-70 or -94
2021 will be "The Year of Cold Chain" in the freight transportation and logistics realm, as global tech market advisory firm ABI Research put it in a report titled 68 Technology Trends That Will Shape 2021. The early COVID-19 vaccines "require ultra-low temperatures, as much as -70 C or -94 F," ABI said. "This is influenced by a lack of data storage specifications and shelf life for these new types of Messenger RNA vaccines."
0.97
Although the FTR Shippers Condition Index (SCI) for September 2020 "moved into a positive range, the environment for shippers is hardly good," FTR officials said on Dec. 1. "Considering that the average SCI reading in 2019 was +6.0, the increase from -1.79 in August to +0.97 in September is nothing to cheer about." And while FTR expects modest improvements for shippers in early 2021, it forecasts the index to "turn sharply negative" in mid-2021 due to "tighter capacity and higher shipping rates."
3
3 years, which is "the amount of time it will take the U.S. economy to regain pre-COVID employment levels if payrolls grow at the pace seen in November" — The Dec. 11 issue of Oliver Wyman Forum, citing the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
3
In a safety alert, the Switching Operations Fatality Analysis Working Group reminded rail workers to remain vigilant in light of 3 switching fatalities in the 90-day period from August to November, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen noted on Dec. 8.
4.9
For the week ending Dec. 12, U.S. rail traffic was 546,209 carloads and intermodal units, up 4.9% compared with the same 2019 week, the Association of American Railroads said on Dec. 16. Total carloads for the week were 238,193, down 2.2% compared with the same 2019 period, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 308,016 containers and trailers, up 11.1% compared to the same 2019 week.
7.8
Annual equipment and software investment will grow 7.8% next year, according to the 2021 Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s U.S. Economic Outlook, released Dec. 16. Equipment and software investment growth fared better than overall GDP growth in 2020 as businesses invested to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic, and growth should remain well into positive territory in the beginning of 2021, according to the foundation. Annual U.S. GDP growth for 2021 is forecast at 4.7 percent. “This update ... indicates the worst of the economic downturn appears to be in the rearview mirror — although that does not mean the road ahead is clear," said Foundation Chair Scott Thacker, CEO of Ivory Consulting Corp., adding that "prospects of widely distributed vaccines in 2021 should provide a boost to the economy, particularly in transportation-focused industries.”
10 and 14
In the third quarter, the driver turnover rate at truckload carriers with more than $30 million in annual revenue rose 10 percentage points to 92% on an annualized basis, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) reported on Dec. 16. The rate at smaller truckload carriers rose 14 points to 74%. Despite the increases, the 2020 average turnover rate is still running behind 2019’s average. “After a calamitous second quarter, trucking — along with the rest of the economy — began recovering in the third quarter, leading to a tightening of the driver market,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “With a more robust freight market, we saw an increase in carriers seeking drivers, which led to increased turnover. Additionally, the driver pool has decreased this year for a host of reasons, including fewer new drivers coming into the industry as truck driver training schools train less drivers due to social distancing requirements.”
20
Grain carloads were up 23.1% in November compared with November 2019's total, their third straight month with growth of at least 20%, according to the Association of American Railroads' The Signal, issued Dec. 15. This is only the second time that has happened since AAR starting keeping records in 1988. Most of the shipments are going to the Pacific Northwest and to Mexico, indicating "potential renormalizations in international grain demand and trade patterns," AAR said.
857
At least 857 temperature-controlled trucks will carry ultracold/cold COVID-19 vaccine doses monthly in 2021, according to early modeling by ABI Research. The modeling incorporates trucks that would depart from Pfizer and Moderna manufacturing facilities or distribution centers, the firm said on Dec. 8. "The worldwide freight industry is gearing up for an initial goal" of transporting an average of 271 million ultracold and cold doses month, or 9 million per day, according to ABI. Should AstraZaneca receive approval for its vaccine, the numbers would be "materially" increase, the firm said.
12,000
The Douglas Golden-Mary Cullen Charitable Fund is establishing a scholarship program through the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA). Beginning with a 2020 year-end donation, the charitable fund will donate $12,000 annually to support 10 scholarships a year, ASLRRA noted in its Dec. 16 edition of Views & News. Scholarships may be used to cover the cost of attending training seminars on track, bridge, and/or signal inspection and maintenance; and locomotive and/or freight car inspection and maintenance. ASLRRA will award 10 grants of up to $1,200 each per year to employees of small railroads. At least five of the grants will be awarded to railroad employees in the Southern region and at least one in the Eastern region, ASLRRA said.
52,600
North American Class 8 truck net orders "exploded" in November to 52,600 units, the "third-highest total ever," according to an FTR preliminary report issued Dec. 2. "The Class 8 market is trying to rebalance after suffering through woeful order numbers early in the pandemic," FTR Vice President of Commercial Vehicles Don Ake said. "The huge November orders mean that Q4 will be a fabulous one, regardless of what comes in for December, and that portends well for the expected increase in production early next year."
889,746
The Port of Los Angeles processed 889,746 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in November, an increase of 22% compared to November 2019's total. Increased consumer spending, holiday shipments and replenishment of warehouse inventories resulted in "an unprecedented surge of cargo" in recent months, port officials said on Dec. 15. “Since August, monthly cargo volume has averaged almost 930,000 TEUs,” said Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka. “It’s unusual to see this kind of import activity this late in the year. But 2020 has been anything but normal."
2.21 million
U.S. ports covered by Global Port Tracker handled 2.21 million TEUs in October, the latest month for which final numbers are available — that's up 17.6 percent year-over-year and up 5.2 percent from 2.11 million TEUs in September, the previous record for a single month since the National Retail Federation (NRF) began tracking imports in 2002, NRF said on Dec. 9. October’s number brought the total for the July-through-October peak season for retailers to 8.3 million TEUs. That represents an increase of 8.8 percent over the same 2019 period and beats the previous record of 7.7 million TEUs set in 2018. Meanwhile, December was forecast at 1.91 million TEUs, up 11 percent from last year. Global Port Tracker is produced for NRF by consulting firm Hackett Associates.
2.5 million
Operation Lifesaver Inc. has been busy spreading the safety gospel. In 2019, 2.5 million people were reached in over 21,000 presentations, training classes and events across the United States — a 56% increase from the 1.6 million people reached in 2018, according to Operation Lifesaver’s 2019 Annual Report, issued Dec. 15. The total number of presentations, training classes and events increased 5% from 2018.
3.12 million
CN set a new grain movement record in November with more than 3.12 million metric tonnes (MMT) of Canadian grain moved, the railroad revealed Dec. 3. The new mark followed an all-time record of 3.27 MMT moved in October, and builds on monthly records dating back to March 2020.
