Stay Up to Date on the Truckload Industry
Truckload shipping refers to the movement of freight in the amounts necessary to fill an entire semi-truck or intermodal container. This is in contrast to less than truckload (LTL) shipping, where freight from multiple sources is mixed and transported in one truck or shipping container.
Trucking industry regulations change often and are overseen by three different bodies: the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA). Any of these three agencies may create new rules and regulations for general freight trucking throughout the year. In addition, states can also issue their own general freight trucking regulations.
View our truckload freight indexes or learn more about the future of truckload freight.
Schneider reports TL volumes are down upper single-digit percentages in late April, but notes that some of its customers shutdown by COVID-19 are set to come back online.
Favorable customer mix to make Werner’s truckload model a little more defensive through the downturn.
Werner believes its consumer-heavy shipper base will allow the company to ‘more effectively manage through’ the downturn.
Covenant continues to reshape the company in efforts to better focus on contract logistics and improve its financial structure.
Volumes up slightly week-over-week
Declines in trucking shipments and spend, current and future, highlight the takeaways from U.S. Bank’s first-quarter Freight Payment Index report.
Landstar has seen volume declines accelerate in recent weeks and management believes that a recovery is unlikely until the automotive and building products segments resume activity.
Jason Bates will fill the vacant CFO role at Daseke after three years in the same role at USA Truck.
Perry sees slow recovery in volumes but sharp drop-off in available trucks and drivers.
Landstar System calls attention to its variable cost model as first quarter falls short of expectations. No guidance issued for second quarter.
Convoy and FourKites announced new dashboards and emissions-reduction tracking tools to help shippers identify their environmental footprint.
Knight-Swift’s better than expected quarter yields to further uncertainty as the year progresses.
Customer service (in many forms) is the key to keeping and/or expanding business during the pandemic.
Heartland Express’ better than expected result was diminished by the lack of gains on equipment sales.
Network Management Center enhancement improves connectivity and automation
Citing economic challenges tied to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as the need to focus resources toward targeted business units, Southern Refrigerated Transport (SRT), a solo-driven reefer subsidiary of the […]
Volumes still searching for a bottom.
Company was also nominated in three other categories.
KeyBank report mostly positive after discussions with management.
Other segments at the truckload carrier had weaker performances.
Year-over-year declines in the Cass Freight Index accelerated in March, with the shipments index declining 9.2% and the expenditures index dropping 8.2% for the month.
KeepTruckin has started a petition asking congress to extend forgivable loans to cover truck lease/purchase payments and insurance costs.
P.A.M. Transportation finds success calling on its “friends in the industry” as it scrambles to replace lost automotive OEM business.
The J.B. Hunt first-quarter conference call provided a mixed bag of anecdotes. While concerns mount over economic disruption, the company has some offsets.
J.B. Hunt’s first quarter results, while slightly below consensus, were likely not as bad as feared. The company’s outlook provided on its earnings call will be the takeaway.
Cass data plummets further, erasing any chance of second-quarter year-over-year growth in shipments and freight costs, according to report.
After peaking at up 30% year-over-year, volumes are now down.
While transportation industry participants have an abundance of questions loaded for management teams this earnings season, answers on the future will be tough to provide.
In these trying times, regulatory compliance can’t be an afterthought. Failure to follow the rules – and the number of exemptions currently being issued makes that even more challenging – jeopardizes the fleet’s viability.
Sharp Transportation Systems keeps Americans and Canadians supplied with essential medicines and vaccines as tensions mount over cross-border medical supply chains.
Record volumes cool considerably
Many states have now issued exemptions for carriers hauling critical supplies to exceed 80,000-pound weight limit
Bob Costello expects many trucking companies to go out of business before the economy recovers from the recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
What might a post COVID-19 world look like for financially viable carriers that have managed through the uncertainty? Nobody knows for sure, but here are some possibilities.
Tyson Foods plans to pay drivers and essential personnel $60 million in “thank you” bonuses for service during the pandemic.
Chris Henry writes about the true costs of “unseated” trucks and what carriers can do to keep their number of unseated trucks as close to zero as possible.
After a surge in freight over the past few weeks, UBS transportation analyst Tom Wadewitz is predicting a rough two months.
Roadrunner Transportation Systems announces the sale of another business unit, this time unloading Stagecoach Cartage and Distribution.
The Department of Labor has issued new guidance on the Families First Coronavirus Response Act that may not require companies to offer paid leave in certain situations.
ArcBest battens the hatches on coronavirus concerns. The company draws down available credit and implements business continuity plan.
Record high volumes cool
Attorney R. Eddie Wayland answers many of the questions that have arisen from the passage of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, including whether all companies need to comply.
Clear benefits in its truckload and dedicated divisions, but challenges in brokerage.
P.A.M. Transportation says it has temporarily laid off approximately 75 employees as auto plant closures increase.
J.B. Hunt announces $500 one-time bonus for drivers and field staff serving during COVID-19 pandemic.
But attorney Gaines notes that there are some parts of the rules that might be confusing to some.
Morgan Stanley upgrades its freight transportation industry view from “cautious” to “in-line.” The firm lowered its earnings expectations for the group.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the ports of entry remain watchful of fraudulent imports that take advantage of Americans during the COVID-19 crisis.
