The Logistics Managers’ Index showed transportation prices (92.7) remained highly inflationary, up 2.7 percentage points from August. (The LMI is a diffusion index in which a reading above 50 indicates expansion, while one below 50 signals contraction.)

The pricing index has logged readings of 90 or above in five of the past six months. Record diesel fuel prices and heightened regulatory enforcement continue to restrict truck capacity, keeping the index near all-time highs.

Transportation capacity (34.4) experienced “a steep rate of contraction,” falling 5.6 points sequentially. The dataset has signaled contraction for 10 straight months. Transportation utilization (66.1) increased notably, but at a rate that was 4.5 points slower than in the prior month.

Logistics managers surveyed expect the transportation market to remain very tight over the next 12 months, returning future readings of 37.9 for capacity, 70.8 for utilization and 86.1 for pricing.

The overall LMI (70.2) was up 3.6 points in September to the second-highest level in four and a half years. (June’s 71.1 reading was the highest level recorded over that period.)

Inventory levels (58.9) increased 6.1 points, keeping inventory costs elevated at 79.9, 1.3 points above August.

The report said retail inventories are still sitting at the wholesale level of the supply chain. Upstream respondents (wholesalers and manufacturers) returned a 61.4 reading for inventory levels, while downstream respondents (mostly retailers) returned a 53.8 reading.

“This dynamic likely represents a combination of goods being rushed over late due to late-breaking confidence in Q4 consumer spending along with the neo-seasonal trend to only move goods down to retailers in mid-October,” the Tuesday report said.

“This increase likely reflects two things: first, inventories were not overbuilt in summer 2026 to avoid tariffs; second, U.S. consumers have remained strong in the face of inflationary pressures and retailers are building stocks accordingly.”

It also noted that companies have not “finished building up inventories” ahead of the holidays.

Increased inventories pushed warehouse capacity (39.3) 14.2 points lower and into contraction territory. This was the fastest rate of contraction for warehousing space since March 2022, shortly after Russia’s initial invasion of Ukraine. Warehouse capacity was nearly 10 points tighter upstream, where the bulk of the inventories sit.

Warehousing utilization (64.3) increased 4.7 points, with warehouse prices (73.5) continuing to see “robust expansion,” but down 1.5 points sequentially.

Aggregate logistics costs (inventory, warehousing and transportation) totaled 246.1 during the month, up 2.5 points sequentially.

“This is the highest reading for this aggregate metric since April of 2022, when supply-driven inflation was rampant in the wake of both the cessation of COVID-era demand and the invasion of Ukraine,” the report said. “These high costs are putting significant pressure on supply chains and consumers alike.”

The LMI is a collaboration among Arizona State University, Colorado State University, Florida Atlantic University, Rutgers University and the University of Nevada, Reno, conducted with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals.

Why it matters? The Logistics Managers’ Index provides a look at all major supply chain costs. The latest report signals a difficult operating environment for shippers characterized by limited capacity and rising costs.

More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden:

• STG Logistics announces new CEO, board members
• Hub Group reshuffles board amid accounting turmoil
• September’s 54.5 manufacturing PMI comes with inflation concerns

The post Transportation prices surge as capacity tightens further in September appeared first on FreightWaves.

Air Transport Services Group announced last Monday it has agreed to sell Omni Air, a passenger charter and outsourced airline provider, to OAI Holdings and focus on its cargo-related portfolio of airline, leasing, maintenance and logistics services companies. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter or early 2027, subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by regulators. Financial terms were not disclosed.

No details about OAI Holdings or the investors behind the sale were provided. A news release said the new management team brings deep expertise in aviation. An ATSG representative declined to provide additional information. Stonepeak did not respond to repeated messages. 

Stonepeak was under pressure from Chicago politicians to find an Omni Air buyer by Sept. 30 because of its contract with the Department of Homeland Security. The news release made no mention of the parking meter quid pro quo.

OAI Holdings was registered as a business in Nevada on Sept. 22, according to state filings reviewed by FreightWaves — six days before the sale was announced. The company has three officers, including Robert Coretz, who founded Omni Air in 1993 and was its chairman and CEO until 2018, when ATSG bought the company for $845 million. Cortez is currently on the advisory board at Omega Capital Management, and is affiliated with Amtra Capital Partners, an aircraft leasing and management firm — both based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Omni Air is also headquartered in Tulsa.

The Cortez ownership group likely paid less for Omni Air than it originally sold for because it is a distressed asset.

Jude Bricker, who served as CEO of Sun Country Airlines until its sale to Allegiant Travel Co. in May and now sits on Allegiant’s board of directors, is also an officer. The third partner is Robert Waldo, the president of Kaiser-Francis Oil Co., an upstream oil and gas company owned by Kaiser Industries — and based in Tulsa.

OAI Holdings is a private company associated with Rob Coretz, according to the Airline Professionals Association, which represents pilots at Omni Air.

“In many ways, this sale to OAI Holdings appears to be a best-case scenario — a ‘return home’ for Omni and its pilots. In a phone call this morning, Omni President David Ray indicated that Mr. Coretz intends to rebuild, refleet, and grow Omni. And unlike other potential buyers, Mr. Coretz has the track record to make that a reality,” said David Pyers, a pilot and chairman of the Omni Pilots Executive Council, a unit of the Teamsters-affiliated Airline Professionals Association, in a message to members posted on the group’s website.

“For now, we view this as a positive development and are cautiously optimistic about what lies ahead,” he added.

Parking meters behind Omni exit

New York-based Stonepeak acquired ATSG last year when it was still publicly traded. Rather than an attempt to optimize the performance of a portfolio company, Stonepeak was motivated to unload Omni because of opposition to controversial deportation flights for Immigration and Customs Enforcement that threatened to derail a lucrative concession agreement with the city of Chicago, according to city council officials and local media. 

Omni Air has conducted long-range deportation flights for many years, but the number of flights increased last year and included trips to remove immigrants to third countries where they had no ties. 

More than a dozen members of the Chicago City Council declared they would not approve Stonepeak buying operating control of the city’s 36,000 parking meters for $2.53 billion under a 75-year lease unless it sold Omni Air. A Stonepeak official previously told the City Council that the company disagreed with the administration’s deportation policy and was actively trying to sell the company. 

In mid-September, a group of councillors struck a deal to allow the parking meter deal if Omni was sold. Stonepeak also agreed to pay the city $75 million once the sale closes and 5% of its net operating income from the parking meter business annually. 

ATSG is the largest lessor of freighter aircraft in the world, with a fleet that mostly consists of Boeing 767-200 and -300 converted freighters sprinkled in with recent additions of Airbus A321 narrowbody and A330-300 medium-widebody jets. It is best known for owning cargo airlines ABX Air and Air Transport International, which provide the backbone for Amazon Air’s domestic air network and also support DHL Express. It also has a subsidiary that provides aircraft maintenance services.

Omni Air provides charter services for commercial and government customers, including the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security and the New England Patriots football team. Omni also supplies aircraft and operating support to airlines through ACMI wet leasing and offers airline startup, route development and aircraft management services. Omni Air has 11 aircraft in its fleet: eight Boeing 767s and  three 777-200 extended range jets.

Some, if not all of Omni Air’s airframes are owned by Cargo Aircraft Management, an ATSG subsidiary, which leases them to Omni. Nothing in the OAI Holdings sale announcement suggests that OAI Holdings is also purchasing the aircraft.

“This agreement marks an important step for ATSG as it reflects the advancement of our long-term strategy of investing in and building out our core air cargo and related aviation services businesses,” said CEO Greg Mays. “We have been assessing strategic options for Omni for some time given the significant opportunities in air cargo. This transaction allows us to focus our resources more fully on serving that market and related customers. We look forward to continuing to execute on our strategic vision, and are confident that OAI is the right next owner for Omni and their customers as they will benefit from OAI’s decades of proven aviation experience.”

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

RELATED STORIES:

Lessor ATSG quits Airbus A321 cargo conversion joint venture

Stonepeak to buy air cargo company ATSG for $3.1B 

The post Omni Air resold to founder to save $2.5B Chicago parking meter deal appeared first on FreightWaves.

Fabian Schlegel, global head of sales and head of the EMEA region at ZF CVS, said he and Dirk Wohltmann, head of ZF CVS in North America, made the decision in a meeting with executive management in Switzerland the week before the briefing.

“What gives me confidence: trucks and trailers aged brutally over the last years because everyone was cautious on replacement,” Schlegel said. “Mileage is there; trucks are not standing still. You come into the need to replace. Not a bonanza, but a nice increase.”

ZF had planned for a flat U.S. market this year. Demand has climbed sharply since the second quarter, Schlegel said, and ZF plants pulled in up to two months of production ahead of schedule to keep customers supplied.

U.S. demand runs ahead of plan

ZF’s North American business grew 23.7% last year to $1.32 billion in revenue, said Wohltmann, who is based in Auburn Hills, Mich., and also leads R&D for the Americas.

“Good trend upward,” he said of the U.S. market. “Freight is demanding. Fleets starting to update equipment. Uncertainty is the word of the year. Not a tremendous exploding market — a healthy, forward-looking one.”

Asked about tariffs and diesel prices, Wohltmann said, “Challenging, but the market held for a while and now it’s at the point of invest. High diesel even fuels the drive for efficient solutions.”

Wohltmann pointed to ZF’s PowerLine eight-speed automatic, built at its plant in Gray Court, S.C., which is available with Paccar and coming soon to Daimler Truck North America. The company is also pitching an electric trailer built around its AxTrax driven axle, which uses regenerative braking to charge batteries, run a reefer unit, and help push the combination. Fuel savings depend on the use case, he said, and go “way above 10%,” with the best case getting close to 20%.

New business and cash flow

ZF CVS has booked more than €5 billion ($5.7 billion) in lifetime business so far in 2026, according to ZF’s Sept. 15 IAA press release. Schlegel put the division’s win rate in customer acquisitions at more than 90% and described the strategy as profitability over scale.

“We don’t take business at a bad margin,” he said.

Across the group, adjusted free cash flow more than doubled to €989 million ($1.13 billion) in the first half, from €465 million ($530 million) a year earlier, according to ZF’s July 30 half-year results. Schlegel said stronger cash generation let ZF pay back a first tranche of debt in the first half, ahead of its second-half plan.

Hybrid focus shifts to Europe and Japan

TraXon Hybrid was ZF’s lead pitch at IAA. It is built on the TraXon 2 automated manual transmission and reuses parts from ZF’s electrified drivetrain platform. ZF has sold more than 1.5 million TraXon transmissions, all in the heavy class, Schlegel said.

“Leaving politics aside: we had a lead customer in the U.S. very interested,” Schlegel said. “Given the current frame, the U.S. hybridization project is for the moment paused.”

Europe and Japan are the current focus, he said, and ZF is “on the way to sign first customer contracts” for the hybrid. Five days after the briefing, TraXon Hybrid won the Truck Innovation Award 2027 from the International Truck of the Year jury at IAA Transportation, Automotive World reported.

For the U.S., Wohltmann said an electric trailer pulled by a diesel tractor “is already an entry to a hybrid setup.”

“If we can show TCO improvement and ROI around year two, it will get interest in the U.S.,” he said.

The post ZF raises U.S. outlook, pauses hybrid plan for U.S. trucks appeared first on FreightWaves.

Warp runs less-than-truckload and full-truckload freight through a single network and lists Walmart, DoorDash, and Gopuff among its customers. CEO Daniel Sokolovsky founded AxleHire before Warp emerged from stealth in 2022.

“Warp is a fantastic example where we can demonstrate the value of driving next-level efficiency for LTL consolidation, and remind people that hours-of-service benefits do not necessarily need to translate into a coast-to-coast, team-driving unlock,” said Lior Ron, COO of Waabi, in an interview with FreightWaves. “They can also help drive efficiency on a Dallas-Houston corridor, and continuous consolidation and efficiency of the LTL network.”

LTL linehaul often runs slip-seat, with one driver taking a tractor for a shift and the next driver picking it up after. Federal rules cap each driver at 11 hours behind the wheel after 10 consecutive hours off duty.

“Imagine a future where you can run those networks and consolidate on a continuous basis without hours of service, and just drive efficiency and utilization,” Ron said.

Ron said scheduling and balancing those networks gets harder “with what’s happening in the market now, between capacity exiting the market and fuel.” He said demand for autonomy has grown since he last spoke with FreightWaves.

“The value of autonomy grows when you can coordinate the freight around it,” Sokolovsky said in the announcement. “Warp brings together shipments from multiple customers and aligns routes, capacity, and timing, so advances on a single lane can benefit the broader network.”

Driverless Waits on Volvo’s Purpose-Built Truck

Waabi trained its software on a Peterbilt 579 test fleet and moved it to the Volvo VNL Autonomous without retraining this summer. The Volvo truck carries redundancies for six safety-critical systems, according to the announcement.

Ron said Waabi believes a driverless truck should come from an OEM’s factory, fully redundant and validated by the manufacturer.

“Although we are ready, we are choosing not to retrofit our way into driverless, and to wait until Volvo is ready,” Ron said. “The good news is Volvo is on track. You see their public commitments, and we are fully on track for driverless next year, with Volvo as the first OEM platform.”

Volvo expects to begin installing Waabi’s system in the first quarter of 2027, Forbes reported last month.

Opening Lanes Without Retraining

Last month, Waabi’s truck ran the Dallas-San Antonio lane for the first time with zero disengagements. Ron said Waabi maps a new lane with a single truck pass, building a light map the system treats as another safety sensor. The truck gets no autonomy training on the lane, he said.

Waabi has cut the time to open a lane from three months to three weeks, and with San Antonio, to none, Ron said.

“What changes is the ask,” Ron said. Waabi no longer has to ask a shipper whether it has loads moving from Dallas to Houston. It can ask where the shipper’s most acute pain point is, the same conversation Ron said he had with customers at Uber Freight, which he founded and ran as CEO.

“Let’s solve those pain points with autonomy now, versus waiting for autonomy to catch up,” he said.

During a keynote at a supply chain executive conference in Las Vegas last month, Ron asked the audience who had ridden in a Waymo. About three-quarters raised a hand. About half raised a hand when he asked who wants to deploy autonomy in their network in the next three years.

“We’re on track, and we’re seeing massive customer demand,” Ron said. “It’s crazy, because we’re beyond the early adopters now.”

The post Waabi takes its autonomous truck pitch beyond truckload appeared first on FreightWaves.

Preliminary Class 8 net orders totaled 21,300 units in September, an 18% increase from August and 3% higher than the same month last year, according to FTR Transportation Intelligence.

While the month-over-month increase was smaller than the seasonal gain typically seen in September, FTR said underlying truck demand remained “fairly solid,” supported by fleet replacement needs, tight capacity and firmer freight rates.

Year-to-date Class 8 orders totaled 263,499 units through September, up 95% compared with the same period in 2025. Orders over the past 12 months totaled 351,244 units.

Related: Exports of Mexican-made heavy-duty trucks to US roar back

September also represented an important transition for the heavy-duty truck market as manufacturers shifted their order books toward model-year 2027 equipment.

FTR said the EPA 2027 nitrogen oxide emissions-related pre-buy has ended, while surcharge-free model-year 2026 engine production slots are essentially sold out. Some truck manufacturers may have closed their 2026 order books in early to mid-August before opening books for 2027 models, potentially pushing some deferred orders into September.

At the same time, truck and engine manufacturers are taking different approaches to complying with upcoming emissions requirements, including whether to use nonconformance penalties, or NCPs.

The uncertainty could have significant cost implications for fleets.

Dan Moyer, FTR senior analyst for commercial vehicles, said NCPs could result in an estimated $6,000 to $7,000 pass-through cost to fleets for a Class 8 truck, compared with an estimated $8,000 to $12,000 upcharge for an engine that fully complies with the new emissions requirements.

“Truck and engine manufacturers have announced varying strategies for handling the emissions transition, and some have not yet made their plans clear,” Moyer said in a news release.

“The final EPA rule could still materially alter the economics of these strategies. Higher NCPs would narrow the cost advantage of current-generation engines while lower NCPs would make that pathway more attractive. That major issue, along with other potential changes, could affect 2027 engine availability, fleet acquisition costs, and the mix of technologies ultimately selected.” 

Those decisions could ultimately affect engine availability, fleet acquisition costs and the types of engine technologies fleets select for 2027 trucks.

Pricing remains another question for the market. Manufacturers are opening model-year 2027 order books before EPA’s 2027 NOx regulation is finalized, meaning truck prices could change once the final rule is issued.

FTR said orders during the next month or two could remain near year-ago levels until fleets receive greater clarity on regulations and costs.

Why it matters: Truck demand remains relatively firm heading into the 2027 model year, but uncertainty over EPA emissions requirements and the cost of compliant engines could shape fleet purchasing decisions in the months ahead. 

More FreightWaves articles by Noi Mahoney:

• DP World plots US port comeback with Corpus Christi container terminal
• FMCSA restores 30-day HOS relief for truckers during emergencies
• Identity thieves target customs payments in cross-border freight

The post Class 8 truck orders rise 18% in September as fleets turn to 2027 models  appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post C.H. Robinson Buys RXO: History’s Largest Brokerage Deal appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Truckload Spot Rates Keep Rising, But Demand Isn’t… Why? appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Is the Freight Market Finally Turning? appeared first on FreightWaves.

The Port of Corpus Christi, Texas, has signed a lease option agreement with Dubai-based DP World to develop a container terminal capable of eventually handling about 1 million twenty-foot equivalent units annually, according to a port official.

“We’ve signed a lease option agreement with DP World for a development … of a container terminal in the Port,” Jeffrey Pollack, chief strategy and sustainability officer for the Port of Corpus Christi Authority, told the American Journal of Transportation during the American Association of Port Authorities annual convention in New Orleans on Sept. 29.

Corpus Christi currently is not a container port, and Pollack said adding container operations would significantly diversify a cargo base heavily centered on energy.

Pollack said officials envision a relatively modest container operation by the standards of the largest U.S. gateways, with capacity ultimately topping out around 1 million TEUs annually.

Related: Texas ports defy tariff uncertainty with record cargo performance

DP World eyes return to US ports

The agreement represents a significant potential return to U.S. marine terminal operations for DP World.

The company, which is owned by the government of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, became the center of a major political controversy in 2006 after its acquisition of British terminal operator P&O would have transferred P&O’s terminal leases and operations at several major U.S. ports to DP World. 

The deal triggered bipartisan opposition in Congress over national security concerns and ultimately led DP World to divest P&O’s U.S. port operations, according to the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee’s Feb. 28, 2006 hearing, “Security of Terminal Operations at U.S. Ports.” 

DP World ultimately announced in March 2006 that it would divest P&O’s U.S. operations after lawmakers moved to block the transaction. The controversy came despite the George W. Bush administration’s support for the transaction and its position that port security would remain under the responsibility of U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Coast Guard.

The Corpus Christi project would mark DP World’s first U.S. container terminal development since that episode and its first container terminal development on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

DP World is one of the world’s largest terminal operators, handling roughly 10% of global container traffic through more than 60 ports and terminals.

Related: DP World sees big logistics opportunities across Latin America

Corpus Christi looks beyond energy

DP World and the Port of Corpus Christi first announced in June that they had entered exclusive negotiations for a long-term lease. Under the proposed development, DP World would design, build and operate the terminal.

At the time, the parties said negotiations would focus on terminal design, capacity planning and the project’s investment structure.

The project could significantly alter Corpus Christi’s position in Gulf Coast freight markets.

The port is one of the nation’s largest gateways by total tonnage but has historically focused on crude oil, liquefied natural gas, refined petroleum products, agricultural commodities and industrial cargo rather than containers.

More FreightWaves maritime coverage

Corpus Christi also recently acquired about 2,000 acres roughly 8 to 10 miles south of its Inner Harbor that port officials envision as an inland port supporting the proposed container terminal.

Pollack said the property can connect with all three Class I railroads serving the port and multiple interstate highway systems, potentially attracting manufacturing, warehousing and other import-export operations.

The container push comes as Corpus Christi continues posting record overall cargo volumes. Customers moved 110.3 million tons through the Corpus Christi Ship Channel during the first half of 2026, up 7.7% from the previous first-half record of 102.4 million tons set a year earlier.

Why it matters: The project at the Port of Corpus Christi, Texas, would bring DP World back into U.S. container terminal operations two decades after national security concerns in Congress derailed its acquisition of terminal operations at several major American ports.

More FreightWaves articles by Noi Mahoney:

• FMCSA restores 30-day HOS relief for truckers during emergencies
• Identity thieves target customs payments in cross-border freight
• Trump touts truck tariffs at Peterbilt plant in Texas

The post DP World plots US port comeback with Corpus Christi container terminal  appeared first on FreightWaves.

