As 2009 draws to a close, Heavy Duty Trucking's editors look back at the year's top stories, topped by the recession and the resulting collapse in freight and rates, as well as a plethora of issues related to government oversight of the trucking industry.
The Great Recession
Economists say the longest and deepest downturn in the U.S. economy during the post-war era is starting to come to an end, but trucking companies remain hard-pressed. Credit is still tight, unemployment topped 10 percent nationally, freight volumes ranged from merely bad to outright awful depending on the sector and rates are under enormous pressure, partly because of lower freight volumes and partly because of excess capacity. (Adding to the capacity issue are "Zombie truckers" still in business because banks don't want to repossess all those trucks.)
Truckload volumes, measured by the number of loads, fell a total of 25.5 percent from a peak in March 2008 to a low in April 2009, and less-than-truckload fared even worse. Average revenue per mile for truckload carriers fell nearly 14 percent from mid-2008 through October 2009, while LTL average revenue per ton dropped more than 20 percent during the same period. Several debt-laden large freight haulers, such as Gainey and Greatwide, were taken over by new owners. (For more on the economy, see "Outlook 2010: Slow Turn Ahead, from the October issue of Heavy Duty Trucking magazine)
We may start seeing some of those "zombie truckers" put to rest, which actually could help rates for the rest of the industry. Just before Christmas, Oklahoma-based flatbed carrier Arrow Trucking suddenly suspended operations, and LTL giant YRC appears to be hanging on by its fingernails.
The intensity of the management challenge is rivaled only by the period following deregulation in 1980. Just think: It could have been worse.
EPA 2010
As engine makers worked to finish the design and testing of engines to meet the Environmental Protection Agency's tough new emissions regulations effective in 2010, we saw nasty wars of words and even lawsuits between the two technology camps - selective catalytic reduction or advanced exhaust gas recirculation.
At the beginning of the year there was still real concern about whether the urea/diesel exhaust fluid infrastructure would be in place for SCR. By the end of the year, that didn't look like it would be a major issue.
What will be an issue going forward is the extra cost of trucks with these new engines, in some cases a penalty of close to $10,000 per truck. SCR proponents say better fuel economy will help offset that extra cost. Many truckers are hopeful that's true, but aren't holding their breath.
(For more, see our special EPA 2010 section on Truckinginfo.com.)
Hours of Service
In the January issue of HDT, then-president (now retired) Doug Condra wrote a column called "HOS: Time to Move On." No such luck.
The endless culture war over trucking hours of service regulations entered a new phase when the Department of Transportation agreed to take another look at the current rule - a rule it has defended for years - in return for Public Citizen agreeing to hold its suit against the rule in abeyance, depending on what changes DOT decides to make. The trucking industry can legitimately wonder where this will lead.
Meanwhile, major carriers such as Schneider, Dart and Southeastern Freight Lines announced they were voluntarily implementing electronic log systems. (See "Electronic Logs: The End of the Comic Book?" from the December issue of HDT.)
The electronic on board recorder final rule finally went to the White House for approval and is expected to require less-safe carriers to adopt EOBRs to track driver hours.
The Environment
The era of environmental awareness came into tight focus for trucking in 2009 even beyond getting ready for the 2010 emissions regulations.
Congress began work on a cap-and-trade mechanism designed to slow global warming and decrease U.S. dependence on foreign oil. The Environmental Protection Agency determined that greenhouse gases are a threat to health, putting pressure on Congress to complete work on cap-and-trade in 2010. (See "The Fight Against Global Warming: What's at Stake for Trucking in Cap-and-Trade" from the August issue.)
The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach began to implement plans to restructure the drayage industry as a way to improve air quality. The industry undertook a widespread effort to shrink its environmental footprint (and cut fuel costs) by reducing speed and idling time, and investigating alternatives such as hybrid drives. And the federal government began work on fuel economy regulations for heavy-duty trucks.
Infrastructure
Back in March, the top headline in HDT's Washington Report was, "Hill Staffers Predict Struggle to Pass Highway Bill." They were right. We still don't have a bill.
The story here is the nation's collective failure to face up to this issue. True, there were distractions - the Great Recession, a new administration, health care reform, and so on - but with the national highway infrastructure on a downhill slide, the need for greater investment as clear as could be and the legislative deadline at hand, nothing was done.
Driver distraction
This was the year that the country awoke to the dangers of distracted driving and began to work on laws and rules that will restrict the use of communications gear while behind the wheel. After a national Distracted Driving Summit in the fall, in which Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood called distracted driving an epidemic, the Department of Transportation announced it plans to write rules banning text messaging and restricting cell phone use in moving trucks and buses.
HDT featured the issue as a cover story back in April, although the "Truckers on Overload" feature focused less on cell phones and texting and more on the sheer number of inputs a trucker has to deal with.
Shakeup in midrange
The industry saw big changes on the light-and medium end, including GM's exit from the business, following on Sterling's late 2008 announcement that it, too, was getting out of the business. Navistar and Ford dissolved their longtime engine supply agreement and Ford announced its own pickup truck engine. Many former GM and Sterling customers are unsure where to turn for their net truck. In addition, medium-duty trucks are increasingly being offered with alternative fuel and in electric and hybrid versions.
Technology
The "IT" section of our new product report on Truckinginfo.com consistently had more announcements than any other section. High-tech in-cab computers are now offering everything from traditional communication and tracking to electronic log books
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