Surface

Competition in 2022’s truckload market will be for space, not for the lowest rates, as shippers race to get their goods on trailers and carriers compete for drivers who are increasingly opting to stick closer to home.

Several Southeast ports will expand container capacity in 2022, but the question for most is when will Savannah clear all the anchored vessels outside its harbor?

Only by thinning out the stacks of empty containers in terminals will prior levels of throughput and productivity be re-established in US ports, JOC analyst Larry Gross says.

E-commerce demand, inventory restocking, and increased manufacturing output will keep LTL carriers in flux and LTL pricing high in 2022.

The creation of Ascend from the combination of two existing companies highlights fast growth in the regional market for “middle-mile” e-commerce freight.

The acquisition of EHS Trucking allows RoadOne to connect East Coast and Midwest intermodal and truckload operations.

Norfolk Southern Railway will reduce international intermodal service out of Cincinnati to the West Coast, calling the routes “low volume,” but exporters may end up paying more for the changes.

Union Pacific Railroad will rescind its peak season surcharges, a sign that domestic intermodal congestion in the western US has improved considerably in recent weeks

Seasonality was behind the large increases in courier and delivery employment and a drop in trucking employment last month; beneath the surface, there’s tooth-and-nail competition for labor.

The fast-spreading variant of COVID-19 likely won’t affect trucking as much as warehousing and aviation, but its indirect impact will put more pressure on already high trucking costs.

While most shippers are concerned about whether there will be enough chassis and fluidity in railroad terminals in 2022, they are also bracing for a steep increase in contract rates.

Increases in spot truckload rates to Chicago from eastern US ports are outpacing rate hikes off the West Coast, as the spot market enters 2022 at record price levels amid “extraordinary” demand.

The purchase of Midwest Logistics Systems brings more than 1,000 drivers to Schneider National’s dedicated operations and brings the carrier’s annual dedicated revenue closer to $1 billion.

Ports and marine terminals say that more containers can be moved through on-dock rail now that service has improved, and rail car supply has eased.

Stoughton Trailers, one of two major 53-foot chassis manufacturers in the US, will open a production line in Texas, the third plant the Wisconsin-based company devoted to building chassis.

Logistics providers are largely embracing a buy-and-build approach to serve their shipper and carrier ecosystems, realizing that internal development resources aren’t usually enough to cater for all their software needs.

Canadian Pacific has signed a multi-year agreement to continue to move goods for Canadian Tire, which will include the inland port the tire company purchased a stake in this August.

Although the US supply chain is in desperate need of more chassis, it will take a while longer before enough chassis are injected into the market to make a notable difference.

Domestic intermodal shippers who want to use BNSF Railway to send cargo in 53-foot containers will have one fewer service option come Jan. 1, JOC.com has learned.

The Port of Long Beach’s project to move over one-third of its container volumes to rail received a boost from the US Department of Transportation through a $52 million grant.

Pandemic-born disruption will continue forcing logistics practitioners to rework supply chains in 2022 to deal with ongoing congestion and equipment shortages.

Railroads and chassis providers will deploy more than 10,000 domestic chassis next year to reduce supply chain congestion, which in turn should lower demurrage fees.

Shippers are paying demurrage to BNSF Railway in Dallas, Phoenix, and Stockton because there are not enough DCLI chassis to pick up 53-foot containers.

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have excess on-dock rail capacity, so they are urging importers to ship more containers via intermodal rail to increase cargo velocity in Southern California.

A White House plan to encourage more trucking companies to recruit drivers via apprenticeships isn’t a short-term fix but may help long-haul carriers find drivers for the long term.

FedEx Freight handled higher freight volumes and helped with the delivery of FedEx Ground packages this fall, relying on price hikes and “judicious” network management.

Once often discounted, general rate increases are going to stick as LTL trucking demand grows faster than capacity.

Convoy’s recent foray into developing technology for use by other brokers hints at a future where freight procurement is centered around platforms where companies complement and compete with one another.

Redwood CEO Mark Yeager said the company’s acquisition by a new private equity firm gives the Chicago-based 3PL ammunition to compete in a market that has seen “dramatic consolidation” in 2021.

The diversion of freight from intermodal rail to truck adds miles to import shipments, significantly increasing costs, the Cass Freight Index finds.

The $480 million purchase of the former Port Logistics Group connects seaports more closely to Ryder System’s e-commerce fulfillment network.

LTL shippers that used Central Freight Lanes should expect their transportation costs to rise in a tightening market in the wake of the Texas-based carrier’s sudden closure.

Venture capital firms have boosted the coffers of two startups aiming to empower the domestic and cross-border trucking industry in Mexico as investment into logistics technology providers continues.

Outbound truck spot rates to Chicago from US ports and border entry points are surging, with the biggest increases in eastbound lanes off the West Coast.

IHS Markit expects US GDP to expand 7.1 percent in the fourth quarter, based on a $130 billion jump in inventory investment in October that represents goods “pulled forward” from 2022.

Bills in the US Senate and House have been introduced to establish a gray chassis pool in Memphis as proponents also push the issue before regulators.

The for-hire trucking industry lost jobs in November, as it typically does, but fewer than anticipated as couriers and warehouses grabbed the most new employees amid strong pre-holiday demand.

The largest US truckload operator acquired its second LTL carrier this year, bringing it closer to a national network and more than $900 million in LTL revenue.

NACPC, a trucker-owned chassis provider, is purchasing chassis manufacturer Pratt Industries, the first time a chassis provider has gotten directly involved in chassis production.

Several factors are diminishing shipper expectations for new truck capacity in 2022, as Class 8 truck production and delivery dates are pushed out more than a year and backlogs build.