Holmes was with UPS (NYSE: UPS) for 37 years, serving in various roles, including president and CEO of UPS Freight before retiring in 2016. He has served on various boards and in leadership roles at other transportation and logistics companies since. Holmes will also serve on STG’s board.

“The Board selected Holmes for the industry knowledge and operational expertise needed to build on the Company’s financial and operational progress, and to drive its continued growth,” a news release said.

The company also announced Clinton Smith as its interim chief financial officer, succeeding Tyler Holtgreven, and Cherie Schaible as interim general counsel. Smith has over 25 years of financial leadership experience, leading private-equity backed companies through restructurings and integrations.

Anderman was appointed CEO at STG in April 2025. He has been with the asset-based intermodal marketing company in a leadership position since 2017.

The news release credited Anderman and Holtgreven for successfully navigating a Chapter 11 restructuring, which reduced the company’s funded debt by 90%. Anderman will remain at STG as an adviser through the transition. Holtgreven will remain with the company through Nov. 1.

STG also appointed Gary Enzor as its chairman. Enzor has severed as a director on the boards of other transportation and logistics companies. He led Quality Distribution, North America’s largest liquid bulk chemical trucking network, from 2004 up to the 2021 sale of the business to CSX (NASDAQ: CSX).

“Jack has spent his entire career in this industry, from the loading dock to the CEO’s office, and he brings a rare combination of operational depth and experience building and scaling businesses,” Enzor said. “He is the right choice to lead STG as it accelerates growth and continues investing in the business.”

Other transportation and logistics executives—John Labrie, Joe Troy, Dave Ebbrecht and Darren Hawkins—were also named as STG directors. Hawkins led Yellow Corp., which ceased operations in July 2023. The new group joins existing director Tom Donohue.

STG entered a pre-packaged Chapter 11 agreement in January. Under the recapitalization plan, it reduced funded debt by nearly $1 billion and received $150 million in new capital from a group of investors, including Fortress, Fidelity and Invesco.

“On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Geoff and Tyler for their leadership through one of the most pivotal periods in the Company’s history,” Enzor said. “Thanks to their efforts, STG’s new leadership team inherits a strong foundation and real momentum, and we look forward to partnering closely with them to deliver on the significant opportunities ahead.”

Why it matters? STG Logistics’ successful emergence from Chapter 11 restructuring—backed by nearly $1 billion in debt reduction and $150 million in new capital—preserves critical market capacity and stability for the intermodal industry. Furthermore, the appointment of seasoned veterans ensures strong operational expertise, maintaining competitive options for shippers.

More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden:

• Hub Group reshuffles board amid accounting turmoil
• September’s 54.5 manufacturing PMI comes with inflation concerns
• XPO opens new terminals in Phoenix, Kansas City markets

The post STG Logistics announces new CEO, board members appeared first on FreightWaves.

The acquisition strengthens Evri Group’s ability to support customers moving parcels between the UK, Europe by combining the company’s scale with Cross Border Connect’s technology and domestic U.S. delivery expertise, Evri said in a news release on Monday announcing the transaction. It also marks the latest step in Evri’s international growth strategy. 

Evri is gaining access to the U.S. market at a time UK-U.S. e-commerce is one of the fastest growing trade lanes in the world

In mid-2025, DHL eCommerce took a large minority stake in Evri and folded its operations into its partner to create a parcel delivery giant in the U.K. Evri currently moves more than one billion parcels and three billion business letters per year.

The same year, Evri also made a multi-million dollar acquisition for Coll-8, an Ireland-based customs clearance specialist giving it direct access into the Republic of Ireland and enabling broader EU cross-border trade.

CBC, based in Boca Raton, operates an asset-light network that uses a proprietary technology platform to manage pickup and customs clearance at six ports of entry and direct injection of packages at the carrier’s closest hub, allowing retailers and marketplaces to optimize parcel routing by cost, speed and service. Co-founder Chris Lentjes will remain as CEO, Evri said.

Why It Matters: The proliferation of last-mile delivery and cross-border logistics providers in recent years gives shippers more options, but analysts say the industry needs to eventually consolidate and sort out the strongest companies. And more parcel operators like Evri are looking to expand into other markets.

“This acquisition is an important step in the continued growth of Evri’s international business. Cross Border Connect brings deep expertise in the U.S. market, strong carrier relationships and innovative technology that enables customers to improve cross-border delivery speed and achieve cost reductions of up to 30%,” said Evri Chief Commercial Officer David Saenz. “Combined with CBC’s established network, integrated customs capabilities and Evri’s best-in-class air freight rates, customers will have even greater flexibility to make smarter shipping decisions and optimize their international delivery operations.”

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

Write to Eric Kulisch at ekulisch@freightwaves.com.

RELATED STORIES:

DHL eCommerce to merge with UK courier Evri

CMA CGM finalizes $1.4B acquisition of FedEx Supply Chain

FedEx and UPS highlight parcel security, risk management tools

The post UK parcel carrier Evri to enter US delivery market with acquisition  appeared first on FreightWaves.

In a move that may have been foreshadowed by strong upward stock movement Thursday and Friday, C.H. Robinson, the country’s biggest 3PL, is getting a lot bigger by acquiring RXO.

The transaction was announced Monday morning. 

RXO’s (NYSE: RXO) stock price had risen sharply Thursday and Friday, with it rising Friday by $2.02, a gain of 9.46% to $23.38. 

Under the terms of the deal, RXO shareholders will receive $17.25 per share in cash and 0.0856 shares of C.H. Robinson (NASDAQ: CHRW) for one share of RXO. According to the C.H. Robinson release on the transaction, given the closing C.H. Robinson price of $157.72 per share on Friday, that puts the value of each RXO share at $30.25 per share.

At approximately 7:20 a.m., after the deal was announced, C.H. Robinson’s shares in pre-market trading were down 4.89% to $150, a drop of $7.72, while RXO’s shares were up 21.86% to $28.49/share, a gain of $5.11. 

“The acquisition of RXO brings together two complementary networks and diversifies and strengthens C.H. Robinson’s multi-modal platform to accelerate its growth and increase its penetration across all modes and segments,” C.H. Robinson said in the prepared statement announcing the deal. “Combining both companies’ robust trucking brokerage and managed transportation businesses, along with C.H. Robinson’s global forwarding and RXO’s strengths in expedited and last mile, will create a more comprehensive offering for customers across a larger and denser network.”

This is a developing story,

More articles by John Kingston

FMCSA’s Elison: ‘weeks’ away from fixing Motus user experience

Daimler Truck: concerned about using cash to avoid new NoX rules

For transportation cybersecurity, AI isn’t helping fight..so far

The post UPDATE: C.H. Robinson acquisition of RXO may give a jolt to industry consolidation appeared first on FreightWaves.

Customers can put ISEE’s system on trucks they already own, on trucks leased from Holman or on autonomous-ready vehicles supplied by ISEE. Trucks will be retrofitted and integrated before delivery, with Holman’s financing and fleet management services behind them, according to ISEE’s announcement.

Debbie Yu, president and co-founder of ISEE, said customers don’t always have a fleet ready to automate.

“First of all, you have to figure out where to get the truck. Either buy it, or lease it, or rent it,” Yu said in an interview with FreightWaves. “Then we have to retrofit the truck with our autonomy kit, deploy to the customer site, do the maintenance, and run the yard.”

Most of that list involves no software at all.

Doing retrofits in-house would have meant hiring many more technicians, work Yu said falls outside ISEE’s expertise. Holman has done truck retrofitting for years and runs a nationwide network of shops and technicians alongside its leasing business, she said.

Holman launched Holman Robotics, a unit that pairs financing with lifecycle management for robotic equipment, in December 2025.

“By combining Holman’s robot fleet leasing and management infrastructure with ISEE’s autonomous technology, we can provide customers with a practical solution covering the full vehicle lifecycle,” said Joe Foster, Holman’s vice president of robotics, in a statement.

From pilots to fleets

ISEE did not need a large fleet or much retrofit capacity while it was running prototypes and pilots, Yu said. She described the company as now at an inflection point, with multiple F100 customers interested in deploying over thousands autonomous yard truck fleets with ISEE over the next couple of years. 

Retrofits and factory builds

Retrofits cover trucks already in service. New units come through OEMs, including terminal tractor maker TICO, which partnered with ISEE in April 2025.

“Not just retrofitting. We also need to do factory-built units through the TICO collaboration, starting from 2027,” Yu said.

That timing matches the 2027 serial production target FreightWaves reported in June. ISEE will also keep working with other yard truck OEMs on new diesel, alternative-fuel and electric models, according to the release.

Yu said retrofits let operators of yard trucks already working in customer yards automate sooner.

Demand is rising as manufacturing, data centers and infrastructure grow in the United States, Yu said, including from enterprise customers “that we never imagined before.”

“We believe it’s critical to actually align the partnership quickly,” she said.

The post ISEE partners with investor Holman on autonomous yard trucks appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Triumph Financial CEO on Freight Credit Risk appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Ocean Freight Risk: Late Is Now the Likely Outcome appeared first on FreightWaves.

A final rule published Monday restores the automatic exemption period from 14 days to 30 days following a regional emergency declaration by a state governor, a governor’s authorized representative or FMCSA.

The rule, which took effect Monday, reverses a change FMCSA made in 2023 that shortened the automatic exemption period from 30 days to 14 days.

FMCSA said returning to the longer period should reduce administrative burdens associated with seeking extensions when disaster recovery operations last more than two weeks.

The exemption is intended for commercial motor vehicles providing direct assistance in response to a declared emergency and is aimed at restoring essential services and supplies.

It provides relief from federal HOS regulations under 49 CFR 395.3 and 395.5. FMCSA emphasized that the exemption is limited to vehicles directly assisting with the emergency rather than serving as a blanket HOS waiver for trucking operations in an affected region.

The 30-day period also represents a maximum automatic exemption rather than a guaranteed month of relief. If the emergency declaration lasts less than 30 days, the exemption ends when the emergency period ends. FMCSA retains authority to extend an exemption beyond 30 days when necessary.

FMCSA reverses 2023 change

FMCSA shortened the automatic regional emergency exemption from 30 days to 14 days in an October 2023 final rule.

The agency reconsidered that decision after receiving petitions challenging the shorter period. In January, FMCSA proposed restoring the 30-day exemption and received 17 comments during a 60-day comment period.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, National Propane Gas Association, Gases and Welding Distributors Association, National Energy & Fuels Institute, Shippers Coalition and Montana Department of Transportation were among those supporting the proposal.

Transportation departments in Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming also jointly supported the change.

National Tank Truck Carriers neither supported nor opposed the proposal, saying it would likely have limited practical effect on the tank truck industry.

One individual opposed restoring the 30-day period, arguing that keeping the exemption at 14 days would ensure more frequent reviews of whether emergency relief remained necessary.

FMCSA rejected that argument, saying the shorter period had created administrative problems and that restoring 30 days would reduce those burdens while maintaining safe operations.

The five state transportation departments supporting the rule told FMCSA that there was “no record of adverse safety effects” from emergency HOS regulatory relief.

Another commenter advocated extending the automatic exemption to 90 days, but FMCSA rejected that proposal.

The agency said its experience shows regional emergency exemptions rarely need more than 30 days to restore essential services and supplies. FMCSA can separately extend emergency exemptions beyond 30 days when needed.

Fewer extension requests expected

FMCSA expects the change to reduce the number of requests for extensions rather than substantially alter the economic impact of its emergency regulations.

The agency estimates returning to the 30-day period will reduce annual extension requests from about 50 to 25.

FMCSA projects the change will lower the annual industry burden associated with extension requests to 6.25 hours and $533. Government review costs are estimated at $896 annually.

Combined, FMCSA estimates eliminating about 25 extension requests each year will save carriers and the federal government approximately $1,429 annually.

Why it matters: The longer window gives carriers responding to hurricanes, floods, wildfires and other declared emergencies more time to move essential supplies and restore services without having to seek an extension after two weeks.

The post FMCSA restores 30-day HOS relief for truckers during emergencies appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post September PMI Numbers & Their Impact on the Industrial Economy appeared first on FreightWaves.

The companies are seeking to preserve the late-2026 closing target, but Israeli maritime-security requirements and a new shareholder challenge have added uncertainty to the deal’s path.

Hapag-Lloyd Chief Executive Rolf Habben Jansen said Oct. 2 that government objections voiced by Israel’s Finance Ministry and GCA concerned the initial proposal, rather than the strengthened structure now being developed with private equity specialist FIMI. The carrier said it would submit and explain the revised plan to Israeli authorities in the coming weeks.

“The positions presented … relate to our original proposal and do not take into account the significant improvements that have since been made to the proposed structure,” Habben Jansen said. He said the companies believe the revised plan addresses Israel’s national-security concerns and can “pave the way for approval.”

Security safeguards drive revisions

The acquisition agreement announced in February calls for Hapag-Lloyd of Germany to pay $35 per Zim (NYSE: ZIM) share in cash, valuing the Israeli carrier’s equity at approximately $4.2 billion. Zim shareholders have already approved the merger, but closing remains contingent on government and regulatory clearances, including consent tied to Israel’s “golden share.”

The deal would expand ocean container capacity for Hapag-Lloyd, ranked fifth among global carriers by Alphaliner, from 2.4 million to 3.1 million container units, but not enough to lift it into the top four.  

The original plan would place Zim’s international operations under Hapag-Lloyd while FIMI, an Israeli private-equity firm, establishes a separate Israeli liner operator, referred to as New Zim or Zim Israel. That entity would inherit the obligations associated with the golden share, intended to protect Israel’s access to shipping capacity and strategic maritime services during emergencies.

Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI’s revised package is designed to strengthen that Israeli successor business. Measures outlined publicly include an additional shipping route linking Israel and Asia; a new, modern fleet for Zim Israel; and stronger protections related to strategic cargoes and Israel’s maritime independence.

Potentially stricter foreign-ownership triggers are also included; reports indicate government scrutiny and golden-share protections could begin at 10% ownership rather than 24%.

The Israeli entity would also receive 16 vessels, above the 11-vessel requirement associated with the existing golden-share framework.

Fresh process—and shareholder question

The Israeli regulator’s decision to halt review of the original structure means the revamped proposal will not simply resume where the earlier assessment stopped. Any material change requires a new application and review, making the Israeli approval process the principal remaining obstacle to completion.

The deal also faces a governance issue. A shareholder group representing more than 10% of Zim’s shares has called for another shareholder vote if the revised arrangement is materially different from the transaction approved earlier this year. The group argues that board approval alone would be inadequate for a substantially altered deal structure, although reporting to date has not established that Israeli law or the merger agreement legally requires a second vote.

The distinction matters. Hapag-Lloyd and Zim can contend that the purchase price and merger agreement remain intact while the FIMI/New Zim carve-out is strengthened to satisfy the state. Dissenting shareholders may argue that changes to the assets, governance and state-share protections amount to a revised transaction deserving renewed investor approval.

Strategic stakes for liner shipping

Under the February announcement, the combined organization would operate more than 400 vessels, have more than 3 million TEUs of capacity and carry more than 18 million TEUs annually. Hapag-Lloyd also projected broader coverage in the trans-Pacific, intra-Asia, Atlantic, Latin America and East Mediterranean trades, with its Gemini Cooperation network with Maersk (OTC: AMKBY) complementing Zim’s service portfolio.

For U.S. shippers, the near-term effect remains limited because the carriers are required to operate separately until a closing. Longer term, Zim would give Hapag-Lloyd added exposure to Asian import services serving the U.S. West Coast, East Coast and Pacific Northwest/Canadian gateway routings used for Midwest cargo.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

Read more:

Dockworkers protest at Port of Vancouver over automation, AI

Savannah port project passes 60% complete mark

New California law clouds Trump-backed Oakland coal export terminal project

Port of Oakland August volumes fall year over year as exports edge up from July

Ocean rates highest in a year amid US-China trade truce

The post Hapag-Lloyd’s Zim takeover heads for reset as Israel requires new review appeared first on FreightWaves.

The Austin, Texas-based company will distribute SmartHop through financial, insurance and logistics partners that together reach tens of thousands of trucking companies. Platforms run by those partners see more than 40,000 weekly active users, according to Optimus.

Optimus is repackaging SmartHop as a white-label developer kit that drops into apps carriers already use, said Ed Stockman, founder and CEO of Optimus, in an interview with FreightWaves.

In a pitch to partners, Stockman noted the free digital dispatch tool allows them to put their own logo and branding on it for use in their existing app. It’ll allow carriers already logged in to manage their trucks, find and book loads among other things

In return, Optimus gets the shipment activity. “All of that data runs through our pipes and helps build the simulations for the physical economy,” he said.

The partners that supply Optimus with data, including financial and insurance institutions, all want to get “stickier” with their carriers, he said. All of them have evaluated buying and building digital dispatch companies, he added.

SmartHop Data Feeds the Freight Model

The data goes into the Freight Intelligence Graph, a digital twin of the U.S. freight network that Optimus previewed in August. The model is designed to show how disruptions and structural changes affect freight flows. Optimus said its existing data network covers a substantial portion of the U.S. full truckload market and is months away from critical mass.

Stockman said SmartHop “ties in carrier transactions that we wouldn’t otherwise have,” especially from small and midsize fleets. Those carriers are budget constrained, he said, and every tool that charges them is another expense that cuts into their profitability.

Stockman said SmartHop spent tens of millions of dollars developing the software and built “a hell of a product that got great reviews from the carrier community.” SmartHop, led by co-founder and CEO Guillermo Garcia, had raised $16.5 million through its Series A round in February 2021, FreightWaves reported at the time.

The data the company wants is the movement of freight: where it originates, where it goes, when it moves and how those patterns change, according to the release.

“The rates negotiated on individual loads and the identities of the parties doing business with one another are not the purpose of this effort and in many cases, are redacted from our models,” Stockman said in the announcement.

Brokers Pay for the Data

Building the model is expensive, Stockman said, and he sees two ways to pay for it.

“One is to have a top-tier pedigree, where you have exited for billions of dollars and somebody is willing to write you blank checks. That’s certainly one way. That’s not me,” he said. “The other possibility is you’re able to show proof that people are willing to pay for your tool that the data sits on.”

Optimus’ proof is its brokerage product. The software runs against a broker’s TMS, identifies what the brokerage already does well and returns shippers to target, with contact names, emails, phone numbers and a sales pitch. A broker strong in automotive freight into Detroit, in Stockman’s example, gets a list of 14 other shippers it should be calling. Stockman said the software gives brokers “all the answers to the test.”

He said the data has generated tens of millions of dollars in new gross revenue for Optimus customers.

Modeling a Houston Hurricane

Stockman pointed to Optimus’ simulation of a hurricane hitting Houston. When he drilled into one affected shipper, he said, its Seattle fulfillment center drew its inventory from Houston, moving it through Los Angeles and Portland, Ore., before it reached Seattle.

“So if there is no Houston to L.A., and there is no L.A. to Portland, and there is no Portland to Seattle, that Seattle distribution center winds up completely stranded,” he said.

He listed retailers, manufacturers, brokers, carriers and insurers as potential users of that kind of modeling. Many insurance companies are trying to move into dynamic coverage written on a per-load basis, he said.

The post Optimus Technology acquires SmartHop Freight Platform appeared first on FreightWaves.

Long Beach, California–Numerous speakers at the cybersecurity conference of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association here talked about the need for cooperation to fight cybercrooks. That same theme was heard a year ago at the 2025 version of the NMFTA’s conference.

The discussion last year led to action: the creation of the NMFTA’s Threat Report Portal, where companies that are either victims of a cybersecurity breach or who saw one coming and fought it off can share their experiences…anonymously.

Ben Wilkens is the director of cybersecurity at NMFTA and steered the launch of the portal in May. That was a soft start, but the portal is now fully operational. It is open to anybody who registers. 

Wilkens, in an interview on the sidelines of the NMFTA conference, said the group would like to see more volume.

Nobody will kow your name

He also wanted to stress the anonymous nature of the threats that are posted in the portal.

Wilkens used two abbreviations to describe what the portal is looking for: TTP, for Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures, and IOC for Indicator of Compromise.  Microsoft has described the latter as “evidence that someone may have breached an organization’s network or endpoint.”

Some of the evidence that a “threat actor” might be behind activity, Wilkens said, could be “file hashes and things like that, specific IP addresses, things that can be used in a detection method.”

“The thought was, what if there was somewhere where we could share this, and it would go out to everyone in the industry,” Wilkens said of the preliminary discussion setting up the threat portal. “We see these bad actors, they use a technique on one carrier. If it doesn’t work, they just go to the next carrier and they use the exact same playbook.”

