BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — DAT One load posts totaled 3.0 million last week, up 9% from the prior week as shippers cleared month-end volume; equipment posts totaled 166,269, down 10%, as last week coincided with CVSA Brake Safety Week.
“The national average reefer linehaul rate gained 6 cents while van and flatbed linehaul eased,” DAT Freight & Analytics said. “All-in rates rose for all three equipment types because diesel jumped: the EIA’s national average on-highway diesel price used in this week’s fuel surcharge calculation was $5.454 a gallon (week ending Aug. 17), up 19.7 cents (3.7%) from $5.257 the week before.”
Brake Safety Week
“Brake Safety Week took trucks out of the market,” said Dean Croke, industry analyst, DAT. “CVSA’s annual brake-inspection blitz was last week and carriers pulled back amid heightened scrutiny over braking systems as well as driver credentials, English-language proficiency, and immigration status. Truck availability always dips during CVSA events, but this year’s drop was more than twice the five-year average, which points to a real capacity response rather than the usual pause. At 166,269, total equipment posts were the lowest Week 35 figure in DAT’s records, 31% below last year. Truck posts fell 32% year over year for van, 32% for reefer, and 27% for flatbed.”
According to Croke, California felt it most. Minority-owned carriers move a large share of long-haul produce out of the state to the East, and limited routing options on I-80, I-40, I-8, and I-15 raise their exposure to roadside inspections. Reefer rates out of Fresno, the country’s largest produce market, to destinations east of the Mississippi rose an average of 19 cents a mile, roughly three times the national increase.
“Fuel, not freight, moved the rate carriers were paid,” Croke said. “All three all-in rates rose, but only the reefer linehaul rate went up week over week. Diesel increased 19.7 cents a gallon, adding about 3 cents a mile to the average dry van rate and 4 cents to the reefer and flatbed rates. Strip the fuel out and van linehaul was down 2 cents and flatbed down 3.”
7-Day Average Broker-to-Carrier Spot Rates (Linehaul + Fuel Surcharge)
â–² Van: $2.89 per mile, up 1 cent
â–² Reefer: $3.45 per mile, up 9 cents
â–² Flatbed: $3.51 per mile, up 1 cent
Dry Van: Load Posts and Capacity Diverged
â–² Loads: 1,347,765, up 12%
â–¼ Trucks: 112,237, down 10%
â–¼ Linehaul rate: $2.19 per mile, down 2 cents
â–² Load-to-truck ratio: 12.0, up from 9.6 the prior week
Reefer: The Only Equipment Type whose Linehaul Rate Gained Ground
â–² Loads: 758,430, up 5%
â–¼ Trucks: 32,203, down 9%
â–² Linehaul rate: $2.69 per mile, up 6 cents
â–² Load-to-truck ratio: 23.6, up from 20.6 the prior week
Flatbed: Loads Climbed for a Second Straight Week as Trucks Kept Leaving
â–² Loads: 913,411, up 9%
â–¼ Trucks: 21,829, down 9%
â–¼ Linehaul rate: $2.67 per mile, down 3 cents
â–² Load-to-truck ratio: 41.8, up from 35.1 the prior week
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