Stifel Financial sees an OK first quarter, but the picture gets less clear after that, with risks to second-quarter earnings estimates.
FreightWaves’ OTRI is now higher than it was a year ago
The waiver will run through April 12 or the end of the emergency, whichever is first
New all-time high for volumes
ATA says it expects a waiver. States are already granting them.
As experts predict price increases and late deliveries from coronavirus, some industry insiders say the threat is overblown.
Virus-related demand headwinds bring fresh declines in February Cass data. Visibility into a potential trucking recovery is further clouded.
Most companies are right near the 25% decline in the market since February 1.
Shippers combat coronavirus with new procedures, questions for drivers; carriers advise proper hygiene, while Amazon requires sanitization of workstations, vehicles
Deliveries of contracted freight with actual trucks will be the focus of the three-year partnership.
Daseke expects weakness in the industrial markets and oil and gas sectors to persist. Management said the environment was sequentially weaker in the first quarter.
Steel giant working to restore normal operations “as quickly as possible” as trucking companies report disruptions in freight from Canadian facility.
Volumes show signs of life.
Trucking company says the shutdown of the Saskatchewan facility from purported ransomware attack will have a “significant impact” on operations.
Profitability is the key to any business staying in business. In trucking it is harder than in many other businesses. Chris Henry explores the “trucking profitability paradox.”
A panel of experts on the issue offers suggestions — but no easy fixes.
Jim Blaze writes about the outlook for intermodal rail in 2020.
In this week’s “Drilling Deep” podcast, host John Kingston sits down with Dave Heller of the Truckload Carriers Association at the TCA’s annual meeting in the Orlando, Florida, area. Dave […]
FreightWaves SONAR clients will have access to Truckstop.com rates
At TCA meeting, agency administrator says FMCSA will need help acting on reports of cheating.
Customers and society are demanding more environmentally friendly vehicles, including electric, and manufacturers are trying to meet those demands with smart business decisions that meet the key imperative of any commercial vehicle: to make money.
‘Strong sales’ in February are expected to continue through Easter. Disruptions to the company’s supply chain continue to be monitored.
Final-mile acquisitions continue. CRST adds to its service offering by acquiring NAL Group.
StayMetrics’ Hindes talks about retention and management of a truckload company’s human assets.
“We’re a highly resilient industry even in the face of a potential pandemic,” Washington Trucking Associations official says even as intermodal carriers take hit from disruption of Chinese shipping to West Coast ports.
How coronavirus will impact volumes remains to be seen
Recent Volvo Truck innovations in the U.S., and a new truck line in Europe continue to focus on driver comfort and keeping vehicles and drivers productive.
PS Logistics announces that it has completed the acquisition of Southeast Logistics.
Schneider National’s new Dallas operating center set to open as the company looks to grow its active fleet.
Program members will have several opportunities to network in Orlando next week.
Lowe’s sees positive sales comps in 14 of 15 regions, but full-year fiscal 2020 guidance disappoints.
ORBCOMM lowers full-year 2020 guidance given recent coronavirus developments.
Fleet Advantage is adding predictive modeling to its ATLAAS platform, giving fleets a look at vehicle replacement cost savings at specific points in time.
Diesel fell far more than the price of crude oil; trucking stocks mostly fell less than S&P 500.
Bankrupt Celadon Group reveals employees in Mexico recently restarted operations of its transportation businesses after labor disputes. Court filings paint a murky picture of what’s happening at the Mexican subsidiaries — including Jaguar Transportation — and who is in charge.
Phillips Connect Technologies has introduced a series of technologies that use data to reduce downtime and prevent improper trailer use.
Private equity funds have a poor track record in buying asset-based trucking operators.
Private equity funds have a poor track record in buying asset-based trucking operators.
Deal to purchase bankrupt Celadon Group’s Mexican subsidiaries, including Jaguar Transportation, for $7 million would expand PAM Transportation Services’ footprint south of the border.
Winter weather can have a major impact on freight movement. Read meteoroligist Nick Austin’s article about winter weather conditions.
Volumes still sluggish but positive.
Knight-Swift Logistics will be part of a pilot program that will test DAT Solutions’ new Book Now automated freight tendering solution.
We examine two historical freight market troughs, 2011 and 2013, to understand current dynamics.
This is part of our ongoing weekly feature called the “Online Haul of Fame.” FreightWaves will feature companies that have had a lasting impact on the trucking industry, past or […]
ALC president sees little overlap in customer base.
Declines in Cass data accelerate but report calls for rates to inflect higher in 2020.
Walmart’s fiscal fourth quarter comes in light of expectations as holiday activity was lower than expected.
Knight-Swift will integrate Truckstop.com’s Book It Now digital freight offering into its logistics operation, and provide access to Truckstop.com’s load board for its owner-operator and carrier partners.
The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) will bring an opportunity for education and networking to for-hire carriers, private fleets, associates and driver-training school members, as well as prospects, next month.
Transport earnings were rough but may have bottomed.
Covenant Transportation’s Joey Hogan and Jet Express’ Kevin Burch talk capacity, insurance, trucking’s image and a lot more in wide-ranging discussion at ACT Research event.