Sharing that playbook is seen as the defense against future attacks, according to Wilkens. 

The anonymous nature of the portal deals with an issue that came up from the beginning. “One of the concerns we had is that we didn’t want people to feel like they’re kind of exposing themselves to, hey, this happened to our organization,” Wilkens said. The decision to have the information anonymous was made quickly in the process.

Vetting process before publication

Reports that come in about a cybersecurity attack are vetted by NMFTA before being published on the portal, Wilkens said. 

“We will anonymize them,” Wilkens said. “We strip out all the identifying information. And then as soon as we’ve vetted the incident, we share it out with the entire community.”

He likened it to crowd sourcing. 

Incidents that are reported through the portal are “never automatically shared out,” Wilkens said. “It’s always reviewed by one of us on the team. We verify, is this legit?”

The review could take as little as an hour but could go on longer, Wilkens said. “We make sure that this informs the community in some meaningful way, and then once we go through those processes, then we can publish.”

The vetting process can be quicker for companies NMFTA knows and has built a relationship with “because we already trust the source,” Wilkens said.

After general discussion of something like the threat portal at the 2025 cybersecurity conference, Wilkens said the staff at NFMTA developed it over the early part of the first months of the year. In the second quarter, he said, NMFTA conducted what he described as a “small beta test with a core group of those carriers who were involved in the conversation,” with the test revealing “tweaks” that needed to be made.

The full portal was released to the public in May.

Numbers are solid so far

There were 100 registrants to the portal by early June. “We were already good,” Wilkens said. “We have a really interesting range. We have some of the biggest shippers and 3PLs, both domestically and internationally. So we’re getting a lot of traction.” Wilkens added that some of the registrants include small carriers.

The dilemma is not surprising. “Polling people, they want to get the information, but the problem is getting people to share their information back in to the portal,” Wilkens said. He described the current stream of information as “regular, but we would like to see a higher number.”

“We all focus on building the walls around our organization to protect ourselves and really understanding the security aspect,” Wilkens said, in what could almost be described as a mission statement for the portal. “What we need to also think about is what’s happening outside that wall? What’s happening in our neighbor’s environment that’s either successful or that they’ve defended against? And sharing these near misses is equally as important as sharing the incidents that are successful, because the next carrier or the next broker may not have the same defenses in place, and so that technique that failed in your organization may actually work elsewhere.”

More articles by John Kingston

FMCSA’s Elison: ‘weeks’ away from fixing Motus user experience

Daimler Truck: concerned about using cash to avoid new NoX rules

For transportation cybersecurity, AI isn’t helping fight..so far

The post Cybersecurity portal to fight bad guys open for business: NMFTA appeared first on FreightWaves.

Identity thieves target customs payments in cross-border freight

Identity theft and digital fraud are emerging as growing threats to cross-border freight operations, with Mexican trade officials warning that criminals are impersonating companies and customs brokers to steal payments associated with international shipments.

Javier Cendejas, president of the Mexican Council for Foreign Trade’s Northeast chapter, or COMCE Noreste, said the organization has recently encountered identity-theft cases affecting importers and exporters during customs operations, during a news conference on Sept. 28 according to El Norte.

In one case, a foreign trade company made an electronic payment that it believed was going to a legitimate customs agency. Instead, a third party had stolen identities connected to the transaction and impersonated both the importer and customs broker, Cendejas said.

Fraudsters can create internet domains resembling those of legitimate companies, impersonate executives and send messages claiming that banking information for a transaction has changed, according to Candejas.

Criminals may also possess enough information about an actual shipment or transaction to make the fraudulent request appear legitimate. 

The risk is amplified by the time-sensitive nature of cross-border freight. Importers may receive urgent requests for money to release cargo or avoid storage charges, creating pressure on employees to authorize transfers quickly.

“This urgency can lead a treasury employee to make a transfer without verifying it through a second channel,” Cendejas said.

Advance payments to customs brokers represent a particular vulnerability, he said. Those payments can cover handling, storage, pre-validation, transportation, third-party services and other expenses associated with clearing freight through customs.

The warning comes as identity-based fraud increasingly affects the broader freight industry.

A 2026 report from identity-verification company IDScan.net found attempted identity fraud in U.S. cargo and logistics operations increased 213% from 2023 to 2024, rising from 0.53% of transactions to 1.66%. The rate increased another 30% in 2025 to 2.15%, according to an analysis of more than 1 million identity-verification transactions.

The methods extend beyond payment fraud. FreightWaves reported in June that organized theft groups are using stolen carrier identities, spoofed emails and fraudulent driver’s licenses to arrange fictitious pickups and divert shipments.

Industry experts said criminals can monitor communications between shippers and carriers and use information about legitimate loads to make fraudulent transactions appear authentic. 

Mexico has also been tightening verification requirements surrounding foreign trade. Customs agents are required to maintain electronic files containing identification, contact, tax and other information for customers requesting foreign-trade operations, according to a release from Mexican authorities.

For importers and exporters, Cendejas said one safeguard is relatively simple: requests to change banking information should be independently verified through a second communications channel before money is transferred.

LEGO invests $400M to expand Mexico manufacturing operation

LEGO Group plans to invest $400 million to expand its manufacturing complex in Ciénega de Flores, Nuevo León, Mexico, adding more than 1,300 jobs and new production and warehousing capacity, according to Mexico Business News.

The investment, equivalent to about 8.6 billion Mexican pesos, will be deployed through 2029 at LEGO’s complex in Ciénega de Flores, north of Monterrey. Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard announced the project Sept. 24 during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning press conference.

The project calls for a new packing building and high-capacity automated warehouse totaling about 62,000 square meters of additional industrial infrastructure.

The Ciénega de Flores operation is LEGO’s largest manufacturing facility worldwide and has operated for nearly two decades. LEGO has expanded the site several times in recent years as part of a strategy of locating production closer to major markets, shortening supply chains and responding more quickly to changes in regional demand.

The expansion could also generate additional freight and supplier activity in northern Mexico. More than 90% of the inputs used by LEGO’s Mexican operation are already sourced domestically, according to Nancy Sánchez, the company’s general manager and senior vice president of Americas Manufacturing.

LEGO expects to increase its Mexican supplier base by about 30% as a result of the expansion. 

Wafra invests in Houston-area rail-served logistics park

Alternative investment firm Wafra Inc. has invested in Liberty Development Partners and two of its principal assets as the companies look to expand rail-served industrial infrastructure in the Houston region.

New York-based Wafra announced Wednesday that funds it advises invested in Liberty, Gulf Inland Logistics Park and CMC Railroad, according to a news release. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

Gulf Inland is a roughly 3,900-acre industrial development in Dayton, Texas, northeast of Houston. The park connects with Union Pacific and BNSF Railway through CMC Railroad, which provides switching services and storage capacity for more than 1,000 railcars.

The development also has access to U.S. Highway 90 and State Highway 99.

The investment will provide capital to accelerate development at Gulf Inland while helping Liberty pursue additional rail-served infrastructure and industrial projects.

Liberty’s existing management team will continue operating and developing Gulf Inland and CMC Railroad following the Wafra investment.

Why it matters: The cases show how identity-based freight fraud is expanding beyond fictitious cargo pickups into the financial transactions required to keep cross-border shipments moving.

The post Borderlands Mexico: Identity thieves target customs payments in cross-border freight appeared first on FreightWaves.

Chart of the Week: Accepted SONAR Tender Volume Index, National Truckload Index – USA  SONAR: ASTVI.USA, NTI.USA

The truckload market is giving mixed signals. Spot rates are rising quickly, but the freight carriers are actually moving is not. The Accepted SONAR Truckload Volume Index (ASTVI) measures the volume of contracted loads that carriers accept. It has fallen nearly 3% over the past week to 9,574, below its 12-month average of 9,872. Meanwhile, the National Truckload Index (NTI), which measures dry van spot rates including fuel, climbed back to $3.53 per mile. That’s more than 10% above its late-August low and roughly 50% higher than at this time last year.

A rapid decline in accepted tenders paired with rising spot rates is rare outside of a major holiday. During holidays, accepted tenders fall and rejections rise because many drivers take time off, which pushes spot rates higher. This time, though, rejection rates have fallen along with accepted tenders, dropping from 14.6% on September 19 to 13.78% on October 1.

When accepted tenders and rejections fall together, demand is usually easing, and spot rates normally fall too. Timing can drive a disconnect between contracted tenders and spot rates, and that may be partly true here. Tenders are typically placed three to four days ahead of pickup, while spot loads average less than two days of lead time, so tenders tend to move ahead of spot rates. But timing gaps usually wash out within a few days, and this divergence between spot rates and rejection rates lasted most of September.

Another possibility is that rejections haven’t eased enough to pull spot rates down. At 13.8%, rejection rates are still too high for most shippers to be comfortable.

Neither explanation is fully convincing, since spot rates and rejection rates moved closely together over the summer. Sharply rising diesel costs are likely another reason the two have disconnected.

Fuel prices aren’t always closely tied to spot rates, because whether capacity is loose or tight outweighs nearly every change in operating costs. Rates rose in June while retail fuel prices fell, then fell in July while fuel costs rose. But fuel prices climbed sharply through September, and that strains carriers’ cash flow because expenses rise before revenue catches up. Many carriers aren’t paid until after delivery, and some wait days or weeks after that. In the meantime, rising costs eat into their available cash.

When this happens, spot rates react with a noticeable lag, because carriers can’t see future fuel prices any better than anyone else can.

Even as demand slips, the market is still tight enough for carriers to pass fuel cost inflation through to shippers. That doesn’t necessarily mean the market is getting tighter. It means operating costs are rising and the existing market conditions allow rates to rise.

About the Chart of the Week

The FreightWaves Chart of the Week is a chart selection from SONAR that provides an interesting data point to describe the state of the freight markets. A chart is chosen from thousands of potential charts on SONAR to help participants visualize the freight market in real time. Each week a Market Expert will post a chart, along with commentary, live on the front page. After that, the Chart of the Week will be archived on FreightWaves.com for future reference.

SONAR aggregates data from hundreds of sources, presenting the data in charts and maps and providing commentary on what freight market experts want to know about the industry in real time.

The FreightWaves data science and product teams are releasing new datasets each week and enhancing the client experience.

To request a SONAR demo, click here.

The post Truckload’s mixed signals appeared first on FreightWaves.

The company folded its military work into a single global brand, Daimler Truck Defence, in June. It plans to invest what it calls a mid-three-digit million-euro sum over the coming years and is targeting €1 billion in defense revenue by 2028, according to an announcement earlier in June. About 1,000 employees work in the business today, and Daimler expects that number to grow, particularly at its Wörth am Rhein plant in Germany.

“Scaling is one of the key challenges in the defense industry these days,” said Dennis Kinzelmann, CEO of Daimler Truck Defence and head of Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks, during a media roundtable at IAA Transportation in Hanover, Germany.

“Unfortunately, with the, I would say, full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, it has shown, especially in Europe, that Western societies and governments have to be prepared for widespread and longer-lasting conflicts,” Kinzelmann said. “This means that we also have to have the ability to provide the right equipment at the right time and also at the scale that is needed.”

Two large programs anchor the order book. In January, France’s Ministry of the Armed Forces selected Daimler Truck and French partner Arquus to build trucks for its PL6T program, with deliveries running more than 10 years, Daimler Truck said at the time. Daimler builds the chassis at Wörth and at Molsheim, France. Arquus handles militarization, protected cabs and integration at its French sites. Kinzelmann said the framework covers up to 7,000 Zetros-based trucks.

“This will basically be the new platform for the land forces of France, with very different applications,” Kinzelmann said.

In Canada, Daimler is supplying more than 1,500 Zetros logistics trucks to the Logistics Vehicle Modernization program, where General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada is the prime contractor and Marshall Canada builds mission modules, according to the company’s 2024 award announcement. The chassis are built at Wörth and shipped to Canada, where Kinzelmann said partners add the bodies and a “substantial” share of local content.

Germany’s Bundeswehr has also ordered military logistics vehicles in the three-digit unit range, according to the June release. France will most likely become the unit’s largest defense customer on the strength of the PL6T award, Kinzelmann said, “closely followed by Canada,” with Germany “still on a very important level.”

Civil Parts on Military Trucks

The defense lineup runs from the Unimog at the light end through the Zetros to the Arocs, a severe-duty vocational truck Daimler sells in Europe. The Arocs runs in applications above 100 tons gross combination weight, Kinzelmann said, and the lineup covers “from 10 tons to 100 tons.”

On a military Arocs, Daimler shares the axles, some transmissions, the engine and the cab design with the civil version. Kinzelmann estimated the shared content could run “north of 70, 80 percent,” while noting he had not counted the parts. Tailored military equipment makes up the rest.

“Those vehicles and the components that we use typically have been deployed a hundred thousand times already, so well established in the field,” he said.

Capacity is the other half of the pitch. “Once you’re going to see the Wörth plant, it’s one of the largest truck plants in the world,” Kinzelmann said. “We can switch quite flexibly the volumes depending on the situation.”

A Service Network for Decades-Long Fleets

Defense customers typically keep vehicles in service for 20 to 30 years, Kinzelmann said, so each order has to ship with the aftersales support to keep those trucks running. Daimler Truck’s aftersales network spans more than 160 countries, and he said the defense unit uses that civil parts backbone to move spares with the same speed as the commercial side.

The Unimog, which turns 80 this year, is the durability case Kinzelmann reaches for. Argentina placed new Unimog orders, and when the country’s defense minister visited Wörth, the delegation showed him photos of Unimogs from the 1960s and 1970s still running in Argentina.

“I asked my engineers, how long does a Unimog last?” Kinzelmann said. “And they say, we don’t know because we’ve only been building it for 80 years.”

Procurement Still Runs Country by Country

“It’s still very much a national procurement effort in Europe,” Kinzelmann said. He said he hopes for more European alignment over time to close capability gaps faster.

Where Daimler lacks a capability, it partners, as it did with Arquus in France and GDLS in Canada. Kinzelmann named Rheinmetall among the established defense players in Europe and said Scandinavian truck manufacturers also supply military vehicles.

“To us it’s probably less about competition, but more also about team sport, especially in Europe,” he said. “We need the capabilities now.”

In the U.S., Kinzelmann said, buyers are moving toward what they call commercial off-the-shelf procurement, which for Daimler means a baseline truck already in production that the company can modify and integrate with partners’ equipment.

“It’s always easier to start with what you have available and what might be requested on top of it, instead of just sending a 600-page spec book and then try to meet each and everything,” he said.

Every page a buyer drops from the spec book is a part Daimler can pull from a civil line.

Unmanned Work and the U.S. Market

Daimler Truck Defence also starts development before a tender exists when it judges a capability strategically relevant. Unmanned trucks are the current example. The unit works with partners and already offers its first remote-controlled vehicles, with teleoperation and then full autonomy to follow on what Kinzelmann called a mid-term timeline. He did not give a year.

“We’re convinced that unmanned definitely is one of the fields, especially on the defense side, to protect lives where we want to contribute,” he said.

Daimler sells into Ukraine now, and Kinzelmann said most of those vehicles are Zetros trucks. On the U.S. military, he said the country is one of many markets the unit is assessing and that the company does not discuss tenders or deals that have not been announced.

“A product is not just the new vehicle,” Kinzelmann said. “It’s the whole ecosystem around it, including the after-sales, spare parts, partner ecosystem, technology development that we do globally.”

The post Daimler Truck Defence sells scale to armies short on trucks appeared first on FreightWaves.

The figures come from the October edition of the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index – Rates Edition, which the bank produces with DAT Freight & Analytics. The quarterly report breaks out spot, contract and fuel costs per mile, and this edition covers June through August.

Spot linehaul fell to $2.17 a mile in August from $2.35 in July and $2.38 in June. Contract linehaul moved the other way, rising from $2.30 in June to $2.38 in July and $2.39 in August. The index shows contract gaining every month since April.

In June, spot ran 8 cents above contract. The report’s authors wrote that the gap now opening in contract’s favor suggests shippers continue to value committed capacity while transactional freight absorbs more of the market’s weakness.

The report also ties the gap to trucking supply: capacity continues to exit the market faster than freight demand is declining. American Trucking Associations Chief Economist Bob Costello said “the industry is seeing a recovery, but that is nearly all due to excess capacity leaving the market,” according to an August column in Fleet Owner that the report cites.

Both rates remain well above last year. Spot linehaul in August was up 35.6% from August 2025, when it averaged $1.60 a mile, and contract was up 20.1% from $1.99. The index’s previous edition showed spot up 31% year over year in May.

Fuel offsets part of the spot decline

“Fuel costs are increasing while linehaul pricing is softening, making it important for transportation teams to closely analyze the components of their freight spend,” said Jeff Pape, head of transportation for U.S. Bank Corporate Payment Systems, in the release.

Fuel surcharges rose to $0.70 a mile in August from $0.62 in July, a 13% increase, according to the index. With fuel included, spot rates fell 3.4% to $2.87 a mile, while contract rose to $3.09 from $3.00.

“Stable rates do not necessarily mean stable transportation costs,” said Jennifer Bullock, freight audit and analytics manager at CommScope, in the report. “Shippers need to separate fuel from linehaul to understand where pricing pressure is actually changing.”

“Fuel made up about 21% of the per-mile broker-to-shipper spot rate on dry van loads in June,” said Patrick Pretorius, general manager of DAT’s shipper segment. “By August, it was 24%, and diesel is trending higher into the fall.”

FreightWaves reported last month that rising diesel costs could push more trucking capacity out of the market in the fourth quarter, as carrier operating margins remain below prior-cycle peaks.

“Higher fuel costs push smaller, thinner-margin carriers out of the market, which adds to an already shrinking driver pool,” Pretorius said.

Load counts slip in August

Spot loads in the index fell 3.2% in August to 1,264,897 from 1,306,819 in July, and contract loads fell 1.3% to 740,249 from 750,371.

The August declines followed sharper swings in May and June: spot loads fell 15.4% in May to 1,110,784, then rebounded 22.4% in June to 1,359,852.

Contract loads were down 27.7% from 1,024,398 in August 2025. Spot loads were down 5.7% from 1,341,626 over the same period.

“Shippers who’ve spent two years squeezing rate per mile would do well to shift focus to consolidation and network planning, as the market is tightening from two directions at once,” Pretorius added.

The post U.S. Bank: Contract rates open 22-cent gap over spot freight appeared first on FreightWaves.

Liles, 44, rode a department-issued motorcycle northbound when the collision occurred south of Avenue 152. CHP placed the initial incident around 5:11 p.m. near State Route 190. Authorities have not released additional circumstances explaining what led to the impact. The agency identified the death as occurring while Liles worked on duty.

More than 16 years with CHP

Liles served California communities for more than 16 years after graduating from the CHP Academy in 2010. His first assignment took him to the San Jose Area. He later worked in Hayward and Fresno before transferring to Visalia during 2019. In December 2025, he joined that office’s first group of motorcycle officers after completing specialized training.

Gov. Gavin Newsom honored Liles following the fatal crash. “Officer Brian Liles dedicated his life to serving our communities,” Newsom stated. The governor called his death a heartbreaking loss for CHP and California. State officials lowered flags at the Capitol and Capitol Annex Swing Space to half-staff.

Liles became CHP’s first line-of-duty death since 2020, according to the governor’s office. He leaves behind his wife, two children, parents and two sisters. The CHP 11-99 Foundation announced $50,000 in emergency and death benefits for his wife. The organization provides assistance to California Highway Patrol employees and their families.

CHP honors Liles with bell toll tribute

CHP personnel gathered Wednesday at the academy in West Sacramento to honor their fallen colleague. Commissioner Sean Duryee and Chief Mike Lehman spoke during the Bell Toll Tribute. Family, friends, professional staff and members of law enforcement also attended the ceremony. The memorial bell recognizes officers who lose their lives while serving California communities.

Investigators have not publicly identified the truck driver or carrier in the available releases. The announcements provide no information about possible citations or contributing factors. Those circumstances remain unanswered following the Sept. 28 crash. FreightWaves will update this story as authorities release additional details.

Why It Matters: State Route 99 carries heavy commercial traffic through California’s Central Valley. The fatal collision highlights the risks surrounding motorcycles, passenger vehicles and large trucks sharing major freight corridors.

Click here for more articles on cargo theft and freight fraud by Phil Brink.

