COVID-19 and Trucking

COVID-19 and Trucking: Industry News for June 5

Selected COVID-19 and trucking industry news that may impact your business.

As of June 5, 2020:

Truckload freight recovery picks up speed heading into June

AJOT

covid-19 and trucking news

Spot truckload freight markets continued to gather momentum last week as load-to-truck ratios increased for dry van, refrigerated, and flatbed freight, said DAT Solutions, which operates the industry’s largest load board network. Truckload rates followed suit, rising on most lanes just in time for June, typically a peak month for the spot market. Read More

Despite economy’s gains, trucking employment dipped by another 1,200 jobs in May

CCJ

The total number of people employed in the for-hire trucking sector of the economy fell by 1,200 in May, according to preliminary figures released Friday by the Department of Labor in its monthly employment report. May’s decline follows the huge dip in trucking industry employment — 89,800 jobs — in April. The DOL downwardly revised trucking job losses in April from the originally reported 88,000. Read More

Class 8 Orders in May Begin New Cycle’s Slow Upturn

Transport Topics

North American Class 8 orders in May fell below 7,000, ACT Research reported, an uptick from April’s historic low as industry analysts said progress will be slow as long as COVID-19 remains a major concern. Read More

Permanent all-electric tolling forces Pennsylvania Turnpike to lay off hundreds of toll collectors

The Trucker

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission voted Tuesday, June 2, to lay off 500 fare collectors and other toll workers and make the entire interstate network a cashless system. The Turnpike Commission said a conversion to all-electronic tolling that was adopted in mid-March because of the COVID-19 pandemic will become permanent. Read More

COVID-borne challenges push fleets to strike a balance between in-person, virtual

CCJ

While $17 plane tickets may not stick around in a post-pandemic world, there are changes that fleet managers and trucking analysts expect to remain following the unprecedented crisis that forced companies to implement a host of new practices in recent months. TransLand, a Springfield, Mo. based fleet offering dry van and flatbed hauling, for instance has leaned on virtual orientations for new driver hires since COVID-19 showed up. And they expect the change to become mostly permanent. Read More

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