Truck-Stop Operators’ Prospects Brighten as Economy Strengthens, Officials Say

This story appears in the Feb. 28 print edition of Transport Topics.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Truck stop operators can expect to benefit from a stronger freight market, new parts-and-service opportunities and diversification of their business, industry officials said.

“There has been — and there will continue to be — a rebound in demand for diesel fuel,” Lisa Mullings, president of Natso Inc., formerly the National Association of Truck Stop Operators, said at her group’s annual convention here. “The economy is recovering; we can count on that happening.”

For example, TravelCenters of America said on Feb. 18 that fuel sales rose 6% last year.

From a trucking industry perspective, operators should expect a stronger business climate, said Daniel Murray, vice president of research for the American Transportation Research Institute.

“The [trucking industry] trend lines are very good,” Murray said. Truck tonnage now has risen for 14 consecutive months.

Mindy Long, owner of Mindy Long Freelance, said the new federal Compliance, Safety, Accountability, or CSA, program, intended to improve vehicle safety condition, is creating new opportunities for repairs, parts and maintenance.

Long said drivers increasingly focus on maintenance and avoiding defects that count most heavily against their individual safety records as well as the fleets they drive for.

“It is likely that carriers will focus on the violations that have the greatest weight,” she said. “As a result, drivers now have a more vested interest in the safety of the truck.”

Long is a journalist who occasionally writes stories for Transport Topics.

Meanwhile, one fleet executive speaking at the BB&T Capital Markets conference the same week in Florida noted that change.

Paul Will, president of truckload carrier Celadon Group Inc., said drivers are stopping more often at truck stops to ensure that their vehicles are maintained properly.

“They don’t want the [CSA] points,” said Will, adding that more drivers are pulling to the side of the road if they are concerned about maintenance that could count against them.

New fuels also are an industry issue. “Our concern is how many different types of fuel our members will have to sell,” Natso’s Mullings said, citing uncertainty about the outcome of a Washington debate over new standards for renewable fuels.

Long said opportunities exist for new services for tractors with hybrid, electric or other non-diesel power trains. Many truck stop operators are interested in learning more about electric vehicle charging stations, she added.

Mullings also urged members to expand their focus beyond competing with traditional truck stops and reach out to new customers.

“Many of you report seeing increasing competition with restaurants and convenience stores that have diesel islands,” she said. “The four-wheel [auto] business is going to be more important to this industry. We always say trucking is the lifeblood of our industry and that is true. But we have to reach out to others.”

Natso also unveiled a new index created with food service vendor McLane Co., Temple, Texas, that measures weekly purchases of non-fuel products at 900 truck stops that McLean supplies.

The index is intended to help operators to gauge revenue-producing opportunities that aren’t related to fuel purchases, said Jeff Bernard, founder of J. Bernard Associates, West Chester, Pa.

Potential growth areas include prepared foods that drivers can choose if proposed hours of service changes trigger changes in drivers’ habits.

The meeting also featured new marketing initiatives and announcements:

• Terra Environmental Technologies said it has commissioned production of its UltraPure diesel exhaust fluid at a Woodward, Okla., plant with an annual capacity of 30 million gallons.

• Natso created a partnership with Caribou Coffee to sell its products at selected truck stops.

• The North American Truck Stop Network introduced the Fleet One fuel card in partnership with Professional Transportation Partners.

• Cell-phone accessories supplier EBK Manufacturing announced a new mobile broadband antenna tailored to the travel plaza industry.

• TSC Global presented a new retail merchandising solutions program aimed to help operators boost profits.

• Gilbarco Veeder-Root introduced a fuel dispenser to offer diesel exhaust fluid and diesel at the same fueling position.