Women in trucking
It’s easy to say that women are underrepresented in trucking and logistics. But by how much is harder to quantify.
The Women In Trucking association (WIT) is asking companies in trucking, distribution, logistics and supply chain management to complete a survey that collects data on gender diversity in the industry. The data will be used to develop the latest WIT Index, a benchmark percentage of women who are professional drivers, in corporate positions and who serve on boards of directors. Responses are confidential and data will be reported only as aggregate totals of respondents. The survey is open through April 1. Learn more here.
Who are the biggest influencers in trucking?
Driver pay may be on the rise but it can’t match was Swedish truck driver Angelica Larsson makes as a social influencer on YouTube.
Larsson has 336,000 followers on Instagram and 320,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel, which she launched three years ago and now produces $6,000 a month in revenue, more than double what she earns driving. “In Europe overall, like in Bulgaria or Russia, there are not many girls driving,” she told Insider. “I have a lot of followers from outside Sweden … it’s important for them to see that girls can drive trucks, too.”
Larsson isn’t the only industry influencer out there. Part Catalog takes a look at the most popular trucking influencers on each social network.
At least 10% of demand for new trucks will go unmet in 2022
Trucking companies want to spend more on new trucks and trailers this year but supply-chain problems are constraining their efforts. Don Ake, vice president of commercial vehicles at FTR Transportation Intelligence, expects manufacturers to fall 85,000 units short of meeting demand for heavy-duty trucks in North America this year and that production won’t recover until 2023.
Raw material shortages are causing the most issues, reports Truck Parks & Service, but there’s reason for optimism.
Recent Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association member surveys show that order-fulfillment levels for metals, plastics and non-electrical subcomponents have all risen in the past six months and are approaching or exceeding 90%. Fill rates for electrical subcomponents (such as semiconductors) also have risen by nearly 15% from last summer but lag well behind other categories at 76%. Still, HDMA research indicates its possible “about 10% of demand will be unable to be met” for the remainder of the year. Expect capacity to remain tight.
‘Containergeddon’ hits California farmers
The number of ships waiting to enter the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach was down to 78 as of Feb. 9 from a peak of 109 a month earlier, but backlogs are growing at several other ports as shippers try to avoid congestion in Southern California.
One of the unintended consequences of diverting loaded import containers to other places—Charleston, Savannah, New York/New Jersey—is that you don’t have as many empties in California.
The shortage of available containers is hurting California farmers, whose export business depends on containerized shipping. The value of the state’s containerized agricultural exports fell almost $2.1 billion last year, a 17% decline.
Last year, from May to September, the Port of Los Angeles processed 18% fewer containers loaded with agricultural exports. That’s a container a trucker didn’t get to move.
Poor productivity in the ports has consequences both coming and going. It’s not just about getting t-shirts and tennis shoes to consumers here. It’s about making sure there are empty containers for exporters of citrus, processed tomatoes, table grapes and other produce.
Brake for Roadcheck: May 17-19
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s International Roadcheck is scheduled for May 17-19. The 72-hour high-visibility, high-volume inspection and enforcement blitz will take place across Canada, Mexico and the U.S. Many owner-operators and small fleets will take the days off—some to reduce the risk of an out-of-service order, others to avoid delays at weigh scales and inspection stations.
More than 40,000 commercial motor vehicle inspections were conducted for 2021 International Roadcheck. Inspectors removed 6,710 commercial motor vehicles and 2,080 drivers from roadways, a 16.5% vehicle and 5.3% driver out-of-service rate.