Truck tonnage continues to rise. The American Trucking Associations' (ATA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index jumped 3.1% in January, following a revised 1.3% increase in December.
Compared with January 2009 numbers, tonnage surged 5.7%, the best year-over-year reading since January 2005.
ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello says the latest tonnage numbers, coupled with anecdotal reports from carriers, indicates that the trucking industry has entered recovery mode.
"While I don't expect tonnage to continue growing as robustly as it did in January, the industry is finally moving the right direction. Although there are still risks that could throw the rebound off track, the likelihood of that happening continues to diminish."
