Infrastructure TRUCKERS: WHAT LEGISLATIVE MEASURES HAVE THE GREATEST IMPACT ON YOUR BUSINESS? 68%
SHIPPERS: HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED A SHORTAGE OF TRUCK CAPACITY?
No
40%
39%
Energy policy
60%
26%
Healthcare
Yes
15%
Highway Trust Fund
Finding a truck remains a challenge in 2022, but it’s not quite as hard as last year. In 2021, 70% of our shipper respondents said they had experienced a shortage of truck capacity. In 2022, that number dropped by 10 points to 60%.
13%
Vehicle weight
Trucks rely on public infrastructure to get where they’re going. So truckers care a lot about laws that aect the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, and related facilities. Sixty- eight percent of trucking companies in the 2022 survey name infrastructure as one of the legislative measures that have the greatest impact on their business. The second-biggest legislative concern—although a distant second— is energy policy, named by 39% of trucker respondents. That’s up a bit from last year’s 32%, no surprise in a year of soaring energy prices, and at a time when the newly signed Inflation Reduction Act oers incentives for fleets to shift from diesel to electric power. Three other legislative areas drew less concern from truckers this year than last: laws involving healthcare (cited by 26% in 2022 vs. 30% in 2021), the Highway Trust Fund (15% in 2022 vs. 19% in 2021), and vehicle weight (13% in 2022 vs. 18% in 2021).
SHIPPERS: HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT CSA REGULATIONS?
Should be suspended permanently
16%
50%
34%
Have had a noticeable cost or service impact on operations
Have had no cost or service impact on operations
Regulations in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Compliance, Safety, and Accountability Act (CSA) have not aected the cost of operations or impacted transportation services for half of the shippers who responded to our survey. About one-third of shippers have seen some impact from the program. Sixteen percent of shippers say the CSA program should be suspended permanently.
SHIPPERS: HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT HOURS-OF- SERVICE REGULATIONS?
SHIPPERS: HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED RATE HIKES APART FROM FUEL SURCHARGES?
Should be suspended permanently
18%
45%
15%
No
37%
Have had a noticeable cost or service impact on operations
Have had no cost or service impact on operations
85%
Yes
More shippers are bothered by federal rules that regulate truck drivers’ working hours than they are by the CSA program. Forty- five percent of shipper respondents say Hours-of-Service regulations have had a noticeable impact on transportation costs or on the services they receive, and 18% would like to do away with those rules altogether. Thirty-seven percent have seen no cost or service impact.
While the capacity crunch has eased somewhat since last year, increased supply doesn’t seem to have brought rates down. To the contrary, 85% of shippers in our survey say they have experienced rate hikes, even without taking fuel surcharges into account. That’s up from last year’s 80%.
50 Inbound Logistics • September 2022
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