CBP finds $6M in cocaine hidden under floor of empty semi-trailer bound for Canada – FreightWaves

Thieves clone $60K shipment, redirect 41,000 pounds of glycerin in Illinois – FreightWaves

LA jury convicts 2 in $2M nationwide cargo theft ring using purchased trucking companies – FreightWaves

The post CHP officer killed in Highway 99 crash with semi-truck on major Central Valley freight route appeared first on FreightWaves.

The case involved five loads of cheese shipped from a Minnesota supplier that repeatedly arrived at a retailer’s facility with fewer pallets than listed on the purchase orders, YMX said in its Sept. 18 case study. The unidentified retailer’s investigators knew the supplier and shipping lanes involved but did not initially know which carriers or drivers had handled the loads.

According to YMX, its team used the shipment information to search the yard-management system, identify carriers that had run the lanes and pull gate video from the relevant dates. The footage showed the trailers and drivers associated with the shipments, allowing investigators to link the five loads to a specific truck and driver. YMX said the video evidence supported the retailer’s claim seeking to recover about $60,000 in missing product. The logistics company was unable to discuss who the claim was filed against or its outcome.

The retailer, which YMX declined to name, is one of the top five grocers in the U.S., with more than $145 billion in fiscal 2025 sales, according to YMX. The retailer is piloting the logistics company’s yard operating system at distribution facilities, including the Arizona facility involved in the case study, which handles about 600 to 800 truck movements a day. They operate more than 2,000 stores across more than 30 U.S. states. The company did not disclose how many distribution centers the retailer operates or identify the locations of the other facilities involved in the pilot.

Cameras at the gate record trucks entering and leaving the facility, while machine-learning software captures information such as license plates, trailer numbers and carrier details. The system creates a digital record of truck movements that investigators can search after a shipment problem is discovered.

The footage did not establish where the pallets went missing or who removed them. Because the cameras were positioned at the retailer’s facility, the records showed which trucks and drivers delivered the loads and when they entered the yard. The shortages could have occurred when the cheese was loaded by the supplier, during transportation or after the shipments reached the retailer.

The broader issue

Cargo theft remains a significant supply-chain security issue, although recent data does not show a simple increase in the number of theft incidents. Verisk CargoNet recorded 677 theft incidents in the U.S. and Canada during the second quarter, down 26% from the same period in 2025. Estimated losses, however, more than doubled to $304.6 million. 

Food and beverage freight has been particularly affected. CargoNet recorded 708 food and beverage thefts in 2025, up 47% from the previous year, the largest increase among the commodity categories tracked by CargoNet. Estimated cargo theft losses across all commodities reached nearly $725 million in 2025, up 60% from 2024.

YMX’s system also combines gate footage with other yard data, including cameras mounted on trucks that move trailers around the facility. Those cameras record where and when trailers are dropped at dock doors, according to YMX.

Together, the data creates a record of a trailer’s movements through the facility, from the gate to the dock.

YMX said its computer-vision system automatically extracts information from gate footage and sends it into its yard-management platform. The technology can identify carriers from information such as logos even when the carrier name is not clearly visible, according to the company.

The approach is one of several ways FreightTech companies are using data and automated monitoring to address cargo theft. FreightWaves recently reported on Wiliot’s ambient IoT technology, which uses item-level sensors to detect potential theft, diversion and handling issues as freight moves through the supply chain.

The retailer is now piloting the system at two facilities, while another food distributor has begun testing it at one location, YMX said.

The expansion reflects a broader push by shippers to bring more automation and visibility into the yard, where information about trucks, trailers and freight has traditionally been spread across gate logs, spreadsheets, transportation systems and manual checks.

For cargo-security teams, linking those records can provide another way to reconstruct what happened after a shipment enters a facility, particularly when a problem is not discovered until the freight reaches its destination. 

Why this matters
The case shows how computer vision can give shippers more visibility into truck and trailer movements inside distribution yards, creating records that can be used to investigate missing freight and identify where losses may have occurred.

The post YMX yard technology helps retailer trace $60,000 in missing freight appeared first on FreightWaves.

The New Jersey independent contractor law took effect Thursday, with a late buzz during the last few weeks that its implementation might be delayed ultimately fizzling.

The New Jersey regulation codifies the ABC test for determining independent contractor status. 

While business associations in New Jersey virtually across the board have criticized the regulation, including trucking-related groups, it was an attorney who specializes in IC law, Richard Reibstein of the firm of Littler Mendelson, who summed up the opponents’ view of the new standard. 

Changes moderate the original proposal

Noting that the initial proposal from last year was modified in such a way that it was seen as less punitive, Reibstein wrote recently that “the final regulation takes a more moderate regulatory approach than the proposed regulation issued in April 2025. However, the new regulation still carries out one of the most business-unfriendly tests for IC status in the country and interprets that test in a particularly unhelpful manner.”

The New Jersey law inevitably brings a comparison to California’s AB5 law which codified the ABC test in that state. However, that was a process that saw the state legislature pass a law that was signed by the state’s governor. 

By contrast, what happened in New Jersey is a rulemaking process that creates a standard which can be used by a regulator or a court in reaching a decision where IC status is a factor.

The ABC test has always been seen as a standard that was more likely to conclude that a worker is an employee rather than an independent contractor. That can impact the relationship between employer and worker if the latter thought he or she was independent on a host of issues: control, minimum wage, worker’s compensation…the list goes on.

The ABC test, while possibly having slightly different verbatim definitions, says to be legally considered an independent contractor, three standards must be met:

A: The worker must be free from control and direction.

B: The work must be “outside the usual course of the hiring company’s business.” That is particularly problematic in trucking, where a trucking company can have as much as 100% of its freight needs serviced by an independent contractor.

c: The worker must be “customarily engaged in an independent trade, occupation, profession, or business that has lasting enterprise and independent viability.”

No breaks for anybody

Unlike when AB5 went into effect, the New Jersey regulation does not have any carve-outs for particular industries hard hit by either of the laws.

The California list is a hodgepodge, ranging from surgeons to translators. New Jersey is a “clean” regulation in that it covers everybody, for better or worse.

Opponents were not necessarily clamoring for carve-outs. 

In a prepared statement released by the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, criticizing the new regulation, Tom Bracken, the president and CEO of the chamber, said “(New Jersey) should not follow California’s path of responding to problems with its independent contractor law by creating numerous exemptions and carve-outs for specific professions and industries. That approach creates an increasingly complicated patchwork of rules and even more uncertainty.”

He said “New Jersey needs a clear, consistent and workable standard that applies fairly across our economy.”

Instead, Bracken called for a delay of the implementation. 

The ABC test could be found in the state’s body of law regarding IC status prior to the rulemaking. Some of its backers had tried to downplay its implementation by noting it simply put meat on bones that already were there.

But that was not how NJBIA President and CEO Michele Siekerka, president and CEO of the New Jersey Business & Industry Association, saw things. 

“(The state’s Department of Labor) has dismissed this adoption as merely the codification of already existing regulatory actions and behavior, when, in fact, it is now leaving open an overly broad interpretation of an ABC framework from nearly a century ago,” she said in a prepared statement. “In New Jersey, this is now the legal default, and a virtually impossible standard to meet, without any acknowledgement of the realities of the modern gig economy.”

Nationwide impact

Reibstein noted in his latest commentary that there are nationwide implications from the New Jersey law.

“While some companies may mistakenly regard this New Jersey regulation as only governing businesses located or operating a facility in New Jersey, it also impacts companies operating on a nationwide basis that engage any New Jersey workers who perform services from their home offices or other business locations in New Jersey,” he wrote.

More articles by John Kingston

FMCSA’s Elison: ‘weeks’ away from fixing Motus user experience

Daimler Truck: concerned about using cash to avoid new NoX rules

For transportation cybersecurity, AI isn’t helping fight..so far

The post New Jersey independent contractor regulation with ABC test is in effect appeared first on FreightWaves.

Trump said his trade policies are helping bring commercial vehicle manufacturing and jobs back to the U.S.

“They asked me to come because you’re doing massive expansions. I said, ‘How many trucks out of this plant? How many trucks do you do?’ I figured they’d say 200 a year; he said, ‘No… 200 a day,’” Trump said according to a transcript of his speech provided by Roll Call.

Speaking to Peterbilt workers after touring the facility, Trump highlighted the 25% tariff his administration imposed Nov. 1, 2025, on imported medium- and heavy-duty trucks, along with tariffs on truck parts that do not comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Trump pointed to Peterbilt parent PACCAR’s (Nasdaq: PCAR) expansion in Denton as evidence that the policy is working.

The Denton factory is a significant piece of PACCAR’s North American manufacturing network. Peterbilt produces medium- and heavy-duty commercial trucks, including Class 8 models, at the North Texas operation.

Peterbilt said it has added more than 1,000 jobs at the Denton facility, while the Trump administration has said PACCAR has added more than 2,000 jobs nationwide since the truck tariffs took effect. Reuters also reported the administration’s figures Thursday.

“Workers like you and companies like this have always been loyal to our country,” Trump said.

Trump imposed the 25% tariff last year under his America First trade policy. The tariff applies to imported medium- and heavy-duty trucks and certain non-USMCA-compliant parts. During Thursday’s appearance, Trump defended tariffs as an economic tool, at one point calling “tariff” his “fifth favorite word.”

The president also said that his administration’s policies are boosting heavy-truck production.

“American trucking is back,” Trump said, while claiming heavy-truck manufacturing has increased about 31% and truck shipments have reached an all-time high.

Trump also cited broader manufacturing employment and wage gains, saying the U.S. has added 60,000 manufacturing jobs this year and that manufacturing workers’ wages have risen by nearly $4,000 since he took office.

The administration’s broader manufacturing record has been more mixed. FreightWaves reported ahead of Trump’s visit that Bureau of Labor Statistics data cited by Fox Business showed manufacturing employment had declined by 35,000 jobs from Trump’s return to office in January 2025 through the period covered by that report. 

Why it matters: The Trump administration said its tariffs on imports of heavy duty trucks are changing the economics of where commercial vehicles and components are produced. 

The post Trump touts truck tariffs at Peterbilt plant in Texas appeared first on FreightWaves.

The same clause appears in all four three-month waivers FMCSA has issued to Aurora since October 2025. Each new waiver has taken effect the day after the last one expired.

An Illinois cargo van operator is asking the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to break that cycle of renewals. Kostas Giannoulias wants the court to stay the current waiver and bar any successor while his case proceeds. In a Sept. 21 response, Justice Department lawyers for FMCSA said the waiver “expires in less than 18 days” and argued he has not shown he would be harmed before then. The response does not mention the reissue clause.

Giannoulias, who represents himself, pressed the point in a reply dated Sept. 22. “The order’s promised reissuance also defeats FMCSA’s suggestion that only eighteen days matter,” he wrote. The court had not ruled on the motion as of Oct. 2.

The waiver covers Aurora and any carrier operating Level 4 automated trucks that notifies FMCSA and certifies it will follow the terms. FMCSA denied a five-year exemption sought by Aurora and Waymo in December 2024, and Aurora sued the agency in the D.C. Circuit in January 2025. When FMCSA granted the first waiver that October, Aurora called the beacons “a step forward for road safety” and said it would file a dismissal to close that challenge.

FMCSA published a new five-year exemption request from Aurora in April. The comment period closed May 15, and the request remains pending, according to the government’s response. In that request, as summarized by FMCSA, Aurora argued that beacons “eliminate the need for a human to exit the CMV onto the shoulder or traffic lane of a road.”

In his Sept. 8 petition, Giannoulias argues the July waiver, the latest in the series, exceeds FMCSA’s statutory authority, is arbitrary and capricious, and should have gone through the exemption or pilot-program process, both of which require public notice and comment.

FMCSA argues limited exposure

Counting Aurora and Kodiak, “there would only be approximately 45 self-driving trucks operating under the waiver,” the government’s response said, against more than 3,000 miles of interstate highway in Texas.

“Giannoulias’s chances of actually encountering a truck covered by the waiver are vanishingly small,” DOJ attorneys wrote. “The odds of his encountering such a truck when it was disabled are even smaller.”

Three carriers besides Aurora have opted in: Kodiak Robotics, Waabi Logistics and Stack AV, which joined after the July waiver was issued. According to the response, Kodiak had deployed 20 driverless trucks as of March 10, while Waabi and Stack AV had deployed none as of July 31. Aurora told FMCSA in its exemption request that it expects more than 200 Level 4 trucks by the end of 2026.

Giannoulias, who hauls spot-market freight in a 2024 Ram ProMaster 2500, said in a declaration that he made at least six trips in July and August involving Dallas, Houston, Austin, Laredo and El Paso. Several of those cities sit on Aurora’s driverless routes.

DOJ also argued he cannot sue under the Hobbs Act because he never took part in the waiver process, and that his Sept. 3 reconsideration request to FMCSA, still pending, leaves the waiver nonfinal as to him. On the merits, it said nothing in the statute bars back-to-back waivers, citing two COVID-era FMCSA waivers that were each issued seven consecutive times. It said the regulations describing waiver requests do not stop FMCSA from issuing one on its own, and it identified the unique event as “the operation of a CMV without a driver who can place warning devices on the roadway.”

The government cited the July waiver’s finding that differences in driver response to beacons and triangles at straight locations in Aurora’s study were “less than four-tenths of one percent.” It also said no crashes involving a beacon-activated truck have been reported since the waivers began.

“If the mere fact that Giannoulias occasionally takes his cargo van to Texas means that he faces irreparable harm, then literally anyone who occasionally drives in Texas does too,” the filing said. “To state that proposition is to refute it.”

Reply cites study limits and Aledo crash

Giannoulias wrote that the 45-truck figure counts publicized driverless deployments, while the waiver covers Level 4 trucks whether or not a human is aboard. Aurora told FMCSA it had 109 Class 8 trucks, and the reply said most are equipped with the Aurora Driver and beacons.

Aurora’s naturalistic study found a 44.48% response rate to beacons and 44.06% to triangles, according to the reply. “A failure to reject equality is not an affirmative equivalence test,” he wrote.

He called the no-crash statement stale because it traces to the April 15 Federal Register notice on Aurora’s request. In that notice, Aurora said it used the beacons on 34 trucks that traveled more than 500,000 miles under the first waiver, and that the beacons were active for “nearly 10 hours” in total. Aurora reported that, “to the company’s knowledge, the beacons were reliable and operated as expected without any faults, malfunctions, or power issues.”

The reply then points to a July 8 crash near Aledo, Texas. At 5:59 a.m., an Aurora truck on a development mission collided with a pickup that ran a red light at FM 1187 and the Interstate 20 service road. Aurora’s report No. 30530-15781 to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration lists the automated driving system as “Verified Engaged.” NHTSA requires a report when automation was in use at any time within 30 seconds of a crash. Aurora’s narrative says the truck was in manual mode, and that the operator disengaged autonomy “well before the intersection and approximately 12 seconds before the collision.”

The Texas officer’s crash report attached to the reply lists no automation engaged on the truck and a licensed commercial driver at the wheel. It says the truck had a green light and lists the pickup’s disregard of the signal as the contributing factor. The pickup driver was cited. Aurora’s NHTSA narrative gives the same account of the signal. No injuries were reported, and the truck was towed.

The waiver’s terms require beacons to activate “as soon as possible, but in any event within 10 minutes” when a covered truck stops on a highway’s traveled portion or shoulder for anything other than a necessary traffic stop. Giannoulias attached screenshots of two public social media posts from the scene, displaying times of 6:06 and 6:40 a.m. He said the photos show no visible amber beacon light on the disabled truck.

“Still photographs record instants rather than a full flash cycle,” the reply acknowledged.

Giannoulias argues the beacon requirement applied once the collision left the truck stopped and disabled. FMCSA’s response came before the reply and does not address the crash.

Giannoulias also cited FMCSA’s own regulation allowing waiver requests for “a unique, non-emergency event that will take no more than three months to complete,” which the reply says the response never addresses.

He asked the court for an immediate stay, a bar on new opt-ins and successor waivers, and an order directing FMCSA to produce the administrative record, including term reports and all crash and beacon-activation data.

“Without relief, the agency can expire one letter, issue the next, and repeat the jurisdictional argument indefinitely,” the reply said.

The post Autonomous truck beacon waiver moves closer to October renewal amid legal challenge appeared first on FreightWaves.

The telematics company announced Thursday that the Geotab Fleet Card, developed with transportation payment company AtoB, connects vehicle data with AtoB’s payment platform and fuel discount network.

The card uses information such as a vehicle’s location and fuel level to determine whether a fuel purchase should be authorized. Geotab said the system can decline a transaction if the vehicle is not at the fueling location or if the vehicle’s tank does not have enough capacity for the purchase.

Other companies are also connecting telematics data with fuel-card transactions and payment controls. WEX launched SecureFuel in July, combining fleet-card transaction data with real-time vehicle information to identify and stop potentially unauthorized fuel purchases before they are approved. WEX is a Geotab Premier Partner, and customers with existing Geotab solutions can connect vehicle data to SecureFuel.

Samsara also launched its Fuel Command Center in August, combining fuel spending, fueling locations, driver behavior and card controls. Through its integration with Coast, Samsara can use vehicle-location data to block fuel-card transactions when the assigned vehicle is not present.

The launch comes as diesel prices remain elevated across the country, with the national average price for on-highway diesel at $6.382 per gallon for the week ending Sept. 28, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. That was about 70% higher than the same week a year earlier, when the national average was $3.754 per gallon.

Geotab analyzed 419,000 diesel fill-ups across 660 U.S. fleets and found that two trucks fueling in the same town could see a price difference of as much as 77 cents per gallon for diesel, according to the company. For a 75-gallon fill-up, that would amount to a difference of about $58.

For fleets with fewer than 100 vehicles, drivers selected the lower-priced fueling option about 17% of the time, according to the company’s analysis. Geotab estimated that choosing the lower-priced station could save about $24 per fill-up, or roughly 32 cents per gallon, and approximately $4,700 per truck annually. The annual estimate is based on about 200 fill-ups per year. The company said the $24 figure was rounded from $23.55 per fill-up, which would amount to $4,710 over 200 fill-ups.

“With fuel costs rising across the U.S., fleets need practical ways to reduce what they spend at the pump,” Steven Berube, Geotab’s vice president of sales, said in a statement.

The card remains locked until a driver unlocks it through the Geotab Drive app while the vehicle is parked at the merchant location. The app also allows drivers to view nearby fueling locations and fuel prices. When a purchase is attempted, the system checks the vehicle’s location, the merchant’s GPS coordinates and the vehicle’s fuel level.

For eligible accounts, telematics-verified transactions are backed by a fraud guarantee of up to $250,000, according to Geotab. The guarantee is provided by AtoB.

Geotab estimated that unauthorized fuel purchases could represent about $2.19 million in annual costs for a hypothetical 500-vehicle Class 8 fleet with $31.3 million in annual fuel spending.

The estimate assumes annual fuel consumption of about 9,752 gallons per Class 8 vehicle, a diesel price of $6.41 per gallon based on the AAA-reported national average, and an approximate 7% annual fuel-fraud rate. The 7% figure is an assumption used in Geotab’s estimate, rather than a measured fraud rate. Geotab’s $6.41 fuel-price assumption is slightly higher than the $6.382-per-gallon EIA national average cited above.

The Fleet Card also can be used for other on-road expenses, including maintenance, tolls, parking, towing and roadside assistance. Fleets can set spending controls based on dollar amount, time frame, location and merchant category, according to Geotab.

The card is issued and operated by AtoB and its issuing bank partners. AtoB provides the payment platform, fuel discount network, spending controls and fraud guarantee, while Geotab integrates the card into its telematics platform.

The Fleet Card is currently available to eligible U.S. fleets.

Why this matters: 

Fuel costs are a major operating expense for trucking fleets, and prices can vary widely between nearby fueling locations. The card adds another way for fleets to monitor fuel purchases and spending. It also links fuel payment activity with vehicle data, giving fleets another source of information for identifying unusual or unauthorized transactions.

The post Geotab launches fleet card as diesel prices pressure trucking appeared first on FreightWaves.

UPS (NYSE: UPS) on Wednesday promoted the launch of UPS Secure Commerce, a suite of risk-management services that essentially repackages in one place pre-existing insurance, order visibility and technology products now supplemented by agentic AI agents. 

Emarketer projects global e-commerce sales will reach $6.88 trillion this year, representing 21% of total retail sales. Of that total, 3.2% will be lost to fraud, according to the Merchant Risk Council. Resolving disputes, refunds, reshipments, claims handling, returns, customer recovery and reputational risk extra costs for merchants.

UPS says its solution provides merchants greater operational control by helping detect fraud risk during checkout from an online store and managing post-purchase risk, which ultimately helps retain customers. By combining data across a supply chain, shippers can identify actionable trends rather than simply respond to isolated events.

