Trucking Companies Plan to Add Trailers as Drivers Remain Scarce
TT File PhotoTrucking companies are planning to add trailers and capacity as the driver shortage continues, according to a new survey.
About 70% of those surveyed plan to expand capacity by buying trailers, the highest level since 2007, according to CK Commercial Vehicle Research's most recent Fleet Sentiment Report.
"This survey has been a good predictor of future orders" of trailers because it polls both large and small fleets as well as both public and private operators, said Karen Ubelhart, a Bloomberg News Intelligence analyst.
The truck driver shortage has been ongoing since the middle of 2010, and the shortfall peaked at about 253,000 drivers at the beginning of 2014, according to FTR Associates. The U.S. economy still needed about 107,000 additional drivers as of the second quarter of this year, FTR's index shows.
Adding trailers improves productivity in one of two ways, Ubelhart said. In states where it's permitted, truckers "piggyback," attaching a second trailer to an existing tractor.
The other way to use a tractor more intensively is by having extra trailers loaded and ready to go so drivers can drop off and pick up freight more quickly, she said. Less idle time for drivers improves productivity.
