Overdrive

June 2017 | Overdrive | 25 PARTNERS IN BUSINESS TIP: USE A SEPARATE CREDIT CARD FOR BUSINESS Try to find a credit card without an annual fee and with a low interest rate. If possible, pay the balance in full every month. Having a business credit card may help you reduce the amount of advances you take from your carrier and will make it easier to keep track of business expenses. The Partners in Business program is pro- duced by Overdrive and the consultants at business services firm ATBS. It is sponsored by Ryder and Truckstop.com. Free Partners in Business seminars will be held at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas, Aug. 24-26. ELD impact yet to surface Barton Logistics analysts Diane McHaney and Criss Wilson pre- dicted a year ago that rates would increase dramatically prior to December 2017 as more carriers came into compliance with the electronic logging device mandate. Pricing would be much higher, they surmised, as ELDs took capac- ity away from owner-operators and small fleets by lowering their utiliza- tion. Other analysts also predicted ELDs would strip industry capacity, spurring a rate boost while the mar- ket adjusted to the new normal. McHaney and Wilson, however, now see those predictions as wrong, as least through mid-May, seven months before the Dec. 18 dead- line. "We have learned that quite the opposite of that is happening," McHaney says. As more carriers implement ELDs, the rates actually are less volatile, she says. Wilson agrees. "There is nothing that leads us to believe there is any volatility in the market right now." A report from trucking invest- ment firm Stifel reached a similar conclusion, qualifying it with the effects of soft and strong markets. "Will the ELD mandate cause a capacity crunch soon? We don't think so," says Stifel's report, issued by economists David Ross and Bruce Chan. Once ELDs strap industry capacity, though, an eco- nomic upswing could prompt solid rate gains, they said. – Aaron Huff and James Jaillet

• Cover
• CAT ON A GREASY FIFTH WHEEL Wendy Parker’s pet feline snaps and nearly ruins her new couches.
• BUSINESS: Uber enters freight-matching market “Uber for trucking,” a descriptor long touted by app-based load-matching services, has taken a literal form now that the ride-sharing giant last month unveiled its Uber Freight app. It’s aimed at the owner-op
• COVER STORY: Path to prosperity Overdrive’s Most Beautiful winner Stephanie Klang spreads the word of how trucking served as her ticket to the good life.
• Where the rubber meets the road A tire might look like a simple component – a round piece of rubber with a tread design – though it’s anything but.
• The crazy quilt of intrastate logging States failing to adopt an e-logging mandate. State hours of service differing from the federal rule. ELDs missing state-specific features. For the intrastate driver required to use e-logs, the change could get compl
• Diversions Re-creation of “Bandit” bridge jump set; Trucker Talent Search winner teams with fellow finalists; a new book from one of Overdrive’s own.
• The safety flaw of 14 straight hours.
• Pulse: Uber’s load plan.
• Bringing apnea experts into the truck.
• Indie truck stops remain popular.
• TSA warns of truck- ramming terrorism.
• Wireless roadside inspections hit brakes.
• Trailer emissions order in question.
• Florida, Texas rank highest for congestion costs.
• Car haulers’ touching tribute to police.
• Rethwisch wins Shell Rotella’s SuperRigs.
• Proffitt racks up Bandit Series wins.
• Custom KW’s interior gets a facelift.
• Reader Rigs: ’07 W900L a desert runner; ’05 9400i flying like an Eagle; ’15 389 has Pride and Class; ’09 389 a quad-axle Pete; ’14 389 has northern exposure; ’16 389 steps across borders.