Tank fleets remain an economic bright spot for the trucking industry as a whole, according to Bob Costello, chief economist and vice-president of the American Trucking Associations (ATA).
Tank truckloads increased approximately 7 percent in the first quarter of 2008, compared with the same quarter in 2007, he said during a presentation May 20 during the National Tank Truck Carriers Inc annual conference in New York City. Only refrigerated fleets outpaced tank fleets with an 11 percent increase in freight shipments.
Costello said he believes tank fleets will continue to outperform most of trucking for the rest of this year. He also predicted that truckload capacity for all trucking sectors will tighten quickly and significantly in the coming months. Even as loads show signs of increasing, projections suggest that the trucking industry will shrink capacity by about 1.4% this year. That is on top of a 2.6% reduction in capacity in 2007.
Bulk Transporter will publish a full report on Costello’s NTTC presentation in the July issue.