UPS Secure Commerce combines UPS’s InsureShield shipping insurance; Parcel Pro, a platform for managing domestic and international shipments, creating shipping and returns labels, scheduling carrier pick ups, and using paperless invoicing that includes extra security features; and CommerceShield, a tool that provides fraud screening during online checkout, but also analyzes other in-transit risks to minimize delivery exceptions, chargebacks

UPS provides insurance through UPS Capital. Last year, it insured 62 million packages, paid out $132 million in claims and processed 97% of claims within five days, according to the company. 

Delayed packages can trigger support tickets, replacement costs, refund pressure, and disappointed customers who may turn to other vendors in the future. A lost package is more serious and can completely destroy customer trust, lower repeat-purchase rates and brand damage through poor word-of-mouth. Shipping insurance helps merchants deal with those situations by making the customer whole and preventing customer-service standoffs

Parcel Pro allows customers to delete sensitive words from shipping labels to reduce theft, validate shipping addresses to avoid mistakes, use powerful data models to help determine the likelihood of a successful delivery to a destination, and reroute packages to alternative delivery locations, like a UPS Store, for high-theft areas.

Merchants that used CommerceShield and UPS shipping insurance, for example, are able to win many more chargeback disputes with carriers, streamlining manual workflows for claims and making more informed decisions on when to issue refunds or send a replacement item, UPS says.

FedEx authenticated delivery

Meanwhile, FedEx (NYSE: FDX) launched a premium delivery option that uses a secure QR code authentication to help ensure packages are released only to an authorized recipient, providing an additional layer of protection for high-value and sensitive shipments.

FedEx Authenticated Delivery expands the FedEx proof-of-delivery portfolio with a digital verification process designed to help reduce the risk of fraud, theft and misdelivery. The service is particularly well-suited for shipments of luxury goods, electronics, healthcare, aerospace, collectibles and other high-value items where added security is important, the company said.

“The future of delivery isn’t just moving packages quickly. It’s about building greater trust throughout the delivery process,” said Neil Gibson, senior vice president, global customer experience,” in a news release.

When a shipper selects FedEx Authenticated Delivery for an eligible shipment, the recipient receives a unique QR code and delivery instructions through Fedex notifications. At delivery, a recipient with the QR code must be present and provide it to the FedEx driver for scanning and validation before the package can be released. No physical signature is required.

FedEx notifications keep recipients informed throughout the delivery process. Vacation holds may be available through FedEx Delivery Manager when needed. To help maintain the security of the shipment, other delivery changes are restricted, including Hold at Location, Redirect to Hold, and address corrections.

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

Write to Eric Kulisch at ekulisch@freightwaves.com.

RELATED STORIES:

CMA CGM finalizes $1.4B acquisition of FedEx Supply Chain

The post FedEx and UPS highlight parcel security, risk management tools  appeared first on FreightWaves.

At least 124 drivers and 226 commercial vehicles or loads were placed out of service in enforcement actions from mid-September through Oct. 1, according to figures released by authorities.

One of the largest operations was “Operation Saturday Night Fever,” a coordinated overnight enforcement initiative involving the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Department of Homeland Security and state police in South Carolina, North Carolina, Florida and Georgia.

Authorities conducted 552 inspections, placing 78 drivers and 25 vehicles out of service. Twelve drivers were sidelined for English-language-proficiency violations, according to FMCSA. Inspectors also checked driver credentials, electronic logging devices, fatigue, distracted driving and cargo securement.

The enforcement operation included drivers holding non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses.

Elsewhere, enforcement details uncovered violations ranging from unsafe brakes and tires to invalid licenses and truck drivers allegedly watching videos while behind the wheel.

Illinois

Illinois State Police conducted a two-day hazardous-materials enforcement detail across several major highways in northern Illinois.

Troopers performed 532 inspections, including 111 involving hazardous materials, and identified 500 federal regulation violations and 109 Illinois Vehicle Code violations. Thirty drivers and 60 vehicles were placed out of service.

Arizona

Arizona Department of Public Safety troopers conducted a commercial vehicle enforcement detail Sept. 16 along Interstate 10 around Quartzsite and Ehrenberg.

Troopers performed 46 inspections and reported 170 Driver/Vehicle Examination Report violations. Eleven drivers and 13 commercial vehicles were placed out of service.

In a separate Sept. 18 stop in Chandler, a trooper encountered a truck with a blown tire that was throwing sparks. An inspection found additional trailer tires that were bald or worn down to their interior components. The driver also had an invalid CDL, according to Arizona DPS. Both the driver and vehicle were placed out of service.

Troopers also stopped an oversize mobile home Sept. 24 in Tempe after finding its rear lights were not working. Authorities said the rear escort driver’s license was suspended and the oversize permit listed an inaccurate width. The permit was revoked and the load was placed out of service.

Texas

Texas Department of Public Safety commercial vehicle enforcement officers partnered with Midland police Oct. 1 for Level I inspections in Midland County.

Officers found equipment violations involving tires, brakes, suspension components and air lines, resulting in several commercial vehicles being placed out of service. The agencies did not provide a total number of inspections or out-of-service orders.

In Krugerville, Texas, police stopped a truck in September and discovered the driver was operating without any driver’s license. When another truck arrived to pick up the driver, police said that vehicle had similar violations — and its driver was also unlicensed. Both trucks were towed.

Kentucky

Louisville Metro Police and Kentucky State Police conducted 43 commercial vehicle inspections as part of an enforcement operation targeting high-crash corridors in Jefferson County.

Officers identified 88 safety violations and issued 30 citations. Five drivers and eight commercial vehicles were placed out of service. FMCSA and other state transportation officials also participated in the initiative.

Nebraska

Nebraska State Patrol troopers inspected 19 commercial vehicles Sept. 22 in Kearney as part of an operation aimed partly at trucks that may not regularly pass through weigh stations.

Inspectors found 70 violations of federal motor carrier safety regulations and state law and placed 11 vehicles out of service. Seven citations were issued.

Iowa

Commercial truck drivers watching videos while driving were among the violations uncovered during a Sept. 30 enforcement operation along Interstate 80 in Jasper County, Iowa.

Authorities issued nine distracted-driving citations, with the majority involving commercial drivers allegedly watching video streams on dash-mounted devices while operating their vehicles.

Three commercial vehicle inspections were conducted, resulting in one truck being placed out of service. Officers also issued 60 warnings for equipment violations and improper driving maneuvers.

New Jersey

Police in Piscataway Township targeted overweight commercial vehicles Sept. 30 along River Road, where vehicles registered above 10 tons are restricted except for local deliveries.

Officers stopped 57 overweight trucks, issued 79 summonses and impounded two commercial vehicles.

Canada

Canadian authorities also conducted several large commercial vehicle enforcement operations during the period.

A three-day Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance operation in Strathcona County, Alberta, resulted in 77 commercial vehicles being placed out of service.

Inspectors examined 192 vehicles from Sept. 23-25. Officials said 40% failed inspection, while another nearly 20% required attention. Inspectors checked tires, cargo securement, lighting, brakes, hours-of-service records and commercial driver’s licenses and endorsements.

A two-day enforcement blitz in Regina, Saskatchewan, resulted in 47 commercial vehicle inspections, with 19 vehicles taken out of service and 98 vehicle defects recorded. The broader traffic operation resulted in 281 infractions and 193 warnings.

In Ontario, provincial police and transportation inspectors conducted 40 commercial vehicle inspections Sept. 30 near County Road 90. Authorities issued 37 Provincial Offence Notices and placed 10 commercial vehicles out of service because of safety defects or violations.

Why it matters: The enforcement actions show federal, state and local agencies continuing to intensify scrutiny of commercial drivers and equipment, including CDL status, English proficiency, brakes, tires and distracted driving.

The post US, Canada truck enforcement blitzes sideline 350 drivers, vehicles  appeared first on FreightWaves.

That’s the story of RelayCon 2026. It wasn’t louder than last year. It was sharper.

A bigger room, and a more serious one

Start with the headcount, because the growth here is real. At RelayCon 2024, more than 500 Relay carriers gathered at the Horseshoe in Las Vegas. A year later, over 600 transportation professionals came for the 2025 edition. This year, Amazon says more than 1,000 carriers came together in Las Vegas from Sept. 9-11, double last year’s attendance.

Amazon also changed how the event was built. Carriers had said open mixers made it hard to find peers running similar businesses, so 2026 introduced three breakout tracks built around build, scale and optimize, putting carriers in rooms with operators at the same stage. That track structure matters more than it sounds. When a three-truck operator sits next to another three-truck operator instead of a 60-truck fleet, the conversation gets honest fast.

The questions got better

Here’s what stood out most. In 2025, a lot of the conversations started with some version of “should I grow?” This year, almost nobody asked that. They asked how, when, and what it would cost them.

Carriers came in knowing their cost per mile. They knew what their trucks were costing them sitting still. Some had already mapped out their next equipment purchase and wanted someone to poke holes in it.

Several carriers on the floor had been in business for 25 years. Not 25 months. A quarter century of running freight, through every cycle this industry has thrown at them. And what they kept coming back to wasn’t rates. It was time and flexibility. After decades of chasing loads and living on the road, they’d found a way to run a real business on their own terms. When a veteran like that says the lifestyle side of the equation is what keeps them in, it’s worth listening to. Longevity isn’t just about margins. It’s about building something you can actually sustain.

What Amazon put on the table

The keynote block gave carriers the news they came for.

Thursday morning opened with keynote remarks from Amazon’s John Hartland, Director of North America Surface Transportation, and Maneesh Jyoti, Vice President of Relay Product and Tech, followed by a talk from FreightWaves founder Craig Fuller on where the freight market is heading.

The volume picture framed everything else. Amazon expects to move more than 4 million loads through the holidays, with weekly volume reaching 300,000 by December, about 11% more freight than last year.

On the technology side, Relay Assistant is expanding well past its original role as a chat tool for negotiating rates and pickup times on certain spot loads. It can now resolve common over-the-road issues on the spot, including trailer availability, site closures and basic trip information, with the ability to reroute and release drivers rather than sending someone digging through FAQs or waiting on support. By the end of this year, carriers will be able to ask it to repeat Post A Truck orders instead of relisting manually, and Amazon says more features are coming around load availability, schedule changes and route patterns. When the assistant can’t solve something, it hands the carrier to a live operator with the full conversation attached, and Amazon says performance disputes are now being resolved 20% faster.

The Scorecard is changing too. Safety, compliance and required actions now sit on one page instead of being split across hauling performance alone, and new AI-generated focus areas point carriers to which sub-metric to work on first. For a small fleet without a back office, knowing what to fix before it costs you load access is the whole game.

The cost side got attention as well. Amazon expanded its Deals & Discounts program across the three expenses that hit carriers hardest. Enrollment barriers came off the Comdata fuel card program, where carriers are averaging about 10% savings, with added regional providers and discounts reaching up to 66 cents a gallon at Petro and 40 cents at Love’s. Maintenance savings are targeted at 15%, with Red Classic added as a vendor. On equipment, a three-year Ryder leasing option with a 10% discount joined the existing 40% rental discount, plus a $10,000 discount on used trucks.

Safety rewards expanded as well, with free dash cams for eligible carriers and 2 to 5 cents extra per collision-free mile, up to $14,000 a year.

There was news on the freight itself. Amazon Supply Chain Services opened the Relay network to shippers of all sizes and industries, meaning the loads on the board aren’t only Amazon’s own packages anymore. Contract offers now run longer than the previous six-month maximum, and intermodal, reefer, hostler and less-than-truckload options are all growing.

The hallway was the real session

What got the most attention wasn’t the keynote itself. It was the break right after.

The hallway between 10:15 and 10:45 was full of carriers doing something you don’t usually see at conferences. They weren’t just reacting to the forecast. They were talking about what to do with it. Should they add a truck before peak or wait? Is their best driver ready to run a second unit? Which of the new load types actually fits the equipment they already own?

That’s implementation talk, and it started before anyone had even found their breakout room.

A packed room for a hard conversation

Right after that break, FreightWaves Editorial Director Adam Wingfield led the first session of the scaler track, “Growing from strength, how to know you’re ready for what’s next.” It drew a full room for a session largely about when not to grow.

The premise was simple. Opportunity and readiness aren’t the same thing. The market can hand a carrier an opening, and that carrier can still be the wrong business to take it. The session walked through the real cost of adding equipment, not just the truck payment, but insurance, maintenance reserves, driver cost, and the weeks a new unit sits before it earns. It also covered ways to grow that don’t require another truck at all, like tightening utilization, cleaning up a safety profile, and getting more out of equipment already on the ground.

Every carrier scored their own readiness and left with one move and a date attached to it. Not a vision board. A decision.

The pushback was the best part. People argued with their own numbers. One carrier worked out, out loud, that adding two trucks before the new year would have wiped out his cash reserve in a single slow month. That’s the kind of moment that saves a business, and it happened because he came in ready to look at it honestly.

The session handed off directly to Part 2 in the same room, focused on ways to grow on Relay, so carriers who determined they were ready had a clear next step waiting.

Why depth matters more than size

Anyone can fill a ballroom. What’s harder is filling it with people who show up prepared to do the work, and that’s what this year delivered.

That’s the through line from last year to this one. In 2025 the message was that small fleets weren’t giving up. In 2026 the message is that the ones still standing have gotten serious about structure. They’ve stopped measuring success by how many trucks they own and started measuring it by whether each truck earns its keep.

Final take

RelayCon 2026 didn’t feel like a pep rally. It felt like a working session full of operators who had already decided they were in this for the long haul.

The carriers who’ve lasted 25 years know something the rest of the industry is still learning. Growth isn’t the goal. A business that pays you, fits the life you want, and survives the next downturn is the goal. Growth is just one tool for getting there, and sometimes the smartest move is putting that tool down for a quarter.

Why this matters

RelayCon has grown every year, but the bigger shift this time was the quality of the room. Carriers came prepared, knowing their costs, their cash position, and what they wanted to leave with. That’s a sign the small carrier segment isn’t just surviving this market, it’s maturing inside it.

The announcements point the same direction. Longer contracts, a broader shipper base, new equipment types and better cost programs all reward carriers who can plan past next week. The tools only pay off for operators who know their numbers well enough to use them.

It matters for the broader industry, too. When 25-year veterans say time and flexibility are what keep them running, that’s a reminder that longevity in trucking is built on a business you can sustain, not just the rate on the next load.

The takeaway is simple. Growth isn’t a strategy on its own. Readiness is. The carriers who treated RelayCon as a working session, not a sales pitch, are the ones most likely to still be standing, and growing, a year from now.

The post Built to Last; Inside Amazon RelayCon 2026 and the Carriers Who Came With a Plan appeared first on FreightWaves.

The new board members include lawyers, advisers and Hub Group’s (NASDAQ: HUBG) former chief financial officer, Thomas White. However, the news release said it plans to maintain a majority-independent board and appoint a new lead independent director at a later date.

“We believe that the newly appointed directors will bring valuable perspectives and relevant expertise to the Board’s oversight of the Company’s management, business and ongoing initiatives,” said Chairman and CEO Dave Yeager. “They intend to work constructively and collaboratively with the continuing directors to advance the best interests of Hub Group and all of its stakeholders.”

Yeager returned to lead the company’s day-to-day operations last month. He is the son of the late Phillip C. Yeager, who founded the company in 1971.

The shakeup follows a delisting notification from Nasdaq for failing to timely file financial reports.

After discovering an accounting error in February, Hub Group initiated a review of its financial results for 2023, 2024 and the first three quarters of 2025. As a result of the ongoing review, the company delayed filing its financial reports for the fourth quarter and full-year 2025, as well as the first two quarters of 2026. It plans to complete the financial restatement process during the fourth quarter.

Hub Group also said Friday that it received a stay from being delisted from Nasdaq, pending the outcome of an Oct. 27 hearing.

“We will remain focused on our long-term strategy to drive growth, profitability and operating cash flows, as we work to deliver for our shareholders, customers and team members,” Yeager said.

Shares of HUBG were up 1.9% in early trading on Friday compared to the S&P 500, which was up 1.1%.

Why it matters? Hub Group’s leadership changes, delayed financial filings and pending Nasdaq delisting create financial uncertainty for customers and investors.

More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden:

• September’s 54.5 manufacturing PMI comes with inflation concerns
• XPO opens new terminals in Phoenix, Kansas City markets
• Old Dominion pulls forward 4.9% GRI as LTL carriers accelerate rate hikes

The post Hub Group reshuffles board amid accounting turmoil appeared first on FreightWaves.

The truck transportation jobs figure for September did something it hadn’t done in more than three years.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly report released Friday showed 1,473,100 truck transportation jobs in September, an increase of 2,600 jobs from August. 

But what was more notable is that the year-on-year comparison reported that the September total was 800 jobs more than a year earlier. 

That does not sound like much. But it’s the first time since April 2023 that the year-on-year comparison for the truck transportation jobs report was positive. 

At its widest, the year-on-year comparison gap was either side of 60,000 jobs in June and July of 2024. 

The gap steadily narrowed from there. One month ago, it stood at 9,700 jobs. A big decline a year ago in total truck transportation jobs between August and September, combined with this year’s increase over the course of those two months, allowed the year-on-year comparison to turn positive in the latest report. 

The September report released Friday was the third consecutive month that truck transportation jobs rose. They are now up four out of the last five months. 

Sub-categories are also higher

The sub-category of truckload drivers continued its steady increase. That data is released by the BLS with a one-month lag.

The agency reported that truckload driver jobs rose to 503,200 jobs, up from 501,400 jobs in August. That was still less than the figure from a year ago of 503,900 jobs.

The peak was 553,600 jobs in both August and October 2022.

LTL jobs also continued to increase. They were 248,900 jobs in August, up 1,200 jobs from a month earlier and up from 246,000 jobs at the close of 2025.

Is capacity really exiting?

Jason Miller, a professor of supply chain management at Michigan State, said the increase in truckload and LTL jobs suggests a view that capacity is exiting the market might not be accurate.

The data, he said in an email to FreightWaves, “points to existing establishments adding some capacity.”

“However, I’m not convinced these data won’t be substantially revised because seasonally adjusted administrative records showed payrolls declining in March, not reaching a bottom like the survey assumes,” Miller said. “If the (employment data) are indeed correct, this runs counter to the arguments advanced by the public truckload carriers that capacity continues to exit on net. These data point to the opposite: capacity is slowly recovering.”

The increase in LTL employment, though gradual, “makes sense with PMI data suggesting growth in manufacturing activity,” Miller said.  

In a similar vein, Mazen Danaf, the principal economist at Uber Freight, said differences between this data and the quartelry Census of Employment and Wages suggests the annual revision in the BLS figures that is published in early February might cut the LTL and truckload figures.

“These figures are likely overstated and face significant revisions early next year,” Danaf said. “While Q1 Current Employment Statistics (CES) data indicated for-hire trucking employment fell 1.7% year-over-year (YoY) and long-distance truckload dropped 2.8%, the more reliable Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) survey reported steeper declines of 2.4% and 4.1%, respectively—better reflecting tighter regulations in Q1. If the QCEW numbers are accurate, the market may enter peak season undersupplied.”

Weakness in warehouse

Warehouse jobs, which a few months ago looked like they were bouncing back from months of weakness, are now little changed from where they were at the start of this year. 

After a 4,100 job decline between August and September, and downward revisions for June and July, warehouse jobs of 1,831,800 jobs aren’t that much more than the January/February totals which straddled 1,831,000 jobs.

Warehouse jobs in September were 21,600 jobs less than a year ago. They are down more than 107,000 jobs from their March 2022 peak.

Aaron Terrazas, an independent economist who has specialized in freight economics, described the third consecutive decline in warehouse jobs as “a troubling signal at a time of year when the sector should be busy building inventories ahead of the holiday season.”

“Either warehouse operators are planning for a muted holiday season, or automation has shifted the sector’s labor needs during the annual peak season,” he said in an email to FreightWaves.

Terrazas, speaking to the broader report that showed a modest rise in total employment of 29,000 jobs, said it was “a reminder that despite resilience through much of 2026, the labor market remains fragile — not contracting, but vulnerable.”

The increase in employment was “positive, safely in the range of breakeven estimates that imply balanced labor demand and supply.”

“Part of the challenge for economists and economic policymakers recently has been that there are no green lights signaling ‘all ok’ in the economy, but there are not many red lights signaling warning either, only a bunch of yellow lights telling us to proceed with caution,” Terrazas said.   

