Industry Indicators: March 28 - April 3
Industry Indicators: March 28 - April 3
iLevel Logistics presents intriguing data that offers a snapshot of notable industry changes and events during the week of March 28th through April 3rd.
Top Issues for small and large trucking companies differ – except driver retention
Source: Coyote
According to a Coyote Logistics research study, 30% of large trucking companies and 30% of small trucking companies say driver satisfaction and retention is one of their top three challenges. This is the only challenge that percentages of small and large firms are nearly the same. Note that, challenges concerning unexpected delays and the ability to invest in new technology demonstrate differences between small and large trucking companies – more small firms than large see these issues as major problems. By contrast, more large companies believe their key challenge is keeping up with customer and industry demands.
Cargo theft up in 2020
Source: CCJ
According to Sensitech’s annual report, cargo theft volumes and values are up across the United States. 2020 in fact witnessed a 5-year high. There were 870 cargo thefts with an average value of $166,854. Compared to 2019, the numbers represent a 41% increase in average value and a 23% rise in volume. Theft of small portions of a load – pilferage - rather than the full load fueled the increases.
Approximately 50% of all cargo theft occurred in California, Texas, and Florida. Other trouble spots include Memphis Tennessee, Atlanta Georgia, and Chicago Illinois.
Best States for the Drone Industry
Source: FreightWaves
A report from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University constructed an index of state preparedness for commercial drone adoption. The index included five criteria: Airspace lease laws, laws vesting air rights to landowners, navigation easement laws, a drone task force or program office, and drone jobs estimates.
Top five states --
North Dakota (70)
Arkansas (69)
Vermont (67)
Oklahoma (64)
Nevada (63).
Smaller states appear to be adopting quickly and positioning themselves as favorable locations for the drone ‘highways’ of the future.
Owner-operators not excited about under-21 CDL drivers
Source: OverDrive
A March Overdrive online poll showed a significant majority (63%) of respondents said No to interstate options for under-21 CDL drivers. The DRIVE Safety Act introduced recently in Congress calls for the establishment of an apprenticeship program for under-21 drivers – requiring 400 on-duty hours. 15% of poll respondents said yes, 5% were uncertain, and another 17% considered supporting the proposal but with limitations. Clearly, a solid majority of those in the truck driving business reject this latest effort to expand the driver pool.
National spot rates up in March for Van, Flatbed, and Reefer
Source: DAT
And that’s it for this week. Thanks for reading.