According to DAT Solutions, average delivery van rates set a record in September,6 cents higher than the previous record set in June 2018.
The increase was driven by the notion that carriers are now relying more on the spot market.
Pandemic disruptions have driven freight away from the contract market, and capacity was reduced in the last week of September in an effort to move more freight before the close of the third quarter. In year-over-year comparisons, the September delivery van rate was up 28.9%, the fixed rate was up 9.8%, and the refrigerated container rate was up 19.1%. DAT also predicts that the increase will occur in October, with van rates rising from $2.38 to $2.46, fixed van rates from $2.41 to $2.43 and reefer rates from $2.57 to $2.59.