In other highlights from the monthly report:

• Average hourly earnings in the truck transportation sector for production and nonsupervisory employees took a fairly sharp increase in August. The data is reported with a one-month lag. August earnings for that sector was $32.67/hour, up from $32.36 a month earlier. That figure rises just about every month so the fact that it is a record is not unique. But the increase of about 9.6% in one month is the highest since October 2025, when it was also about 9.6%.
• In other benchmark numbers, the joint data from AscendTMS and Superior Trucking reported that its fleet growth index was up 0.19% in September, the third consecutive month of growth. It also reported driver turnover of 8.15%, which was down from 9.37& in August and 15.06% a year earlier. The AscendTMS/Superior Trucking driver pay index was 154.13. That was down from the June peak of 170.04.
• Rail jobs remained below 150,000 jobs, which has been sort of a median figure in recent months. But at 148,900 jobs, it’s the second lowest total since a move above 150,000 jobs that took place in late 2022 and held until a few months earlier this year when the figure dropped below 150,000 jobs. The recent peak was 158,100 jobs in April 2024. 

More articles by John Kingston

FMCSA’s Elison: ‘weeks’ away from fixing Motus user experience

Daimler Truck: concerned about using cash to avoid new NoX rules

For transportation cybersecurity, AI isn’t helping fight..so far

The post Took awhile to happen but trucking jobs are now more than year ago appeared first on FreightWaves.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks held about 38% of Europe’s market for locally CO2-free medium- and heavy-duty trucks in the first half of 2026, and customers have driven the eActros 600 more than 160 million kilometers since series production began at the end of 2024, the company said.

“Today, there are over 60 electric or zero-emission trucks available in the market, and over 25 different zero-emission bus models from us and from our competitors,” Rådström said. “So our industry has clearly delivered.”

Heavy-duty battery-electric trucks took 2% of Europe’s market in 2025, according to Daimler Truck, which estimates about 35% of new trucks would need to run on batteries or hydrogen by 2030 to meet EU CO2 targets. The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association’s full-year 2025 commercial vehicle registration data, released Jan. 29, put all electrically chargeable trucks above 3.5 tonnes at 4.2% of the EU market, up from 2.3% a year earlier.

Customers hold back for two reasons, Rådström said: infrastructure and cost parity with diesel.

Chargers, hydrogen stations and tolls

Europe has fewer than 2,000 public truck charge points today, most of them standard CCS chargers, Rådström said. By 2030, she said, it needs 35,000 megawatt charging points to support the battery-electric trucks the CO2 targets require.

Europe has around 187 hydrogen stations, most supplying only 350 bar, which Rådström said is not suitable for trucks. She said Europe needs 1,000 by 2030.

On cost, Rådström pointed to CO2-based road tolls. In Germany, the toll difference between a diesel truck and an electric truck comes out to about 33 to 35 cents per kilometer, which she said helps offset the higher investment cost. Only 13 of the EU’s 27 member states have adopted CO2-based tolls, she said, and fewer than a handful of those set a meaningful gap between electric and diesel.

What Dachser sees in its network

Stefan Hohm, chief development officer at Dachser, the German logistics provider, said on stage that the company has 25 emission-free delivery areas in Europe and more than 200 battery-electric trucks on the road, including more than 160 Mercedes-Benz Actros models.

“We are proud to have more than 200 battery-electric trucks on the road, but the truth is we run more than 15,000,” Hohm said. “So this is only a beginning. And financing the first generation of battery-electric vehicles remains the main hurdle for our transport partners.”

Hohm called grid access and capacity the main pain point. A Dachser network study found almost all of its 300 European branches have access to 1 to 3 megawatts of grid capacity, he said, and in Germany the company deals with 800 energy providers. He wants clear timelines and binding commitments from them.

Toll gaps between diesel and electric trucks vary by country: almost 33 cents per kilometer in Germany, nothing in France and almost €1 in Switzerland, Hohm said. He wants a stable framework that holds for at least five to six years.

Dachser has built more than 800 charging stations on its own yards, and Hohm said depot charging works best. He said Dachser still needs public and semi-public charging along European corridors, at stable prices.

“If you have your own tariff in the depot, it sometimes really messes up the business case if you have to pay more than double when you are charging publicly,” he said.

Lowliner and NextGenH2 timelines

The eActros Lowliner, a battery-electric tractor with a low fifth-wheel height for high-volume mega trailers, opened for orders Sept. 15, with series production at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth, Germany, set for the second quarter of 2027. The three-battery version offers around 500 kilometers of range at full load, and megawatt charging arriving in the second half of 2027 will take it from 10% to 80% in under 30 minutes, the company said.

On hydrogen, a small series of 100 Mercedes-Benz NextGenH2 fuel-cell trucks enters customer operations from the end of 2026, with Dachser as the first customer. Hohm said the first truck will run two shifts out of Malsch, near Karlsruhe, with a target of 220,000 kilometers a year.

The regulatory review

Daimler Truck is asking the EU for an early review of its heavy-duty CO2 regulation, with the 2030 target tied to infrastructure rollout and customers’ total cost of ownership. That target calls for a 43% cut in CO2 emissions from new heavy-duty vehicles compared with 2019, and the Council of the EU adopted a temporary flexibility on March 30 that lets manufacturers accumulate credits from 2025 through 2029 by beating their own annual targets. The same release said the core rules are due for revision in 2027.

The company puts the cost of falling short at about €120 million in penalties for each percentage point Mercedes-Benz Trucks misses. Rådström said a 10-point miss “effectively would wipe out the full profitability globally of Mercedes-Benz Trucks for that year.”

An eActros 600 world tour

Tobias Wagner, a professional driver and content creator known as the “Elektrotrucker,” is taking an eActros 600 about 45,000 kilometers through around 30 countries over as long as a year, with no more than 80 charging stops.

“Success for me would be that the conversation shifts — that we’re not talking about if those trucks work, because they do, I show it every day — but more to: okay, it’s working, but what do we need to do as a next step in order to build the ecosystem around those electric trucks?” Wagner said.

The post Daimler Truck maps what it takes to scale electric trucks appeared first on FreightWaves.

The protest followed the International Dockworkers Anti-Automation Summit, held at Vancouver’s Maritime Labour Centre in late September. Delegates marched to the DP World terminal Sept. 23 after adopting a shared position that accepts technology intended to improve safety and port communities but rejects its use to cut jobs, outsource work, expand surveillance, undermine unions or erode safety standards.

The current British Columbia longshore agreement is set to expire in March 2027, and the question of how automation affects jobs, work rules and bargaining rights is expected to be a prominent issue.

Tom Doran, president of International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada, said the participating unions had organized around what he characterized as a common threat from employers introducing automation and AI. He singled out Dubai-based DP World, whose operations include the Centerm terminal in Vancouver, as a company at the center of longshore labor’s concerns.

“Dock workers are united and determined to hold the line on destructive automation in our ports, no matter where those ports are,” Doran said in the union’s announcement.

DP World is also backing a major container project at the Port of Montreal, as well as expansion at Port Saint John on Canada’s east coast.

A global labor campaign

The summit brought together representatives from ILWU Canada and the U.S.-based International Longshore and Warehouse Union; the International Longshoremen’s Association in Canada and the U.S.; the Maritime Union of Australia; the Maritime Union of New Zealand; New Zealand’s Rail and Maritime Transport Union; Montreal’s CUPE Local 375; the International Transport Workers’ Federation; and the International Dockworkers Council.

The group’s joint campaign calls for technological changes to be negotiated before implementation. Its principles oppose:

• Automation used as a union-busting tool
• New technology introduced without a “social dividend” for workers
• Technology-driven job cuts or reductions in wages and benefits
• Automation that reduces safety protections or replaces secure waterfront work without negotiated safeguards

Dennis Daggett, president of the ILA Atlantic Coast District and general coordinator of the International Dockworkers Council, said waterfront job losses extend beyond terminals, affecting businesses and communities supported by port workers’ incomes.

Vancouver’s Centerm dispute

The rally focused attention on DP World’s Centerm facility, one of the Port of Vancouver’s major container gateways and a critical link between Asian trade lanes and Canadian and U.S. inland markets.

In a major modernization program, DP World says the completed Centerm expansion lifted annual container-handling capacity from 900,000 to 1.5 million TEUs, while adding rail capacity, electrifying equipment and supporting larger vessel calls. The terminal includes two berths, 15,000 feet of on-dock rail, 19 rubber-tired gantry cranes and five electrically powered semi-autonomous rail-mounted gantry cranes.

The Trump administration’s tariff and trade policies have fueled a shift of containerized import traffic away from U.S. West Coast hubs and through Vancouver and the port of Prince Rupert, also in British Columbia, for entry into the American market via intermodal rail.

The modernization upgrades have made Centerm an important symbol in the automation debate. 

In 2024, ILWU Local 514, representing ship and dock forepersons, accused DP World of planning to introduce automation at Centerm’s rail intermodal yard without first bargaining over the technological change. The dispute was among the factors behind a strike notice directed at DP World before the Canada Industrial Relations Board ruled that the union’s strike vote was unlawful and ordered the notice withdrawn.

The union’s broader concern is that terminal technology can alter staffing, dispatching and job classifications even where it raises capacity or improves equipment performance. Employers, meanwhile, have argued that investments in digital systems, automated gates, rail operations and remote equipment can increase throughput, improve safety and preserve the competitiveness of Canada’s Pacific gateway.

Competing views of modernization

DP World and the B.C. Maritime Employers Association have portrayed the Centerm upgrade as evidence that terminal modernization can grow both cargo capacity and waterfront employment. A KPMG report released Oct. 1 for the BCMEA said Centerm’s capacity increased 65%, to 1.5 million TEUs, from 900,000 TEUs, while waterfront payroll hours rose 59%, from 835,000 in 2019 to 1.328 million in 2025. The report attributed the gains to combined investment in terminal infrastructure, technology, process improvements and workforce skills.

The unions point out that their positions aren’t a wholesale rejection of technology. Delegates said the benefits of automation must be shared with workers and communities, and any operational changes must be subject to meaningful collective bargaining.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

Read more:

Savannah port project passes 60% complete mark

New California law clouds Trump-backed Oakland coal export terminal project

Port of Oakland August volumes fall year over year as exports edge up from July

Ocean rates highest in a year amid US-China trade truce

ONE restructures in key ocean region

The post Dockworkers protest at Port of Vancouver over automation, AI appeared first on FreightWaves.

The encounter began in an outbound lane at the Port of Buffalo crossing. A 21-year-old Canadian man drove the commercial truck and trailer toward the border. Officers conducted an initial physical inspection and noticed modifications to the floor. A CBP canine searched the vacant equipment and alerted to narcotics.

Authorities then escorted the vehicle to secondary inspection for additional examination. Officers used nonintrusive technology to look further into the equipment. That screening revealed anomalies within the floor. A follow-up search exposed the concealed packages.

174 packages found beneath trailer floor

Investigators tested the suspected substance after removing the vacuum-sealed bundles. Field testing returned a positive result for cocaine. CBP placed the approximate combined weight at 450 pounds. The agency valued the narcotics at roughly $6 million on the street.

CBP referred the matter to Homeland Security Investigations Buffalo for investigational review. The Sept. 29 announcement did not identify the driver by name. Officials provided no additional information about the equipment’s ownership. The release also offered no further details about the shipment’s origin.

Sharon Swiatek, acting port director for the Area Port of Buffalo, credited personnel involved with the discovery. “This significant seizure highlights the exceptional vigilance, advanced training and relentless dedication of our CBP officers and canine teams,” Swiatek said. She specifically referenced personnel working at the Lewiston Bridge border crossing. Her statement also highlighted the agency’s outbound enforcement mission.

CBP highlights outbound inspections

“While a large focus of our border security mission is on inbound threats,” Swiatek said. She added that personnel “remain equally sharp during outbound operations.” Those efforts target transborder criminal networks and disrupt narcotics movement, according to her statement. Swiatek also referenced protecting communities on both sides of the border.

CBP screens international travelers and cargo moving through U.S. ports of entry. Those operations cover inbound and outbound traffic. Personnel search for narcotics, unreported currency, weapons and counterfeit consumer goods. Their mission also covers prohibited agriculture, invasive pests and other illicit products.

The Lewiston discovery was not the first recent case involving contraband concealed beneath commercial equipment. In August, CBP officers in California found more than $20 million in cocaine beneath a trailer’s floorboards. That seizure involved 1,002 pounds discovered during an inspection at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. Authorities uncovered the narcotics after screening revealed anomalies within the structure.

Why it matters

An empty trailer gave officers no visible cargo to inspect, but the equipment itself concealed 450 pounds of cocaine. The seizure shows why commercial vehicle inspections must look beyond what appears on the trailer floor.

Click here for more articles on cargo theft and freight fraud by Phil Brink.

Thieves clone $60K shipment, redirect 41,000 pounds of glycerin in Illinois – FreightWaves

LA jury convicts 2 in $2M nationwide cargo theft ring using purchased trucking companies – FreightWaves

Thieves steal PlusAI trailers with NVIDIA branding, get 40,000 pounds of sand instead – FreightWaves

The post CBP finds $6M in cocaine hidden under floor of empty semi-trailer bound for Canada appeared first on FreightWaves.

The project will expand Ocean Terminal’s annual capacity from 200,000 twenty-foot equivalent units to 1.75 million TEUs, forming a central component of Georgia Ports’ strategy to add capacity in Savannah ahead of future cargo growth. 

The authority plans to keep working smaller vessels at the terminal until the first phase of its container-yard redevelopment is completed in mid-fall 2027. Full completion of the yard is scheduled for the end of 2028.

Berth and gate upgrades advance

“The renovated berth is fully completed and ready for big ships,” GPA Chief Executive Griff Lynch said at the authority’s board meeting Tuesday.

The terminal’s truck gate is fully operational and ultimately will include 12 inbound lanes and six outbound lanes. GPA also funded a $29 million overpass that sends departing trucks directly to U.S. 17 and Interstate 16, avoiding neighborhood streets near the terminal.

Alec Poitevint, chairman of the GPA board, said transforming the 200-acre terminal while continuing port operations represented a major undertaking for the authority, its contractors and other partners.

Part of wider capacity plan

The Ocean Terminal redevelopment is included in GPA’s 10-year port master plan, which calls for approximately $5 billion in capacity investments. The authority plans to add five container berths in Savannah and one roll-on/roll-off berth in Brunswick under the plan.

The investment comes as Savannah recorded volume of 529,523 TEUs in August. Loaded exports totaled 117,242 TEUs, an increase of about 4.2% from a year earlier, while import loads rose 1.5% to 265,859 TEUs, according to GPA.

Canal developments may aid cargo flows

GPA also pointed to improving conditions at the Panama Canal, where stronger September rainfall has raised Gatun Lake water levels. The Panama Canal Authority expects vessel draft limits to increase through November and return to the 50-foot maximum, while adding one Neopanamax booking slot on Sept. 28.

Separately, the Georgia authority noted that some ocean carriers are beginning to test renewed Suez Canal routings for U.S.-bound cargo. GPA said Maersk’s (OTC: AMKBY) MECL service and CMA CGM’s Indamex service are among the offerings involved. Routing between India and Savannah through Suez can cut 10 to 14 days from transit times compared with longer alternatives, the authority said.

GPA will outline its fiscal 2026 performance, infrastructure program and strategic outlook at its Savannah State of the Port event Oct. 14 at the Savannah Convention Center.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

Read more:

New California law clouds Trump-backed Oakland coal export terminal project

Port of Oakland August volumes fall year over year as exports edge up from July

Ocean rates highest in a year amid US-China trade truce

ONE restructures in key ocean region

Port Houston container volumes edge higher as steel imports surge 54% 

The post Savannah port project passes 60% complete mark appeared first on FreightWaves.

Francis filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition Sept. 22 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida. In the initial filing, Francis estimated both his assets and liabilities at between $10 million and $50 million and indicated he has between one and 49 creditors.

Francis also stated that his debts are primarily business debts rather than consumer debts.

Francis is not seeking bankruptcy protection as a small-business debtor under Subchapter V, according to the petition. The filing is a personal bankruptcy involving Francis and does not establish that R&R Express, RFX or other R&R-affiliated companies have filed for bankruptcy.

Many questions surrounding Francis’ finances and their connection to R&R’s collapse remain unanswered.

At the time of publication, Francis had not filed his detailed bankruptcy schedules and statement of financial affairs with the initial petition. A court deficiency notice identified several outstanding documents, including schedules detailing assets, secured and unsecured debts, income and expenses, along with a summary of assets and liabilities and the statement of financial affairs. 

The documents are due Oct. 6 unless the court grants additional time.

Related: R&R Family of Cos. faces uncertainty amid exec departure, payment concerns

Those disclosures could provide a clearer picture of Francis’ assets, creditors, business interests and financial transactions.

The bankruptcy also intersects with litigation between Francis and Huntington National Bank stemming from R&R’s financial collapse.

Francis lists his residence as 550 S. Barfield Drive on Marco Island, Florida. The property is at the center of separate litigation brought by Huntington involving R&R Express Properties LLC, Francis and his wife, Kathleen Francis.

Huntington has alleged in that case that R&R Express Properties transferred the Marco Island property to Francis and his wife in December 2025 as R&R’s financial condition deteriorated. Huntington is challenging the transfer and has sought to preserve its ability to recover against the property.

Francis’ bankruptcy filing has already affected that litigation. A Florida state court placed the Huntington case on inactive status following the Chapter 11 filing because of the bankruptcy stay.

Huntington is also participating in the bankruptcy proceedings. Court notices identify the bank and its attorney among parties receiving notice of the Chapter 11 case.

The bankruptcy court has scheduled an initial status conference for Oct. 21. A meeting of creditors is scheduled for Oct. 27, when Francis is required to appear and may be questioned under oath. Creditors may also attend.

R&R’s operations began shutting down in January, leaving hundreds of employees without jobs and carriers and other freight-related businesses pursuing unpaid invoices.

Why it matters: Francis’ forthcoming bankruptcy disclosures could provide new information about his creditors, assets and business interests as litigation and unpaid claims surrounding R&R continue.

Related

Former employees detail turmoil before R&R Family of Companies collapsed

Taylor Express closure leaves drivers sleeping in trucks, employees jobless

Lawsuit alleges R&R Family of Companies continued operating while insolvent

Florida-based AGX Freight halts operations amid lender dispute

Huntington sues 24 R&R companies over more than $12M in debt

The post R&R Family of Cos. CEO Rich Francis files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy  appeared first on FreightWaves.

USDOT’s reset of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards is a modest tailwind for U.S. auto production, but it is unlikely to turn the truckload freight market into a demand story in the next 12 months. SONAR data shows 2026 truckload tightness is still being driven by capacity leaving the market, not by more freight.

On Sept. 28, USDOT finalized its “Freedom Means Affordable Cars” rule resetting NHTSA’s CAFE standards. The department says it will cut the average new-vehicle price by $1,300 and save Americans $138 billion over five years (USDOT). The question for freight: does cheaper, more flexible car-building translate into more loads out of Detroit, Toledo, Indianapolis and the Southeast auto corridor?

Key takeaways

• Auto manufacturing: Mild positive. Automakers get product-mix flexibility, but the biggest financial lever (CAFE fines) was already zeroed out in 2025.
• Consumer sentiment: Unlikely to move. Sentiment sits at 48.1, weighed down by record diesel, rising gas and higher rates, not fuel economy rules.
• Freight demand: Small and slow. Our best estimate is a 0.5%–2% lift in light-vehicle output by 2027–2028, worth well under 0.1% of national truckload volume, concentrated in Midwest and Southeast auto markets.
• The real story: SONAR data shows implied accepted truckload volume is roughly flat to down year over year, while tender rejections have nearly tripled. This is still a capacity story.
• Regulatory design: Footprint-based CAFE and the 25% Chicken Tax both favor big domestic trucks, and statutory mandates such as the 2007 biofuel targets have repeatedly been waived down. A rule on paper is not a volume forecast.

What the CAFE reset changes — and what it doesn’t

The rule lowers the fuel economy bar automakers must hit through model year 2031. It does not change the tariff, rate or fuel-price environment that is actually setting car prices today.

What changes under the new CAFE standards

• Lower targets. The December 2025 proposal reset standards for MY 2022–2031 with increases of roughly 0.25%–0.7% per year, landing at a 34.5 mpg fleet average by 2031 (USDOT proposal). The prior rules targeted about 50.4 mpg by 2031 (Reuters via Yahoo).
• No EV math. Standards are now set without assuming EV production or credit trading, following DOT’s June 2025 interpretive rule (Automotive News via Yahoo).
• Product planning flexibility. Automakers can plan more trucks, SUVs and ICE/hybrid volume without building EVs to offset them.

