Truckload

News and analysis of trucking, including full truckload, less-than-truckload, private fleets, refrigerated, regulation, supply and demand

The latest Truckload News & Analysis

Roadrunner to enter Canada as K+N, Canada Cartage make cross-border acquisitions

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The expansion of the three companies, all representing different modes across the US-Canadian border, underscores the depth of the relationship between the two economies.
SurfaceForwardingTrucking NewsTruckloadLTL

European truckers brace for hefty toll hikes in Germany linked to CO2 emissions

Greg Knowler, Senior Editor Europe |
The CO2 charge on commercial vehicles is aimed at incentivizing the use of green fuels and lower-emissions trucks, but it will come at a significant cost to the road haulage industry.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Oversupply weighs heavily on US truckload market, keeping prices in check

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Although small trucking firms are folding, there is still a large supply of carriers and trucks keeping a lid on pricing amid soft demand. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

US shippers expanding private fleets in uncertain truck market

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The need for greater supply chain stability, not just control over on-time service, is driving growth in the number of private fleets run by shippers even in a time of cheap truck rates.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadSupply chain

US truckload shippers urged to launch bids now to get best 2024 rates

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
An uptick in the West Coast share of Asian imports has already translated into heightened demand for surface transportation.
TruckloadTruck brokers

‘Aggressive’ truck brokers stuck in soft market: C.H. Robinson

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The largest US freight broker expects more companies to follow Convoy and exit the market as demand remains weak and rates stay low. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadTruck brokers

Dry van truckload capacity in no hurry to exit despite bear market: analyst

Jason Miller, associate professor of logistics at Michigan State University, and Journal of Commerce analyst |
It is unlikely that supply and demand for dry van trucking will reach an equilibrium before the second quarter of 2024, and that is likely an optimistic date, writes analyst Jason Miller.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

No escaping the truckload market’s inherent fragmentation for Convoy

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
The demise of truckload broker Convoy has highlighted how difficult it is to create differentiation in a market with no dominant player, with Convoy itself to blame for stoking more competition through its technology focus.
Truck brokersTrucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News

Carrier, broker failures solidifying US truckload spot pricing floor

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
US truckload shippers are showing more “sensitivity” to supply and service issues, supporting a new spot market pricing floor but not giving rates much lift, according to trucking and logistics executives.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Transfix defies down market to raise $40 million for truckload brokerage

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Transfix’s investment being announced on the same day Convoy told employees it was winding down operations highlights some of the differences between members of a group broadly defined as “digital brokers.”
Truck brokersTrucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News

Convoy says will shut operations, sell off technology amid market downturn

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
While sudden, the impact of Convoy shutting its business should be muted in a truckload brokerage market where shippers have access to low spot rates and plentiful capacity.
Trucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News

Freight broker Convoy stops accepting loads amid pending company ‘transition’

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
The company has long been a lightning rod in the truckload industry, one of a cohort of so-called digital brokers to emerge in the 2010s backed by venture capital investors with an ambition to make the industry more efficient through digitizing processes.
Truck brokersTrucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News

Texas starts truck inspections at Laredo bridge amid cross-border delays

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
State truck inspections are adding to existing problems clearing rising amounts of freight entering the US from Mexico as migrant numbers arriving at the US border surge.
Truckload

US shippers told to make trucking bids more collaborative

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The bidding process needs to be “revolutionized” to save shippers money, with more emphasis on strategic relationships, speakers said at the NITL Engage Conference.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

US trucking jobs shrank last month, but far less than expected  

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Motor carriers may be concerned that in what is still a tight job market, any employees who are let go temporarily would not be available when demand rises again.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTLTrucking labor

Increased truckload volatility inducing shippers, brokers to use pricing technology

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Excess capacity in the truckload market is a chance for shippers to examine whether they or their freight brokers have the right technology tools to effectively price in the contract and spot markets.
TruckloadTrucking NewsTruck brokersLogistics Technology News

Inland23: US-Mexico trucking costs rising with cross-border demand

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Cross-border trade with Mexico is one of the few hot spots in trucking, but fuel prices and other costs are putting more pressure on rates.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTL

Inland23: US trucking costs rising amid weak demand

Mark Szakonyi, Executive Editor |
Rising labor costs — both behind the wheel and at the warehouse, elevated diesel prices and cross-dock scarcity in major cities are making it more costly to run transportation networks, attendees at the Journal of Commerce’s Inland Distribution Conference were told.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTLTrucking labor

BNSF Logistics turns to Trucker Tools for brokerage software

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Top 30 freight broker BNSF Logistics said it will use Trucker Tools software to improve visibility and freight matching for its surface transportation customers.
Logistics Technology NewsTrucking NewsTruckloadTruck brokers

No US freight rebound until 2024: analysts 

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The current freight downturn could continue until mid-2024, thanks to lower manufacturing output, high levels of employment and excess capacity, experts told the Journal of Commerce Thursday.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTL

