Economy
June 5, 2014
Truck Capacity Still Squeezed
Written by Sandy Williams
Truck capacity may get a boost from new orders to manufacturers. Orders for Class 8 trucks increased by 14.2 percent in May for a total of 26,900 units, according to ACT Research. The increase in truck capacity is good news for the industry that is at an all time high capacity. The bad news is there are not enough qualified drivers to get them on the road.
The average flatbed load-to-truck ratio increased 17 percent the week of May 25-31 according to DAT Solutions, up from 34.2 loads per truck to 39.9 loads. Load rates vary widely across the country often much higher, for example the flatbed outbound load-to-truck ratio for Houston to Oklahoma was 64.6 last week.
