The Daily Dash is a quick look at what’s happening in the freight ecosystem. In today’s edition, we highlight the fallout from K-Ratio’s closing of its fuel hedging program, Uber Freight’s expansion into the LTL space and more.
The High Five
1. The abrupt closure of K-Ratio’s fuel hedging program in late June has left trucking companies scrambling as they await answers from the Chicago-based company as to what happened and when or if participating carriers will recoup money owed to them for June settlements and if they will be reimbursed for future fuel swap option contracts they paid cash to lock in fuel prices into 2022. Clarissa Hawes with the exclusive
2. Gaps in how the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration oversees state CDL programs threaten the agency’s ability to prevent large truck crashes, a federal watchdog agency warns. A performance audit revealed that a portion of state CDL agencies were not properly transmitting electronic notifications of truck driver convictions. John Gallagher from Washington
3. Uber Freight has expanded into less-than-truckload freight and will work with one of the largest logistics providers in the industry, BlueGrace Logistics, to enable its customers to receive real-time pricing from various LTL carriers, track shipments and manage billing through a single platform. Grace Sharkey’s story
4. PACCAR Inc. and Volvo Group are among investors in a special purpose acquisition company that plans to bring self-driving technology company Aurora Innovation public at a $10.6 billion enterprise valuation, the second highest of four startups seeking to trade on public markets. Alan Adler with more
5. Union Pacific is temporarily suspending eastbound service from West Coast port terminals to its Global IV intermodal facility in Chicago to help ease “significant congestion” at inland terminals, especially Chicago, and at the ports. The suspension will start on Sunday and last for about seven days. Joanna Marsh’s story
Five more to check out
Lineage, 8VC announce alliance to advance supply chain innovation
Accident dislodges Georgia overpass, forces I-16 closure
Where’s Elon? Morgan Stanley report concludes eVTOLs are in Tesla’s future
Port Houston posts 39% year-over-year container volume growth
Surge Transportation forges digital pathway with TMS integrations
Daily SONAR chart
Truckload spot rates continue to trend higher in 2021, averaging $3.18 per mile over the past two months compared to $2.96 per mile (7.4%) from November to December last year.