For-Hire Carrier Revenue Up 10%

According to a new TransCore study, 2011 for-hire carrier revenue increased 10% to $2.03 per mile or $17,808 a month per truck compared to 2010. The improvement was due primarily to rate increases. TransCore, a national load matching service, released this and other findings gathered from a survey of more than 600 for-hire trucking companies from across the United States. Respondents included for-hire carriers, owner-operators, and broker-carriers.

Other key findings:

• Compared to last year’s survey, carriers sourced 11% less freight from contracts and repeat business while securing a 20% larger portion of loads on the spot market.
• On average, carriers found 42% of their freight volume using load boards.
• Carriers earned more when they used load boards for approximately half (31% to 60%) of their freight. By balancing brokers and shippers in relatively equal proportions, they averaged $1,378 (7.7%) more revenue per truck each month than other for-hire carriers surveyed.
• For-hire carriers’ monthly revenues per truck increased by an average of $1,607.
• There was a 1% improvement in empty miles by for-hire carriers, from 9.7% to 9.6%.
• Average length of haul declined 2.6% from 903 miles one way in 2010 to 880 miles.
• Spot market rates rose steadily in the first half of 2011, particularly in the refrigerated (“reefer”) and flatbed segments due to a combination of unusually high seasonal demand and constrained capacity. For-hire carriers benefited most when they hauled freight from both brokers and shippers in relatively equal proportions.