Each week we recap the hot topics in freight and compile them into one place so you can easily stay up to date on the industry. Check back each Monday and start your week off in the know. 

TRANSFLO & GO!

Stop the Clock

Last week the FMCSA proposed changes to its hours-of-service rules that would give drivers more flexibility with their 30-minute rest break and with allocating time in a sleeper berth.

The proposal, which the agency said is based on “detailed public comments,” offers five key revisions to existing HOS rules. They would let drivers split their mandatory 10-hour rest period into two separate breaks instead of having to take their break all at once—neither period would count against their 14-hour on-duty window—and use the “on duty, not driving” status rather than the “off duty” status during breaks.

Drivers would also be allowed one off-duty break of at least 30 minutes, but not more than three hours, that would pause the 14-hour driving window provided the driver takes 10 consecutive hours off-duty at the end of the work shift. This presumably would be time that drivers could use to nap or wait out rush-hour traffic instead of staying on the road.

The FMCSA expects to publish the proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register today, setting off a 45-day public comment period. The Federal Register Notice, including how to submit comments, is available HERE. 

SOURCE: FMCSA

Yield Curve? Check Out

the Coyote Curve

Last week was all about the yield curve, which economists say is a predictor of a recession. This week? Coyote Curve.

The Coyote Curve is a forecasting model developed by Coyote Logistics, a 3PL arm of UPS, that analyzes three concurrent cycles—seasonal demand, annual procurement, and more elusive market capacity—to find supply and demand patterns in the spot truckload freight market.

Speaking last week at an ACT Research seminar, Coyote Logistics chief strategy officer Chris Pickett said the Coyote Curve indicates that demand for spot truckload services has hit a low point and is “two or three quarters” from turning positive again. Pickett emphasizes the model isn’t perfect—hurricanes, trade wars, and other unforeseen disruptive forces can bring volatility—but it can help you manage change instead of riding it out.

“We feel the euphoria then pain, euphoria, pain—and we never learn,” Pickett said.

Pickett will unveil the Q3 Coyote Curve and U.S. truckload market forecast on Thursday. Sign up for the webinar HERE.

SOURCE: FleetOwner

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