What doesn’t change for automakers

• Fines were already $0. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act set the CAFE civil penalty to zero in July 2025 (Sidley). Much of the cost relief is already priced in.
• Tariffs, rates and fuel. Import tariffs on vehicles and parts, elevated borrowing costs and record diesel remain the dominant cost drivers.
• Product cycles. Vehicle programs take 2–4 years to change. Any mix or volume shift shows up mostly in MY 2027–2029, not this quarter.
• Legal risk. Expect litigation from states and environmental groups. Congressional Democrats have already argued the targets fall below what automakers achieved in MY 2024 (35.4 mpg) (Rep. Matsui letter).

Why vehicles keep getting bigger: CAFE footprint rules and the Chicken Tax

Two older rules shape the consumer vehicle fleet far more than the commercial one, and both push it toward larger, heavier trucks, which likely means heavier loads for the freight that builds and delivers them. One rewards making vehicles larger. The other keeps small foreign-built trucks out of the U.S. market.

• Footprint standards reward size. Since model year 2011, CAFE targets have been set by vehicle footprint, so larger vehicles face lower mpg targets (Tax Policy Center). A University of Michigan modeling study found that this design expands vehicle size by 2%–32% in 20 of 21 scenarios, eroding fuel economy gains by 1–4 mpg and raising CO2 emissions by 5%–15%, with the largest effect on light trucks (Whitefoot and Skerlos, Energy Policy, 2012). Ito and Sallee document the same kind of distortion for Japan’s weight-based standards (NBER).
• Consumer vehicles bear the brunt. Light-duty CAFE covers vehicles up to 8,500 pounds gross vehicle weight rating, while heavier work trucks fall under separate medium- and heavy-duty rules (NHTSA). The footprint incentive therefore operates on light-duty pickups, SUVs, and vans, and not on tractor-trailers or vocational trucks.
• Trucks have always been graded on a softer curve. Light trucks have had their own CAFE class since the program began, with an initial 17.2 mpg standard in 1979 and 20.7 mpg for years afterward, versus 27.5 mpg for passenger cars (CRS).
• The Chicken Tax removes the low end. The 25% tariff on imported light trucks dates to 1964 and was retaliation for European duties on U.S. chicken. Trade rules required it to apply to all countries, and it has never been removed, while passenger cars pay 2.5% (FEE). In 2001, fewer than 7,000 pickups came from outside North America, or 0.23% of nearly 3 million sold (AEI). The tariff still bites: Ford paid $365 million in March 2024 to settle a Justice Department claim, without admitting liability, that it imported Transit Connect cargo vans with temporary rear seats to pay the 2.5% passenger rate instead of 25% (Wards Auto).
• The combination is the argument. The Drive contends that the two rules together ended small American pickups: the Ford Ranger, Dodge Dakota, and Ford Explorer Sport Trac were all canceled around the time footprint standards took effect, and the Ford Maverick survived by using a compact hybrid platform (The Drive). While the causality isn’t strict here, the way the incentives align suggests this conclusion.
• The counterpoint. The Tax Policy Center concludes the tariff alone probably is not the main driver, because Toyota builds U.S. trucks similar in size to Detroit’s without paying it, and cheaper gasoline and safety perceptions also push buyers toward size (Tax Policy Center). The full-size pickup now averages more than $66,000 and is the profit engine of the U.S. industry (Marketplace).

The result: In model year 2024, trucks (a category that includes SUVs and pickups) were 66% of new vehicles and cars were 34%. SUVs alone were 50% (EPA). Average new-vehicle weight reached a record 4,371 pounds in model year 2023, and the average new pickup outweighed the average new sedan by about 1,535 pounds (EPA Automotive Trends Report).

Why it matters for freight: Heavier vehicles likely mean heavier loads for the haulers and suppliers that move them. Car haulers work under an 80,000-pound federal limit, and the trucking industry has asked for 88,000 because heavier electric vehicles mean fewer units per load (The Drive). The same arithmetic should apply to heavier trucks, though we have not found data that quantifies it for gasoline models. Separately, the reset lowers the CAFE bar and the fine is already $0, so the size incentive from CAFE is likely weaker than the models above assumed, while the Chicken Tax is unchanged. Our read is that this keeps large-truck assembly in North America, the parts-heavy, Midwest-centered build described above. That supports the base case, but it protects existing volume more than it creates new volume.

Mandates vs. markets: what the Renewable Fuel Standard says about CAFE targets

The 2007 law behind CAFE’s 35 mpg target also set biofuel blend targets, and together they are a useful test of how far a legislated number carries a market. For CAFE, the statute required a combined fleet average of at least 35 mpg for model year 2020 (49 U.S.C. 32902). For biofuels, it required 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel in 2022 (CRS).

How the biofuel mandate works: The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires refiners and fuel importers to blend set volumes of renewable fuel into the fuel they sell. The statute set targets for three fuel families that behaved very differently: corn ethanol, biodiesel and renewable diesel, and cellulosic fuels (CRS).

Corn ethanol (non-cellulosic): the mandate that mostly worked

• What it is. Ethanol made from corn starch, which the RFS calls conventional biofuel. The statute implies a 15 billion gallon level starting in 2015 (CRS), and EPA’s 2026 rule again implies 15 billion gallons (Federal Register).
• Why it mostly worked. The plants and the E10 blending infrastructure already existed. The U.S. consumed about 14 billion gallons of fuel ethanol in 2022 (EIA). EPA cut the conventional volume in 2020 and 2021 when the pandemic reduced fuel demand (farmdoc daily).

Biodiesel and renewable diesel: the mandate that grew

• What they are. Both are diesel substitutes made from vegetable oils, animal fats, and recycled grease, with soybean oil the dominant U.S. feedstock (CRS). Biodiesel is an ester fuel blended into diesel at low shares such as B5 or B20. Renewable diesel is a non-ester fuel that can be used pure or blended (EIA; CRS).
• The statute set only a floor. Congress required 1.0 billion gallons of biomass-based diesel by 2012 (CRS). EPA has since set the requirement far higher, so this category never had the cellulosic problem of a target beyond reach.
• The 2026 jump. EPA’s 2026 requirement is about 67% above 2025’s, the largest one-year increase in the program’s history, and works out to roughly 5.7 billion physical gallons (farmdoc daily).
• Why it matters for freight. This is the mandate that is blended into diesel. In 2022 the U.S. consumed about 1.7 billion gallons each of biodiesel and renewable diesel (EIA). We have not quantified its effect on diesel prices here.

Cellulosic biofuel: the mandate that missed

• What “cellulosic” means. Fuel made from cellulose, hemicellulose, or lignin, the fibrous structural material in plants such as corn stalks, wood waste, and grasses, and not from the starch in corn kernels or from vegetable oil. The statute also requires a lifecycle greenhouse gas cut of at least 60% versus petroleum (42 U.S.C. 7545). Since 2014, EPA also lets biogas from landfills, wastewater plants, and farm digesters count when it is converted to vehicle fuel such as compressed natural gas (Crowell).
• Targets ran far ahead of production. The cellulosic mandate rose from 100 million gallons in 2010 to 1 billion in 2013 and 16 billion in 2022 (CRS), while production “struggled to reach even a few million gallons” (farmdoc daily). EPA reduced the requirement every year from 2010 through 2022 (Federal Register).
• The shortfall persists. In 2024, production fell about 7% short of EPA’s own, heavily reduced requirement (Federal Register). For 2025, EPA waived roughly 12% of the requirement (Federal Register).

Why infrastructure decides what a mandate can deliver

The legal obligation sits with refiners and importers (CRS), but the pumps, storage tanks, engines, and plants that determine whether the fuel gets used belong to other parties. When those do not keep pace, the obligated party cannot comply, and the usual outcome is a smaller mandate.

• Ethanol is limited by pumps and vehicles. Most gasoline is E10, and higher blends need compatible vehicles and pumps. This “blend wall” caps ethanol near a tenth of gasoline demand, and only flex-fuel vehicles can use E85, which is sold at about 4,300 stations (EIA). E15 is approved for more than 95% of vehicles on the road but is sold at only about 3,000 to 5,000 stations, depending on the source (DTN; Renewable Energy Magazine). Summer E15 sales still depend on an annual emergency waiver, and 2026 was the fifth in a row (DTN).
• Diesel is limited by engines, weather, and geography. B5 works in any diesel engine, and many manufacturers approve B20, but blends above B20 can affect engine warranties and high-level blends can gel in cold weather (DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center). Renewable diesel avoids most of those limits, but almost all of it is consumed in California, pulled by state clean fuel programs rather than the federal mandate (EIA).
• Cellulosic is limited by plants that do not exist at scale. KiOR, a wood-to-fuel company backed by prominent investors, built a commercial plant in Mississippi that had produced no fuel by March 2014 and filed for bankruptcy that November (C&EN). A mandate cannot create a working plant.

How enforcement has held up over time

• The total shrank. EPA’s final 2022 volume was about 20.6 billion gallons against the 36 billion gallon statutory figure, a reduction of roughly 43% (CRS).
• Courts policed the method, not the ambition. In 2013 the D.C. Circuit vacated the 2012 cellulosic standard because EPA’s production projection “did not take neutral aim at accuracy” (CRS).
• Rules arrive late and change after the fact. The statute calls for EPA to set volumes at least 14 months before the year they apply (CRS). The 2026 and 2027 volumes were finalized in March 2026, with the first compliance year already under way (Federal Register).
• Exemptions and delays continue. In November 2025 EPA decided 16 small refinery exemption petitions covering 2021–2024, granting 2 in full and 12 in part (EPA). On Aug. 31, 2026 it decided 34 petitions for 2025 and moved the 2025 compliance deadline from Sept. 1 to Oct. 1 (Federal Register). EPA is reallocating 70% of the exempted 2023–2025 volumes into 2026 and 2027 (Federal Register).
• CAFE followed the same arc. Congress set the civil penalty to zero in July 2025, which leaves the standard with no direct financial enforcement (Sidley).

The pattern: “Unenforced” is not quite the right word for the biofuel mandates, since the statute gives EPA the waiver authority it has used. What the record shows is three ways a “thou shalt” fails. Targets are set beyond what infrastructure, plants, or markets can deliver, as with cellulosic fuel and the ethanol blend wall. Enforcement is softened through waivers, exemptions, late rules, or a zero penalty. And firms change behavior to fit the rule instead of its intent, as with size growth under footprint standards and the Transit Connect seats. Biodiesel and renewable diesel show the opposite case: where a mandate matches a fuel the market can make and distribute, it grows.

Why it matters for freight: The 34.5 mpg path through 2031 is a target, not a forecast. Production and freight forecasts should key on what automakers can sell at a profit given tariffs, rates, and fuel prices, which is how the scenarios above are built, and not on the regulatory number.

Auto manufacturing outlook: resilient sales, soft Detroit 3 share

New-vehicle demand is not broken — affordability and domestic market share are. That limits how much a regulatory change can add.

• Sales are holding up. Cox Automotive raised its 2026 forecast to 16.1 million units from 15.8 million, with September’s SAAR expected near 16.3 million (Cox Automotive).
• Prices are near record. The average transaction price hit $50,089 in August, with incentives down to 6.5% of ATP (Kelley Blue Book). Monthly payments average $821, a September record (J.D. Power).
• Detroit 3 are losing ground. Cox forecasts the Detroit 3 will finish Q3 with their lowest U.S. share on record as Asian brands gain (Cox Automotive).
• Production is flat, not growing. S&P Global Mobility put 2026 North American output near 15 million units and cut 2027 by 339,000 units on oil-price risk tied to the Iran conflict (S&P Global Mobility).

Why it matters for freight: The Detroit 3 are the biggest winners from looser CAFE because their fleets are truck-heavy. They also run the densest domestic supplier networks in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. If the rule helps them win back share with U.S.-built trucks and SUVs, that is where inbound parts freight would grow first.

Consumer sentiment and car prices: the rule doesn’t touch the pain points

Consumers are worried about fuel, tariffs and interest rates. A $1,300 sticker reduction phased in over several model years won’t offset those.

• Near record lows. The University of Michigan index fell to 48.1 in September from 51.7 in August and 55.1 a year ago (UMich Surveys of Consumers).
• Fuel is top of mind. 31% of consumers mentioned gasoline unprompted, and most expect prices to keep rising (University of Michigan).
• Rates are hurting vehicle buying conditions. Higher borrowing costs pushed vehicle buying conditions lower in September (University of Michigan).
• Tariff anxiety is rising. Unprompted tariff mentions rose from 24% in July to 35% in September (Spectrum News).

The tension: Looser CAFE lets automakers build more of the less-efficient trucks and SUVs they profit on. But with gas and diesel climbing, buyer demand is drifting toward hybrids and practical, efficient vehicles. The rule may push product mix in one direction while the pump pushes consumers the other way.

SONAR data: truckload tender rejections surge without more freight

SONAR‘s blended tender volume index (STVI) is up, but tender rejections (STRI) are up far more. Strip out rejected loads and the freight actually moving is roughly flat to down — nationally and in Detroit.

*Implied accepted volume = STVI × (1 − STRI). A directional estimate: rejected loads get re-tendered, which inflates tender volume when the market tightens. Source: SONAR, blended STVI and STRI, pulled Sept. 28, 2026.

• National STRI has nearly tripled. September 2026 is averaging 14.1%, versus 5.3% in September 2025.
• Detroit is tighter than the nation. DTW tender rejections averaged 17.6% in Q3, about 3 points above the national rate, even as accepted freight slipped.
• The read: Carriers are rejecting more freight because there are fewer trucks, not because shippers are tendering meaningfully more loads. Auto country is no exception.

How much truckload freight will the CAFE rollback add?

Even in a bullish case, the rule adds about 0.1% to national truckload volume. In core auto markets the lift is larger but still under 1%, and it arrives over 2027–2029.

Methodology: how we estimated the freight lift

• Price effect: DOT’s $1,300 savings is about 2.6% of the $50,089 August ATP.
• Demand response: We assume a price elasticity of about −1.0 for new vehicles, so a full 2.6% price cut adds about 2.6% to unit sales (~419,000 units on a 16.1M base).
• Realization: Only part of the savings reaches buyers, and it phases in with model-year changeovers. Tariffs and zeroed-out fines already absorb much of the benefit.
• Freight exposure: We assume auto-linked freight (inbound parts plus finished vehicles moved by truck) is ~5% of national truckload volume and ~25% of outbound volume in core auto markets like Detroit, Toledo and Indianapolis.

Scale check: National STRI moved from 5.3% to 14.5% year over year. A 0.05%–0.1% volume lift is a rounding error against a capacity shift of that size.

Where auto freight could see a bigger lift

• Parts suppliers in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and South Carolina, if Detroit 3 truck and SUV programs get more domestic volume.
• Car haulers and rail. Finished-vehicle moves lean heavily on rail and specialized car-haul fleets, which SONAR dry van tender indices don’t fully capture.
• Flatbed and industrial freight tied to any new plant or retooling investment, a longer-dated upside.

What to watch: auto freight signals in SONAR

• STVI and STRI in DTW and other auto markets. Real demand shows up as rising volume with steady or easing rejections, not rising rejections alone.
• Detroit 3 production schedules. Announced shift adds or restarted truck and SUV lines are the earliest hard signal.
• Fuel prices. If gas keeps climbing, buyers keep shifting to efficient vehicles and the mix benefit shrinks.
• Tariff and rate moves. Either could swamp the $1,300 price effect in a single announcement.
• Litigation. A court stay would freeze product planning and delay any freight upside.
• Enforcement and tariff changes. With the CAFE fine at $0, the targets are guidance more than constraint. Watch for any restored penalty or change to the Chicken Tax, either of which would change the truck-mix math.

Bottom line

• The CAFE reset is directionally positive for domestic auto manufacturing, especially for truck-heavy Detroit 3 fleets and Midwest suppliers.
• It is unlikely to lift consumer sentiment, which is being driven by fuel, tariffs and rates.
• It is not a near-term freight demand catalyst. Our base case adds ~0.05% to national truckload volume, phased in over 2027–2029.
• The 2026 freight market remains a capacity story: accepted volume is flat to down while rejections have nearly tripled. Watch SONAR’s auto markets for the first sign that demand, not supply, starts doing the work.
• Regulation sets incentives, not outcomes. The Chicken Tax, footprint-based CAFE, and the EISA biofuel mandates show that statutory targets are often waived, exempted, or worked around. Treat the 34.5 mpg path as a ceiling on ambition, not a forecast.

Frequently asked questions about CAFE standards and freight

What do the new 2026 CAFE standards change?

USDOT finalized the reset on Sept. 28, 2026. It lowers the fuel economy path to a 34.5 mpg fleet average by model year 2031, versus about 50.4 mpg under the prior rules, and sets standards without assuming EV production or credit trading.

Will the CAFE rollback increase truckload freight volume?

Only slightly. Our base case adds about 0.05% to national truckload volume and about 0.3% in core auto markets such as Detroit, Toledo and Indianapolis, phased in over 2027–2029 as model-year programs change.

Why are truckload tender rejections so high in 2026?

Capacity is leaving the market. National STRI averaged 14.5% in Q3 2026 versus 5.3% a year earlier, while implied accepted volume fell about 2% year over year. Carriers are rejecting more freight because there are fewer trucks, not because shippers are tendering more loads.

Are CAFE standards still enforced?

Not financially. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act set the CAFE civil penalty to $0 in July 2025, so the new targets work more as guidance than as a binding constraint on automakers.

What is the Chicken Tax and how does it affect pickups?

The Chicken Tax is a 25% U.S. tariff on imported light trucks that dates to 1964. Combined with footprint-based CAFE targets, it favors large, North American-built pickups and SUVs, which keeps truck assembly and parts freight concentrated in the Midwest and Southeast.

Which freight markets are most exposed to auto production?

Parts suppliers in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and South Carolina, plus car haulers, rail and flatbed carriers tied to plant investment. Watch STVI and STRI in auto markets such as Detroit for the first sign of real demand.

Track tender volume and rejections in auto markets with SONAR freight market intelligence.

Want to learn more about SONAR? Request a demo.

The post CAFE Standards Reset: Can Looser Fuel Economy Rules Restart Auto Freight? appeared first on FreightWaves.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) index gauges a country’s integration into container-shipping networks using factors including vessel calls, port capacity, carrier and service availability, largest ship size and the number of countries reached through direct services.

The latest figures underline Asia’s continuing central role in liner shipping. China led the region, while eight Asian economies — South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, India, Hong Kong and Taiwan — were among the world’s 15 best-connected economies in the third quarter, UNCTAD said.

China’s gap persists

China’s connectivity advantage has remained durable since 2023 and increased further through September, UNCTAD said. South Korea and Singapore retained high scores despite modest month-to-month declines, and both remained above their levels a year earlier.

The United States and Malaysia held fourth and fifth place, respectively. Their September index readings increased from August but remained below September 2025 levels, indicating an improvement in the immediate period without a full recovery in year-over-year connectivity.

At the regional level, the United States was the leading performer in North America, Spain led Europe, Egypt led Africa, and Panama ranked first in Latin America and the Caribbean. China and Panama improved their connectivity from a year earlier, while the United States, Spain and Egypt remained regional leaders despite declines in their index values.

Smaller markets drive volatility

While major hub economies generally recorded limited year-over-year changes, smaller and less-connected economies showed the sharpest percentage swings in the third quarter, according to UNCTAD.

Venezuela posted the largest increase in liner-shipping connectivity from the third quarter of 2025, rising 91.4%. Saint Pierre and Miquelon increased 89.3%, followed by Syria at 79.7%. Persian Gulf hostilities saw Qatar record the steepest decline, falling 65.3%, followed by Bahrain, down 60.6%, and Iraq, down 56%.

UNCTAD said connectivity losses outnumbered gains in the third quarter, a sign of uneven changes across national shipping networks. The data do not necessarily imply comparable absolute changes across markets, since percentage movements can be more pronounced for countries starting from relatively low connectivity levels.

China-centered Asian links dominate

The strongest bilateral liner-shipping relationships in the first quarter of 2026 were concentrated among nearby trading economies, particularly in Asia.

China’s links with South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia were among the five strongest bilateral connections globally, UNCTAD said. The agency noted that China-related connections in Asia have strengthened during the past two decades and now exceed many other bilateral corridors.

