Category insight
Transportation Services
Week 2
Linehaul & Regional Freight
Truckload, LTL and dedicated fleet capacity between facilities and markets. Rates move with the capacity cycle and fuel, and both are moving.
Why now
October 13, 2026
DAT reported on 13 October that the monthly national average diesel price topped $6 a gallon for the first time in September, at $6.291. Contract van rates rose 13 cents to $3.24 a mile and spot van rates 12 cents to $3.01.
DAT Freight & Analytics (press release via GlobeNewswire)
Read the sourceTypical savings range
8% to 20%
From the category playbook
Spend share
25% to 50% of total spend (as stored, for a logistics operator)
Criticality
High
Playbook scope:
Logistics & Supply Chain, Freight (playbook written for shippers and logistics operators buying truckload, LTL and dedicated capacity)
Point-in-time page: the why-now note reflects reporting on the date shown, and the benchmarks reflect the playbook at publication. This page is not updated as events move on.
At a glance
The core movement of goods between facilities and markets: truckload and less-than-truckload services, dedicated fleet and contract carriage, regional and short-haul trucking, team driver and expedited services, drop-and-hook, power-only, flatbed, refrigerated, dry van, tanker and bulk, hazmat and over-dimensional moves, and cross-border transportation to Mexico and Canada. Around the capacity itself sit carrier procurement and onboarding, load planning, tracking, freight audit and payment, detention and accessorial management, and the TMS and dispatch platforms that connect linehaul to operations.
How it is contracted
- Per-mile rate agreements
- Flat rate or lane-based pricing
- Contract rates with volume commitments
- Spot market purchasing
- Dedicated fleet contracts
Benchmarks
- Typical savings potential: 8% to 20%
- Spot spend threshold (share of freight bought off-contract): 30%
- Target contract coverage: 70%
- Top-5 carrier concentration, good-practice band: 40% to 70%
- Target payment terms: 30 days
- Price gap versus market that triggers action: 12%
Top five value levers
Most relevant to this disruption
- Fuel Surcharge Optimization: "manage fuel cost exposure"
- Spot vs. Contract Mix Optimization: "balance rate and flexibility"
- Core Carrier Program: "concentrating volume for improved rates and service"
- Tender Acceptance Improvement: "reduce spot fallback and cost variance"
commercial
Rank 1
Fuel Surcharge Optimization
Optimize fuel surcharge structures and pass-through to manage fuel cost exposure. Timeline: 1 to 2 months, low complexity.
Typical impact
1% to 4%
commercial
Rank 2
Spot vs. Contract Mix Optimization
Optimize the mix between contract and spot purchasing to balance rate and flexibility. Timeline: 2 to 4 months, medium complexity.
Typical impact
4% to 12%
supplier
Rank 3
Core Carrier Program
Develop a core carrier program that concentrates volume for improved rates and service. Timeline: 3 to 6 months, medium complexity.
Typical impact
6% to 15%
process
Rank 4
Tender Acceptance Improvement
Improve tender acceptance rates to reduce spot fallback and cost variance. Timeline: 2 to 4 months, medium complexity.
Typical impact
2% to 6%
demand
Rank 5
Load Optimization
Optimize load planning to maximize trailer utilization and reduce shipment count. Timeline: 2 to 4 months, medium complexity.
Typical impact
4% to 10%
Quick wins
- Lane Rate Benchmarking: benchmark top lanes against market rates to support negotiation (about 8%, low effort, 3 weeks)
- Tender Acceptance Analysis: analyze tender acceptance for routing guide improvement (about 6%, low effort, 2 weeks)
- Accessorial and Detention Audit: audit accessorial charges and detention for reduction (about 5%, low effort, 3 weeks)
Risk patterns
- Market rate spikes in tight capacity (price risk, high likelihood). Mitigation: contract coverage, core carrier programs, volume commitments, mode alternatives.
- Fuel cost volatility (price risk, high likelihood). Mitigation: fuel surcharge programs, pass-through contracts, efficiency improvement.
- Capacity shortage during peak or tight markets (supply risk, high likelihood). Mitigation: core carrier relationships, volume commitments, capacity diversification, advance planning.
Questions to ask your team
- What is your current mix of contract vs spot freight, and what drives spot usage?
- Do you use load consolidation or multi-stop routing to improve truck utilization?
- What is your average shipment lead time and how does it vary by customer segment?
- Have you evaluated dedicated fleet or private fleet options for high-density lanes?
- Do you use freight audit and payment services to catch billing errors?
Data to pull
The files to request
- Freight spend by carrier, lane, mode and service level for the past 12 months
- Carrier contracts with rate schedules, fuel surcharge mechanisms and volume tiers
- Shipment data: weight, cube, frequency and transit time requirements by lane
- Accessorial charge breakdown (detention, liftgate, residential, inside delivery)
- On-time delivery and claims or damage rates by carrier
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Upload your spendPlaybook confidence
Medium
Benchmark confidence
Levers in playbook
21
