Fleets Brace for Extended High Fuel Prices

The current landscape for fuel prices isn't providing any relief for the trucking industry, as experts indicate that the elevated costs are likely here to stay for quite some time. A steady rise in fuel prices has been attributed to a blend of geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, and refining capacity limits. With diesel being the lifeblood of the industry, carriers of all sizes—particularly smaller ones—face the challenge of managing operational costs amid these rising expenses.

For smaller carriers and owner-operators, managing fuel expenditures is crucial. Implementing fuel-efficient practices, such as minimizing idling time, optimizing routes, and maintaining vehicles for maximum efficiency, can help manage these costs. Additionally, investing in technology that enhances load and route planning can provide significant fuel savings. VAU0’s transportation management system (TMS) can support these initiatives, offering tools that help optimize routes and loads to improve efficiency.

"The long-term pressure of high fuel prices calls for carriers to rethink their strategies—adapting with smarter logistics, more fuel-efficient equipment, and strategic planning are no longer just options but necessities." — Transportation Economics Analyst

FedEx Freight Embarks on Independent Journey

In a significant transition, FedEx Freight is stepping out as a standalone company, a move that marks a new chapter for one of the nation's leading freight networks. The decision comes as the landscape of freight logistics continues to evolve, demanding nimbleness and focus that FedEx anticipates from this structural shift. This separation allows FedEx Freight to hone in on LTL (less-than-truckload) services and target investments in specific growth areas.

This shift could impact smaller carriers by intensifying competition in the LTL space, potentially spurring innovation in service offerings and efficiency measures. For smaller operators, it might be an opportunity to differentiate their services or even target niche markets that bigger players like FedEx Freight may not prioritize. It's essential for carrier owners to stay agile, adapting to shifts in market dynamics promptly.

Severe Driver Shortage Hits New York's Trucking Industry

New York is experiencing a pronounced shortage of truck drivers, a situation exacerbated by increasing industry demands and an aging workforce. The constraints in driver availability are felt acutely across supply chains, leading to elevated freight costs and delays. As the demand for hauling goods continues to grow, the dearth of drivers could throttle economic recovery and growth, especially for businesses heavily reliant on timely logistics.

Owner-operators and carriers in New York and surrounding areas might find opportunities to expand operation capacity by attracting drivers with competitive pay, benefits, and improved work conditions. Additionally, leveraging technology to streamline recruitment and improve operational efficiency can be beneficial. For instance, VAU0’s compliance tools can help carriers manage hiring more efficiently by ensuring that all driver qualifications meet federal and local regulations—key for maintaining operations smoothly.

DPS Resumes CDL Issuances for H-2A Workers

The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has resumed offering non-domiciled Commercial Driver's Licenses (CDLs) for H-2A workers, emphasizing a critical step toward mitigating the ongoing driver shortage. H-2A visa holders, who primarily come for agricultural work, can now expand into the trucking sector, providing a temporary fix but a vital source of labor in times of acute driver demand.

Small carriers can tap into this resource by considering the recruitment of H-2A drivers as part of their hiring strategies. Incorporating international drivers with valid CDLs can expand workforce capacity while meeting regulatory standards. This move is particularly crucial for carriers aiming to maintain their competitive edge in regions severely affected by driver shortages.

FMCSA Hints at an Array of Upcoming Regulations

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has signaled a wave of upcoming regulations set to shape the industry's future through 2026. While specifics are still unfolding, expectations include tighter emissions standards, enhanced safety protocols, and revisions to hours-of-service rules. Navigating these impending regulatory updates can be daunting for carriers, especially those with limited resources.

Preparation will be key for smaller carriers to remain compliant and competitive. Staying informed on regulatory changes, investing in compliance technologies, and adapting operational practices to align with new standards will be vital. Leveraging resources like VAU0’s compliance management tools can ensure you stay ahead of the curve, giving your business the insight needed to adapt promptly and efficiently.

What Carriers Should Do This Week

• Analyze and optimize fuel usage with route planning software to counter high diesel prices.
• Consider tapping into the H-2A workforce to alleviate driver shortages while ensuring compliance with licensing regulations.
• Explore niche LTL services and adapt to market changes introduced by FedEx Freight's restructuring.
• Stay updated on FMCSA’s forthcoming regulations to preemptively adjust business practices.
• Enhance recruitment strategies to attract and retain drivers, offering competitive packages and improved working conditions.

In 2022, we were running a small fleet and spending approximately $400 per truck per month on software. TMS license, ELD subscription, e-sign service, separate accounting integration. Four different logins. Four different monthly invoices. Four different support teams to call when something didn't work.

None of it talked to each other without manual data entry.

The software evaluation that changed everything

We spent three months evaluating every major TMS and fleet management system on the market. AscendTMS, McLeod, Motive, EZLogz, KeepTruckin, TruckingOffice, Axon. We signed up for demos, trials, and in two cases, paid for actual subscriptions to test them properly.

What we found was consistent across almost all of them: the software was built by people who had never dispatched a truck. You could tell immediately. The terminology was slightly wrong. The workflows assumed steps that no real dispatcher would take. The ELD and TMS were always separate systems that "integrated" — meaning they sometimes shared data, if you configured things correctly, and the configuration broke whenever either vendor pushed an update.

"The best way to evaluate trucking software is to use it under real pressure. Not in a demo. Not in a test environment. On a real load, with a real deadline, when a broker is calling every 30 minutes for an update."

The specific things that were broken

Without naming specific vendors: one major TMS required five screen transitions to update a load status. Not five clicks — five full page navigations. On a mobile browser from a truck stop, that meant 45 seconds to tell a broker the truck was loaded. Another system had beautiful analytics dashboards but couldn't tell you, in real time, how many hours of drive time your driver had remaining without navigating to a separate compliance module.

The ELD market was worse. Most ELD systems were designed to satisfy FMCSA's technical requirements — which they did — while making the user experience as painful as possible. Drivers hated them. When drivers hate their tools, they find workarounds. Workarounds create compliance risk.

The moment we decided to build

The decision was made on a Tuesday afternoon when our dispatcher spent 40 minutes re-entering data from a rate confirmation PDF that our ELD had already captured in a different system. The information existed. It was digital. It lived in three different places that didn't talk to each other, and a human was manually transferring it between systems.

That's not a technology problem. That's a lack of ambition problem. Nobody had decided to solve it because the existing systems were profitable enough without solving it.

What we decided to build instead

One platform. ELD and TMS as the same system, not integrations. AI that reads rate confirmation PDFs so dispatchers don't have to. A dispatcher — eventually an AI dispatcher — that covers nights and weekends so loads don't get missed. E-sign built in, not bolted on.

And priced at zero through 2026, because the goal was to prove the product worked before asking carriers to pay for it.

Two years in: did it work?

The Rate Con AI has a 95%+ accuracy rate on standard broker formats. ERETH ELD passed FMCSA's technical certification. Our AI dispatchers book real loads for real carriers after hours. The carrier dashboard still occasionally has a minor bug — we fix them the same day they're reported.

Would we have been better off just using an existing system and focusing on freight? Financially, in the short term, probably yes. But we would have kept paying $400 per truck per month for software that we knew was mediocre. And we would have missed the opportunity to build something that actually works the way the industry needs it to work.

We don't regret it.