Two European short-sea links —United Kingdom-Belgium and United Kingdom-Netherlands — also remained in the global top five. Those routes were once the world’s strongest bilateral liner-shipping connections, according to UNCTAD.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

Read more:

New California law clouds Trump-backed Oakland coal export terminal project

Port of Oakland August volumes fall year over year as exports edge up from July

Ocean rates highest in a year amid US-China trade truce

ONE restructures in key ocean region

Port Houston container volumes edge higher as steel imports surge 54% 

The post New UN data: China widens lead in liner-shipping connectivity appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Free Driver Rewards Program? Samsara Targets Retention appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post Intermodal Hits All-Time Highs as Truckload Stays Tight appeared first on FreightWaves.

The post IKEA Picks Kodiak for Driverless Freight Rollout appeared first on FreightWaves.

The proposed class action lawsuit was filed Sept. 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan by Adis and Denisa Bajgoric, Sasa Susa doing business as ASP Logistics, Mensud Topic, Edin Topic and George Ureche against Red Line Logistics, Zaim Bajgoric and Anel Penava. 

The case is listed as Bajgoric et al. v. Red Line Logistics Inc. et al., No. 2:26-cv-13533. The class action lawsuit is seeking more than $1 million in damages for plaintiffs.

At the center of the complaint is an alleged scheme involving the amount Red Line received from customers for hauling freight and the amount disclosed to owner-operators whose compensation was tied to load revenue.

The plaintiffs allege Red Line secured freight from third-party customers and then assigned the loads to owner-operators operating under exclusive lease agreements. Under those agreements, drivers were supposed to receive a percentage of the revenue generated by their loads, minus certain costs and expenses.

One agreement cited in the complaint provided for the owner-operator to receive 80% of the load value while Red Line retained 20%. The lawsuit alleges drivers couldn’t haul for other carriers during the term of the agreements.

The plaintiffs claim, however, that Red Line didn’t always disclose what it actually received for a load.

The complaint provides a hypothetical example in which Red Line bids $10,000 for a load but tells the owner-operator the load was worth $7,500. Red Line would allegedly retain the $2,500 difference before calculating the driver’s contractual share from the lower amount.

The allegations have not been proven in court, and Red Line, Bajgoric and Penava have not filed a response to the claims in the publicly accessible docket reviewed by FreightWaves.

Lawsuit alleges two TMS platforms used to show different load values

The lawsuit provides an unusually detailed account of how the alleged discrepancies were created.

According to the complaint, Red Line used a transportation management system called Apex containing information about loads, including their actual total values. The plaintiffs allegedly did not have access to Apex.

Drivers instead had access to Sylectus, another transportation management system used to assign loads and handle driver-related information, the lawsuit states.

The plaintiffs allege Red Line would enter the actual load information into Apex and then instruct a dispatcher to reduce the load’s value by a certain amount before entering the information into Sylectus.

Drivers would consequently accept jobs believing the amount displayed in Sylectus represented the load’s total value, according to the complaint. Red Line allegedly followed up with emailed settlement statements purporting to show the amount paid by the third party and the driver’s share after expenses.

The plaintiffs allege those statements sometimes failed to disclose the actual amount received by Red Line, allowing the carrier to keep the difference. They claim the practice was repeated for individual trips over a period of years.

The lawsuit says the electronic communications involved could number in the thousands and alleges information about the purported load values also was communicated through email, text and voice-over-internet-protocol applications. 

The complaint says the trucking operations at issue involved interstate and foreign commerce across the U.S., Mexico and Canada.

Plaintiffs bring RICO allegations

The plaintiffs characterize the alleged conduct as a pattern of racketeering and bring claims under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

They allege the defendants’ electronic transmission of false load values, invoices and settlement information constituted multiple acts of wire fraud in furtherance of the purported scheme.

The lawsuit estimates the proposed class consists of approximately 50 or more owner-operators and alleges damages exceeding $1 million. The plaintiffs are seeking actual damages that could be tripled under RICO, along with punitive damages, attorney fees, an accounting of profits and other relief.

The plaintiffs allege breach-of-contract, and that they were entitled to a percentage of what third parties paid Red Line to transport freight, but that the defendants instead disclosed a lower amount and retained the difference.

The complaint includes several exhibits, including an interstate vehicle lease agreement and a driver pay sheet. The pay sheet lists four trips with $7,000 in trip-related pay before deductions. 

Those exhibits document aspects of the parties’ contractual and payment relationship but do not, by themselves, establish the alleged difference between what customers paid Red Line and what the company reported to drivers.

Red Line, based in Sterling Heights, Michigan, has active interstate motor carrier authority and is listed with 38 power units and 46 drivers in currently available carrier data.

FreightWaves contacted Red Line Logistics, Zaim Bajgoric and Anel Penava for comment on Sept. 25 and again Oct. 1 but had not received a response as of publication.

FreightWaves also contacted plaintiffs’ attorney Jeff A. DeLaunay of Miller Cohen on Sept. 25 and Oct. 1 seeking additional information. DeLaunay had not responded as of publication.

Why it matters: The lawsuit targets the transparency behind percentage-of-revenue compensation, alleging drivers were paid from freight values lower than what the carrier actually received.

The post Transportation provider accused of hiding freight revenue from owner-operators appeared first on FreightWaves.

Long Beach, California–Fixing the user front-end experience attached to the beleaguered Motus system rolled out earlier this year by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will “hopefully” be measured in weeks, according to a top administrator of the agency. 

Jesse Elison, the deputy administrator at FMCSA, told the cybersecurity conference of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association here that “behind the scenes, there’s a lot of attention to timelines and schedules.” 

In response to a question, he made his forecast that the user experience with Motus, the federal registration system operated by FMCSA, and whose rollout is generally seen in the market as bordering on disastrous, will be fixed in an unspecified number of weeks.

But as far as the back end of the Motus, Elison said bringing those features into a smooth operation “will be ongoing for some time.”

Elison said FMCSA under the direction of administrator Derek Barrs had more aggressively tackled bringing Motus on line than preceding administrations, even though the need to do so has been a “decade-long statutory obligation of FMCSA.”

“It’s a huge challenge, but we were not going to punt that responsibility,” Elison said. “The industry deserved that FMCSA followthrough, and so we went after it.”

Elison said the launch on May 14 found the agency with a “high level of confidence” that the process would be successful. But despite that, he said, “those following weeks were really really tough, because what we had built wasn’t working, and every time we tried to fix it, it worked less.”

Elison said in the “last couple of months, we’ve made really great strides to stabilize it a little bit.”

He added, however, “it is not where it needs to be.”

Motus needs to have “data that our industry can rely upon.” The user experience, which is what he said would be fixed in a timeline counted in weeks, “needs to be seamless for somebody to come into the system.”

“We’re going to get there,” Elison added.

The most recent change in FMCSA policy in reaction to the issues with Motus was to temporarily suspend enforcing the registration for biennial updates and the concurrent deactivation of Department of Transportation numbers for carriers that had not completed that requirement.

The break on registration was announced September 10. It is in effect for carriers that had a requirement for biennial registration after June 1.

Despite the issues with the system, Elison said “we’re much better off today than we were yesterday.”

One of the benefits of Motus is expected to tighten a channel for entry into FMCSA records that are exploited by perpetrators of freight fraud. “We know that it is a point of entry that we have to get right in order to combat the bad actors, and we’re going to do that,” Elison said.

More articles by John Kingston

Another aspect of Montgomery: it might make human brokers more valuable

Daimler Truck: concerned about using cash to avoid new NoX rules

For transportation cybersecurity, AI isn’t helping fight..so far

The post FMCSA’s Elison: ‘weeks’ away from fixing Motus user experience appeared first on FreightWaves.

A 54.5 reading for the Institute for Supply Management’s Manufacturing PMI was just 10 basis points below the August level and 40 bps shy of the consensus expectation. (A reading above 50 for the index signals expansion, while one below 50 indicates contraction.)

A sustained level above 47.5 signals that the overall economy is growing. The September reading was consistent with annualized real GDP growth of 2.4%, the report said.

The new orders index—an indicator of future activity—also expanded for a ninth consecutive month, logging a 55.3 reading, 1.6 percentage points higher than August. Five of the six largest manufacturing industries tracked—computer and electronics; chemical products; transportation equipment; food and beverage; and machinery—reported increases in new orders.

But demand sentiment around news orders slid further to a ratio of 1.7-to-1 positive-to-negative comments. The ratio was 3.5-to-1 in July. However, a sustained reading of 52 or higher for the subindex is consistent with a growing manufacturing order book.

Customers’ inventories (41.6) remained “too low,” sliding 1.2 points sequentially. “A ‘too low’ status for the Customers’ Inventories Index is usually considered positive for future production,” the report said. But a rising interest rate environment (along with extant goods cost inflation) could detract some firms from carrying elevated stock levels.

The backlog of orders dataset (56.4) expanded 4.6 points in the month as production (56.7) expanded for an 11th straight month, but was down 1.6 points from August.

Manufacturing employment (52.7) was in growth territory for a third straight month, up 1.5 points sequentially.

The ISM’s supplier deliveries index, which measures delivery times to manufacturing facilities, has signaled slowing delivery times and supply chain constraints for 10 consecutive months. The 59 reading was 30 bps lower sequentially. (This ISM subindex is the only one that is inverted.)

Overall sentiment from respondents skewed 40% positive and 60% negative. The split was 42%-58% in August. Pricing volatility, tariffs, the Iran war and longer lead times were the most cited sticking points.

Cost inflation was the primary concern. The dataset’s prices index jumped 6.8 points to 77.9. “Higher prices” were reported by 58.6% of respondents, 12.4 points higher than in August, as raw materials prices moved higher for a 24th straight month.

The average commitment lead time for capex was 176 days in September, five days longer than in August.

LTL tonnage on the rise, sector in early phase of recovery

The industrial economy typically accounts for two-thirds of less-than-truckload revenue. The ISM dataset leads inflections in LTL volumes by approximately three months.

Third-quarter updates from public carriers showed year-over-year tonnage growth has continued to accelerate on a cumulative basis since first turning positive in March.   

Further, Old Dominion (NASDAQ: ODFL) reported an acceleration in y/y yield growth in August, both with and without fuel surcharges, even as higher shipment weights presented a modest headwind. Like other carriers, Old Dominion recently pulled forward its annual general rate increase on various tariff codes.  

Old Dominion kicks off the LTL earnings season on Oct. 28, reporting third-quarter results ahead of the market open.

Why it matters? The ISM dataset provides key macroeconomic indicators that directly impact logistics, procurement and capacity planning. Continued manufacturing expansion serves as a leading indicator for LTL demand.

More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden:

• XPO opens new terminals in Phoenix, Kansas City markets
• Old Dominion pulls forward 4.9% GRI as LTL carriers accelerate rate hikes
• Truckload carriers: Capacity exodus growing, not slowing

The post September’s 54.5 manufacturing PMI comes with inflation concerns appeared first on FreightWaves.

Management’s theme was that the hard work of integration, including a unified cargo booking system and single operating certificate, and transforming from a domestic carrier into an international one is mostly done; now the Seattle-based airline is moving into the value-creation phase by focusing on areas such as premium travel, the loyalty program and cargo.

After the merger with Hawaiian Airlines in September 2024, Alaska’s cargo revenue grew 57% to $549 million last year. The jump seems bigger than it actually is because the merged figures are compared to the mostly solo-Alaska Air performance, but the company’s cargo opportunities have clearly expanded, especially with Hawaiian providing first-time entry into widebody passenger aircraft and long-haul international routes. In the first half of 2026, Alaska Air’s cargo revenue was $316 million — putting it on track for more than $600 million in revenue with the peak shipping season still ahead.

Alaska Air (NYSE: ALK) currently serves five international destinations, including Tokyo, Seoul, South Korea; London and Rome from Seattle. Next year, the company will begin service to Paris and Athens from its Seattle hub and expects to fly to 15 international destinations by 2030. Most of those cities are located in strong industrial economies with large trade flows. The Boeing 787-9s used on those routes have significant capacity for cargo containers in the lower deck and cargo yields are higher on longer distances than with short-haul domestic routes. 

Alaska Airlines currently operates three Boeing 737-700 converted freighters and two larger Boeing 737-800 passenger-to-freighter aircraft in its domestic network. The cargo jets were originally a way for Alaska to serve communities across Alaska, providing freight and mail connectivity to the Seattle hub and export markets across the lower 48 states. For years, cargo revenue was about a $130 million to $150 million annual business.

In late July, the company disclosed plans to lease four additional 737-800 converted freighters. Alaska Air intends to operate two new dedicated freighters within Hawaii, serving the islands from its base at Honolulu airport. The planes will be painted in a Hawaiian Air Cargo livery and are expected to enter service in the first half of 2027.  

Alaska Air also inherited Hawaiian’s side hustle flying Airbus A330-300 cargo jets for Amazon. The planes are supplied by Amazon, with Alaska responsible for providing crews, maintenance and insurance. Alaska currently operates 11 Amazon freighters and earlier this year renegotiated its transportation contract with more favorable terms.

“Cargo allows us to fully monetize our assets across the network. As we grow internationally, optimize fleet deployment and leverage a combined Alaska and Hawaiian footprint, cargo becomes an increasingly meaningful contributor to both revenue growth and margin expansion,” said Ian Morgan, vice president of cargo, during the live-streamed event.

As Alaska Air expands internationally, cargo can generate incremental revenue and profit.

“Cargo contributes as much as 20% of flight revenue on transpacific routes, creating meaningful revenue enhancement without additional aircraft. Collectively, these businesses produce margins that are twice the system average, making cargo an important contributor to our long term financial targets,” Morgan said.

Stemwilt Growers in Washington, through its freight forwarder Jetstream, took advantage of Alaska Air’s first summer offering non-stop service from Seattle to Seoul to ship cherries to Korea, according to a blog on the Alaska Air Cargo website. Stemilt shipped about 860,000 pounds of dark sweet cherries to Seoul on Alaska 787 Dreamliners and also sent some cherry shipments to London via the new service. The grower has been shipping cherries to Korea for 25 years.

Stemilt moves its fresh-harvested cherries in refrigerated trucks to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, where Jetstream stores the cherries in custom coolers until tendering the pallets to Alaska Air, which is able to maintain them at below 50 degrees of temperature for optimal shelf life.

Alaska Air’s cargo chief said the airline could reach 50% market share in the state of Alaska, up from 37%, as it introduces more 737-800 freighters to the fleet. Competitors include Northern Air Cargo and Lynden Air Cargo.

Hawaii represents a similar opportunity, but from a much smaller base. 

Alaska Air holds a 6% share of the interisland cargo market, where it competes with companies such as Southwest, Aloha Air Cargo, Transair Cargo and Kamaka Air utilizing its passenger fleet. The dedicated freighters will enable the carrier to move palletized shipments between the four largest Hawaiian islands and the continental U.S.

“By adding dedicated freighter service, leveraging Hawaiian’s brand, loyal customer base, and applying the operating model we have refined in Alaska, we see a path towards 50% share,” said Morgan. “We’re not creating demand that doesn’t exist. We’re leveraging assets, capabilities, expertise we already possess and applying them to an underpenetrated market with significant growth potential.”

Morgan portrayed Alaska’s cargo growth and cargo’s 2.6% share of total revenue as outpacing that of industry peers, but any comparison comes with many qualifiers. Major U.S. carriers operate huge international networks and generate three to four times total revenue than Alaska. They also don’t operate freighters. Southwest Airlines might be the best comparison to Alaska because it operates a mostly domestic (some short-haul international leisure destinations) network with an all-narrow body fleet. Southwest’s 2025 cargo revenue was $171 million and cargo represented 0.6% of total revenue. United Airlines is the cargo leader among passenger U.S. passenger airlines, with $1.8 billion in cargo revenue and a 3% share of total revenue.

Why It Matters: Alaska Airlines is poised to become a much larger competitor in the air cargo market as it adds more standard cargo jets for local and domestic service and continues its evolution into a full-fledged international air carrier. That means more shipping options for beneficial cargo owners.

Alaska Accelerate

Overall, Alaska Air is two-thirds of the way towards its goal of $1 billion in incremental profit and $10 earnings per share from the Hawaiian merger and expects to achieve that by the end of 2027, CFO Shane Tackett said. 

The spike in jet fuel prices, inflation’s impact on consumer demand, massive flooding in Hawaii and global economic uncertainty are headwinds to achieving the earnings per share target, he acknowledged. In the second quarter, Alaska lost $76 million versus a profit of $172 million the prior year.

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

Write to Eric Kulisch at ekulisch@freightwaves.com.

RELATED STORIES:

Alaska Air to acquire 4 cargo jets, base some in Hawaii

Alaska Airlines upgrades Amazon cargo contract

Alaska Airlines dissatisfied with Amazon cargo contract, executive says

Northern Air Cargo names permanent CEO

The post Alaska Air eyes 50% share of intra-island Hawaii cargo market  appeared first on FreightWaves.

The planned West Gateway Terminal would be developed at the Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal near the foot of the Bay Bridge. If completed as currently envisioned, it would receive coal by rail from interior Western states, store it at the waterfront site and load it onto vessels for Asian markets. Published reports said that project documents reviewed by prospective investors indicate potential throughput of up to 12 million metric tons annually, or about 13.2 million short tons, enough to make it the largest coal export facility on the U.S. West Coast.

For Oakland, which has seen import container volumes move away to bigger Southern California and Canadian hubs, the terminal would represent a major shift at a waterfront site originally positioned for broader bulk and oversized cargo development. For Western coal producers, it could provide a rare potential outlet to Pacific export markets at a time when several West Coast coal-handling options have faced local opposition or plans to phase out the commodity.

Federal backing, Utah interest

The project is part of a broader Trump administration effort to support U.S. coal production and exports. In June, the administration announced $75 million for the Oakland terminal within a nearly $700 million coal-sector package, while the Energy Department has described the terminal as export infrastructure that could support Western coal producers and overseas demand.

The federal grant would cover only part of the investment. The Energy Department has estimated the facility’s cost at about $231 million, but a feasibility report prepared for a coalition of Utah counties put the likely cost in a much wider range of $430 million to $625 million. That same report estimated a 53-month construction and start-up schedule, a timetable that could put initial exports later than a previously projected 2028 opening.

Utah’s Rural Utah Infrastructure Coalition, representing eight counties, has asked the state’s Permanent Community Impact Fund Board to consider investing about $45 million in the project. The coalition sees a Pacific export outlet as important for accessing Asian buyers as domestic coal demand contracts and Western coal mines seek new markets. The board was expected to consider funding at an October meeting.

Potential export destinations cited in project-related reporting include Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam and Malaysia. The facility could handle coal from Utah as well as Powder River Basin mines in Wyoming and Montana.

New environmental review requirement

Newsom’s signing of Assembly Bill 40 changes the project’s regulatory outlook. The law requires a California Environmental Quality Act review for new coal projects, or existing facilities proposing to export more than 5 million tons of coal annually. The threshold would cover the proposed West Gateway operation at its contemplated scale.

The legislation was sponsored by Assemblymember Mia Bonta, D-Alameda, amid concerns that the project’s likely operations differ substantially from earlier expectations. 

The terminal’s long legal history included Oakland’s 2016 ban on coal storage and handling, which developers challenged in federal court. A judge in 2018 ruled that the city could not apply the restriction to the planned terminal under its development agreement, and the California Supreme Court’s decision not to take up Oakland’s later appeal effectively cleared a major legal obstacle in 2025.

AB 40 does not necessarily block construction. But it could require a detailed assessment of the project’s environmental and health effects, consideration of alternatives and mitigation measures, and create another potential avenue for administrative and court challenges.

Open-storage disclosure heightens opposition

The newest controversy centers on the project’s proposed coal-handling design. A July report by Norda Stelo and Wood Mackenzie, prepared for potential Utah investors, said coal would be stored in two open-air bunkers holding roughly 150,000 tons each. That would depart from prior public assurances that the terminal would be fully enclosed.

The report also projected peak annual throughput at roughly three times the amount evaluated in the terminal’s older environmental documentation. That earlier review covered bulk commodities but did not specifically address coal, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Environmental justice advocates and nearby residents say open stockpiles, rail movements and vessel-loading operations could add coal dust and fine-particle pollution in West Oakland, an area already affected by port, trucking and industrial emissions. They have urged the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to require modern pollution-control measures and are preparing for further legal challenges.

Project supporters contend the terminal would create a long-sought mine-to-market route for coal-producing regions of Utah and Wyoming while supporting jobs and export activity. The Trump administration has said the project could create more than 1,400 jobs.

Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.

Read more:

Port of Oakland August volumes fall year over year as exports edge up from July

Ocean rates highest in a year amid US-China trade truce

ONE restructures in key ocean region

Port Houston container volumes edge higher as steel imports surge 54% 

Flexport launches MCP Server for AI agents to book freight

The post New California law clouds Trump-backed Oakland coal export terminal project appeared first on FreightWaves.