Driver availability is heading in the wrong direction.
ACT Research’s For-Hire Trucking Index hit, which last month recorded the lowest point in the three-year history of the Driver Availability Index, again produced a record low in February.
“The Driver Availability Index tightened to a new low in February, to 23.6 from 25.0 in January,” said Tim Denoyer, ACT Research’s vice president and senior analyst.
“But as fleets often like to be gearing up for springtime volume growth in February, the tightness in the driver market feels acute. For the third straight month, this was the tightest reading in the three-year history of this index.”
The ACT For-Hire Trucking Index is a monthly survey of for-hire trucking service providers. ACT Research converts responses into diffusion indexes, where the neutral or flat activity level is 50.
For-hire executives interested in participating should email [email protected]. In return, participants receive a detailed monthly analysis of the survey data, including volumes, freight rates, capacity, productivity and purchasing intentions, plus a complimentary copy of ACT’s Transportation Digest report.
“The latest stimulus is yet another factor on a long list of driver constraints keeping the truckload market tight,” Denoyer added. “Demographics and the FMCSA Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse are also factors inhibiting driver re-engagement, even in response to record spot rates and rising driver pay. (And) significant additions to capacity this year are unlikely.”
