My October road trip started before dawn, as I left Chicago on the first flight of the morning to Oakland. Flying west across time zones is like being in a time warp. I can leave Chicago first thing in the morning, and arrive on the west coast when it is […]
Transportation
23 posts
In 1944, the heads of seventeen independent truck leasing companies from all over the US met in Chicago and formed the National Truck Leasing System, which became NationaLease. Although the overarching goal was to promote the truck leasing industry, members soon realized that each of them was also benefitting from […]
It’s always a good idea to plan a trip to Minnesota before the first snowfall. The last time I visited members there, a blizzard blocked the roads, my flight home was cancelled, and I spent the morning digging my rental car out of the hotel parking lot. This time, I […]
The truck driver shortage issue doesn’t seem to get better, and driver health problems just make it worse. Here’s a sobering statistic: A 2015 study from the CDC found that absenteeism cost employers just under $226 billion annually in productivity. With an aging workforce, that number is expected to only […]
Technology doesn’t take a break so get ready for the Class 8 electric truck. Disruption is everywhere, in every industry, and trucking is no exception. First, we saw the advent of the natural gas-powered Class 8 truck. Once considered to be primarily used by cities for busses, garbage trucks, and […]
When deliveries are made during off-peak hours, everyone benefits…fleets, drivers, shippers, and the public at large. Every company is trying to find greater efficiencies in every aspect of their business and that includes in their transportation function. Long wait times at delivery points, truck idling, and traffic congestion can be […]
What’s the downside to immediate gratification? A lack of appreciation and the loss of anticipation. Normally, my blogs center around issues facing the trucking and truck leasing industry and, to some extent, today’s blog continues to do so, but only peripherally. Philosophical musing isn’t normally my milieu but a February […]