More trucks posting availability on the spot market last week, after a tight squeeze during the previous week’s Roadcheck inspection blitz, put what would seem to be downward pressure on rates into this week. However, shippers and brokers, given the load-to-truck demand indicators remaining above average, are still having a hard time finding truckload capacity overall.
Truckers thus continue to exercise plenty leverage in spot negotiations, and those shippers and brokers are paying a premium to move spot freight.
June is on track for the highest ever national averages for rates in each equipment type tracked — van, reefer and flatbed. Spot market rates are also higher than contract rates for all three trailer types, meaning brokers are paying more than shipper-direct contract rates for comparable hauls on average. That won’t be true for every load on every lane, of course.
![Strong volumes on the top 100 van lanes last week suggest that the rate spikes we saw during the Roadcheck blitz could be part of a sustained rise.](https://img.overdriveonline.com/files/base/randallreilly/all/image/2018/06/ovd.DAT-VanHotStatesMap-2018-June-10-16-2018-06-20-09-39.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max&q=70&w=400)
Hot van markets: As high as the national van rate has been this month ($2.30 per mile), prices have been even higher on the top 100 van lanes. Last week, volumes rose by double-digit percentage points in key markets like Dallas, Chicago and Atlanta, and load counts continued to climb in the top market of Los Angeles.
Not so hot: Only a handful of major lanes had rates fall by more than 10 cents per mile. For example, Buffalo, N.Y., to Chicago dropped 14 cents to an average of $1.94 per mile. The Houston to Dallas lane has been hot lately, but it also fell back 14 cents last week to $2.83.
![Out on the West Coast, van loads from California to Seattle are paying well as a general rule. But part of the reason rates on the Los Angeles and Stockton lanes to Seattle have been so high is because you’ll probably have a harder time finding a good-paying load coming straight back out. The return trip from Seattle to Stockton averaged just $1.33 per mile last week on DAT Load Boards. You could try taking advantage of the higher prices on the lane from Seattle to Eugene, Ore., which paid an average of $2.92 per mile. From there you could look for a load back to Stockton, with an average rate of $2.20 last week. This is basically just an extra stop on the way back down I-5, so any extra miles will be whatever deadhead is added between your extra drop and pick. Not counting deadhead, it could push your average rate per mile up from $2.58 for the normal there-and-back to $3.14 with the extra stop, based on the averages, or about $900 bucks for the round. If you can’t find loads in and out of Eugene, you might look into Medford or Springfield, Ore., or maybe head a little farther off I-5 to Bend, Ore.](https://img.overdriveonline.com/files/base/randallreilly/all/image/2018/06/ovd.DAT-TriHaul-Jun10-16-2018-06-20-09-39.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max&q=70&w=400)
![Additional capacity last week had a bigger impact on reefer markets than on dry vans. While the national average reefer rate ticked up to $2.70 per mile (just short of the record set in early January), many high-traffic lanes had lower prices.](https://img.overdriveonline.com/files/base/randallreilly/all/image/2018/06/ovd.DAT-ReeferHotStatesMap-2018-June-10-16-2018-06-20-09-39.png?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max&q=70&w=400)
Hot reefer markets: Prices rose on lanes from California up to the Pacific Northwest. Los Angeles to Portland, Ore., climbed 20 cents to an average of $4.13 per mile. One surprise lane last week: Miami to Baltimore jumped up 35 cents to $2.72.
Not so hot: Most Florida rates, however, were down. Lakeland, Fla., to Atlanta dropped 56 cents to $1.91 per mile. The biggest decline was on the lane from Dallas to Denver, which lost a whopping 70 cents but still averaged $2.94 per mile.