Trucking’s big challenge: Managing through the peak season
Shippers and carriers are finding it much more difficult this year to manage peak season. Peak season for truck freight is built largely from the huge capacity needed to meet the seasonal shipping requirements of produce and construction materials.
In produce season, most crops are shipped from early April until early July. Construction material shipments begin surging in early spring and maintain at high levels well into the summer.
Even with the end of peak season in sight, many shippers are still looking for trucks. The supply chain is tight for grocers, too, as food shortages reach retailers.
There’s so much freight backed up, it’s hard to forecast freight volume. July 4 usually marks the end of the peak season and is a welcomed holiday with rates starting to stabilize, but this year the peak season could drag on.
Currently we’re seeing a lot of shipments of various berries out of the Southeast. Capacity is tight with elevated rates. Produce out of Florida usually sells out this time every year. Some sellers are just now finding capacity.
Soon, we’ll see peaks in avocado shipments out of Mexico and south Texas, as well as cucumbers, eggplants and lettuce out of the west coast. Crops are consolidated by large distributors in warehouses near growers and then moved through supermarkets’ supply chains.
Southeast capacity will likely remain hot for some time. In other regions, it looks like volumes are beginning to level off. Flatbed capacity remains “red” for the whole country. For example, in Savannah recently, 1400 loads were offered for every available flatbed.
In times like these, when everyone is chasing rates, relationships matter. AJC Logistics is constantly working with drivers to identify capacity we can leverage with our customers. We strive to provide consistency and be proactive in our communications.
If you are struggling to find capacity for your lanes, give us a call. We constantly monitor what’s happening in every region of the country and may be able to lock in capacity for difficult situations.