Convoy promises on-time truckload deliveries with new guaranteed product

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Targeting industrial and retail shippers that need expensive expedited services to meet stringent on-time metrics, freight broker Convoy is offering a product that guarantees shipments will be delivered within a predetermined 30-minute window.
Truck brokersTrucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News

US trucking hiring slowing amid soft freight demand

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The US economy is improving, but the gains in recent months haven’t translated into additional freight, nor an additional surge in trucking employment.
Trucking laborTrucking NewsTruckloadLTL

Yellow seeks orderly ‘wind down’ amid bankruptcy filing

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The third-largest US less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier said Sunday it plans to use debtor-in-possession financing to support the sale of assets, while CEO Darren Hawkins blamed the Teamsters union for its collapse.
LTLTruckloadTrucking labor

Truckload carriers driving through lengthy freight market ‘bottom’

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
US truckload carrier executives say they don’t see any signs that freight demand will pick back up until the end of 2023.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Schneider goes deeper into dedicated trucking with M&M acquisition

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Schneider's acquisition of M&M Transport underscores the ongoing popularity of dedicated transportation among shippers and carriers, even in an era of excess truckload capacity. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Knight-Swift expects small uptick in peak season freight volumes

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
The company expects a slight increase in truckload demand during the peak season amid uncertainty about the duration of the freight recession and the potential impact of Yellow's financial troubles.
TruckloadLTL

DAT, Convoy settle dueling lawsuits once seen as marker for load board industry

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
DAT and freight broker Convoy had challenged each other in federal court over business practices related to Convoy attempting to set up a rival load board.
TruckloadTrucking NewsTruck brokersLogistics Technology News

Truckstop acquires freight matching platform to target ‘high-quality’ carriers

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Truckstop is building on its 2022 purchase of carrier monitoring provider RMIS with the acquisition of freight-matching technology provider FrieightFriend.
TruckloadTrucking NewsTruck brokersLogistics Technology News

Knight-Swift commits to LTL expansion amid soft truckload demand

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The largest US truckload operator will continue to add terminals to its LTL network as it absorbs truckload carrier U.S. Xpress.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTL

End of freight ‘recession’ drawing nearer, but no strong rebound seen: SMC3

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
US inventory levels are still high, depressing demand for trucking services and keeping a rebound in check, analysts said at the SMC3 Connections conference.
Supply chainTruckloadLTLTransport, Trade, and Regulation News

US truckload spot rates likely nearing bottom: analysts

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
Trucking analysts believe the downward pressure on rates has ended — or is close to ending, but an upward surge isn’t necessarily on the horizon, either.
Truckload

C.H. Robinson taps Ford executive Bozeman as new CEO

Teri Errico Griffis |
The appointment of a new CEO for the US’s largest logistics provider comes six months after the dismissal of ex-CEO Bob Biesterfeld, who was let go amid slowing freight demand, rate declines and investor unrest.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadSupply chain

Large US truckload carriers reined in capacity in Q1: Journal of Commerce index 

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
An index based on truck counts at large truckload carriers dropped nearly 5% in the first quarter from late 2022 as those carriers adjusted to a softer market and lower contract and spot rates.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

US truckload market ‘bouncing’ along pricing bottom: analysts

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The long drop in truckload spot market rates has eased, revealing a soft bottom for pricing, but more demand is needed to fuel any upswing benefiting truckers, observers say.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Late US produce season boosting spot reefer truckload rates 

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Pricing for refrigerated truckload service is shooting up along the US-Mexico border and outbound from California, in some cases by more than 20 cents per mile from April’s averages, as fruit and vegetable crops start moving to market.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Pandemic-induced trailer dislocation still hampering US truckload carriers

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Trailer marketplace technology provider vHub estimates a quarter of truckload trailers are out of network for the nation’s carriers, with an abrupt shift in demand exacerbating that dislocation.
TruckloadTrucking NewsLogistics Technology News

Capacity oversupply keeps US truckload rates in decline

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
Excess capacity is lingering in US freight markets because fewer carriers than expected have gone bankrupt so far this year, analysts say.
Truckload

US trucking adds jobs in April as manufacturing expands

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
US trucking companies added jobs for the second straight month, but the employment wave hasn’t reached package delivery firms or warehouses.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckloadLTLTrucking labor

Mexico, Houston port volumes boosting US Southwest trucking: U.S. Bank

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Shippers are moving more freight in the US Southwest, and paying more to do so, despite weak trucking markets elsewhere in the country, according to U.S. Bank.
Trucking NewsNorth American portsTruckloadLTL

Court hands freight broker Convoy procedural win in legal battle with DAT

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Transportation observers believe the dueling complaints could have implications for the US spot truckload market because DAT is a primary source of available loads that brokers and carriers use to fill their pools of owned or third-party capacity.
Truck brokersTrucking NewsTruckloadLogistics Technology News