Today’s Pickup: ELD compliance rate continues creeping up

Good day,

With less than six weeks to go before the hard deadline of April 1, the ELD compliance rate has creeped up, according to CarrierLists, which has been tracking the rate over time.

The company says that its three-week moving average increased 3 points last week to 90%. The rate has hovered between 85% and 95% in the past three weeks after sitting near 80% at the Dec. 18, 2017, deadline.

“Regional fleets are still trailing longer haul fleets, but it seems the compliance gap is narrowing as we approach the final April 1st deadline,” the company said. “The impact on capacity is looking to be far from the worst-case scenario as we move within six weeks of the deadline. This isn’t to say capacity isn’t going to get worse as we head into peak shipping season.”

Bulk carriers remain a laggard among fleets with only about 65% saying they are compliant. Super regional and national fleets lead the way in the latest survey with 96% compliance with regional fleets at 84%.

CarrierLists surveyed 923 carriers in all for the survey.

Did you know?

According to Zipline Logistics, shipments traveling between 450 and 550 miles have increased from 1.05 transit days before the ELD mandate went into effect to 1.22 transit days since.

Quotable:

“Infrastructure improvements will help all of America. This is not a Republican or Democrat issue. Let’s work together to get this done.”

John Barrasso, (R-Wyo), chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, which would write any Senate infrastructure bill

In other news:

Toy companies work to shorten supply lines

Reacting to pressure from e-commerce and social media trends, toy manufacturers are working to adjust their supply chains to respond quicker to customer demands. (Wall Street Journal)

Walmart wants to buy e-commerce company Flipkart

Walmart is looking to acquire Flipkart, an India-based e-commerce company, that would put the value of Flipkart at $20B to $30B. (Live Mint)

ABF, Teamsters struggling to reach contract deal

ABF Freight and the Teamsters union are working towards a new contract, but significant differences remain with less than a month before the contract expires. (DC Velocity)

Peterbilt predicts near record sales for 2018

Peterbilt Motors is predicting robust sales for Class 8 trucks in 2018, perhaps becoming the third most on record at the end of the year. (Fleet Owner)

Sam’s Club adds Amazon Prime-like service

Sam’s Club has added a $100-a-year membership service that will provide free shipping on nearly all items. (Multichannel Merchant)

Final Thoughts

The latest CarrierLists survey of ELD compliance shows a continuing trend of compliance, even among regional fleets which have lagged behind. If this continues, it’s possible the worst-case scenario of drivers being shut down due to non-compliance on April 1 may be less than feared.

Hammer down everyone!

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