NEW ORLEANS — Shippers are facing a shortage of freight-hauling capacity and as a result are paying 3% to 5% more for truckload freight service compared with a year ago, freight brokers and logistics service providers say.

In recent weeks, Steve Nadolson, used truck manager at Nashville Peterbilt in Antioch, Tenn., said he has been “inundated” with calls from people looking to buy used trucks. “I get 10 a day,” he said. “I’m running ads that say, ‘I buy trucks. I pay the highest trade.’.

TMW Systems’ founder and president, Tom Weisz, said he expected 50% to 75% of his customers over the next couple of years to adopt a new service that helps identify and track key performance indicators for trucking companies.

WASHINGTON — Trucking executives meeting here last week said they were optimistic about business and the economy, but were worried about a growing problem of driver availability and the possible effect of government regulations.

Barney Trucking, Heartland Express, Kenan Transport, Penske Logistics, Prime Inc. and Raven Transport were named the top-performing truckload carriers of their respective types, according to research by Martin Labbe Associates for American Trucking Associations.

The search for a new president to manage the Truckload Carriers Association is in the “final stages,” the search committee’s chairman said last week.

Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said his department was launching a new monthly economic indicator that he said would measure the impact of transportation services on the broader economy.

WASHINGTON — The government should coordinate freight data collection in the United States because information on freight movement is needed to help public agencies make decisions about highway infrastructure, safety and security, economic competitiveness and environmental issues, a report by the Transportation Research Board said. br clear=all>

The fatal crash rate for large trucks fell in 2002 to its lowest level since the U.S. Department of Transportation began keeping large-truck safety records in 1975, American Trucking Associations said last week.

This year, suppliers of mobile communications services for trucking will offer an array of new services as established companies delve into new markets and new technology makes it possible to transmit more data at less cost than ever before.