Cass data indicates TL linehaul rates increased 8.6% in 2011   

Cass pays around $17 billion in freight bills annually and constructs a truckload pricing index in conjunction with Avondale Partners. The data indicated not only that TL rates were up 8.6% in 2011 but also that TL rates now exceed pre-recession levels. This seems a little high to me, and is certainly higher than what Transplace saw for our 3PL customers in 2011, but it is hard to argue with $17 billion in freight bills. As intermodal continues to gain share from over-the-road trucking, perhaps part of the change in Cass’s index is due to shorter TL length of haul. The link will take you to the Cass web site where you can view the graph and download the data points from 2005 to present.

The Cass data is also pretty consistent with TransCore, which reported contract TL rates rising 6.5% in 2011 while spot rates were up 7.4%.