Flatbed Volume and Rates Gain Traction in June

< Back to posts

Flatbed freight volume and rates gained some traction in June, after a couple of slow months. Texas had the biggest rebound last week, partly due to a surge of loads leaving Houston, the biggest flatbed freight market in the country by far. National average rates gained 6¢ per mile, to $2.16 including the fuel surcharge.

HOT MARKETS: The energy and steel sectors have helped boost the flatbed markets in Houston and Birmingham, respectively.

RISING LANES: A handful of strong lanes throughout the country got rate increases:

  • Houston to Los Angeles paid an average of $2.59 per mile
  • Cleveland to Harrisburg lane rates soared to $3.92 per mile
  • Atlanta to Nashville jumped up to $3.04 per mile
  • Birmingham to Chicago was up to $2.87 per mile, which is a great rate for that length of haul.

FALLING LANES: There were a few scattered drops last week.

  • Pittsburgh rates have improved, so some inbound lane rates dropped, including Roanoke to Pittsburgh, now $2.45 per mile
  • Flatbed rates from Savannah to Greer, SC dropped to $3.09 per mile
  • Rock Island, IL to Minneapolis was down to $2.47 per mile

Find loads, trucks and lane-by-lane rate information in the DAT Power load board, including rates from DAT RateView.

Related Posts

Demand for dry van equipment continued to slide last week, along with rates. We saw it coming, as load-to-truck ratios

Spot market demand for dry van truckload shipments picked up steam again last week, with retail freight leading to tighter

By and large, spring was not kind to carriers, so the higher rates we’ve been seeing in recent weeks are