As discussed in the previous post, freight transportation trends in 2018 are influenced by a number of factors. Two aspects discussed before are higher freight rates and the government regulation. The freight rates became higher and higher due to shortage of drivers. On the other hand, the government regulation on the drivers’ maximum hours of service was accepted with different opinions among the truck drivers.

What Contributes to Freight Transportation Trends in 2018

On one hand, the innovation in transportation technology provides the businesses and the community with many benefits. On the other hand, it is not always accepted with positive responses. The conflicting responses seem to influence the freight transportation trends in 2018. The following are among the examples.

Transportation App

Transportation industry has been undergoing significant changes since the coming of transportation apps, like Uber. The company, for instance, launched Uber Freight app besides it ride-sharing services. Amazon and Convoy also offer apps that work in almost similar way. The main principle on how these apps work is particularly similar: they match the services offered by trucking companies with clients that have freight to move.

On one hand, these apps offer the customers with convenient trucking service. Despite its infancy, the industry has great potentials to grow. The trucking companies enjoy the benefits of lower marketing costs, as they can promote the business using digital advertising tools.

Autonomous Vehicle

The booming autonomous vehicle seems to influence the freight transportation industry this year. Some automakers, like Tesla, have unveiled autonomous semi-truck, which offers the customers with flexible transportation mode. Despite varied capacity, the autonomous vehicle seems to be interesting for some companies, since they can afford to buy their own semi-truck.

Potential customers of this technology include large asset companies, which need to transport their goods at high frequency. Even though the autonomous vehicle will not significantly affect the trucking industry this year, it will in the next few years, according to business experts. At that time, more and more companies will prove that they are not ignorant of innovation in the transportation industry. At that point, trucking industry will probably have to innovate more.

Carrier Behavior

Changes in behavior mostly occur when someone cannot deal with a situation anymore. Many experts predict that shippers will change their behaviors on the use of freight transportation. Therefore, changing behaviors are among things that affect freight transportation trends in 2018.

Changes in carrier behavior happen as long as the supply and demand sides benefit the carrier. In such a situation, the carriers will be more selective in choosing the businesses, which they serve. Some shippers may only choose to work with specific businesses and refuse the others. For instance, they may choose to work with a business that does not require the driver to wait long during the loading and unloading time.

The carriers will realize the meaning of time more than before. But again, this may happen when fewer and fewer drivers and trucks are available on the market. This year, at least, the carriers are at advantageous position. However, the case will be different when innovation in technology provides the shippers with more options.