per hour or per shift as a planned rate. It is a 100%-of-time, single-truck best case — you must still apply availability, utilisation and bunching factors and multiply by the number of trucks in the fleet.
Frequently asked questions
Does this give the productivity of my whole fleet?
No. It gives cycle time, trips per hour and gross tonnes for one truck at 100% of the productive time you enter. For a fleet, discount the per-truck figure by availability and utilisation, allow for queue bunching, then multiply by the number of trucks.
Should I include queuing time in the cycle?
Enter your normal spot and short queue time in the spot/queue field. If trucks are chronically waiting because there are too many for the loader, that extra queuing is a match-factor problem — check the number of trucks against the loader cycle rather than baking large waits into every cycle.
What units does it use?
All five cycle segments are in minutes, payload is in tonnes and productive time per shift is in minutes. Cycle time is returned in minutes, trips per hour, productivity in tonnes per hour and shift totals in loads and tonnes.
Why is my tonnes per hour higher than what the truck actually achieves on site?
Because this is a gross figure. Actual output is lower once mechanical availability, operator utilisation, refuelling, shift change, road condition and queuing are taken out. Multiply the gross rate by your availability and utilisation fractions for a realistic number.
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Cite this tool
Zerdly. (2026). Truck Cycle Time Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.zerdly.com/tools/truck-cycle-time-calculator/
Tip: Enter any known values to calculate the remaining results.
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