OOIDA, ATRI combine forces for best solution to ‘next’ trucking crisis

The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) and the Owner-Operator Independent Driver Association Foundation (OOIDA Foundation) have been inundated with responses in conducting a joint research study to understand the numerous impacts that the Coronavirus pandemic is having on trucking operations.

The research focuses heavily on a survey that solicits critical input from truck drivers and motor carrier staff who are encountering COVID-19 impacts such as limited shipper access, changing distribution patterns and traffic-related issues. The survey will close April 8. Results of the survey are expected this spring.

“We originally said we would try to get 600 responses, and we’re up over 3,000,” Rebecca Brewster, president and COO of ATRI, the trucking industry’s largest not-for-profit research organization. “There is a significant amount of interest. We’re very appreciative because it will build that baseline of data as to what issues the industry is dealing with due to the COVID-19 outbreak. It’s a great response.”

The majority of respondents are professional truck drivers. “We expected that because of our partnership with OOIDA,” Brewster told LM. “But we have folks from fleets across all levels – safety directors, risk managers, warehouse people. They’re all weighing in with their experience.”

The goal of the survey is to gain a better understanding of how collectively the trucking industry is responding to the crisis. But it has a larger goal as well.

“It would be my hope this better prepares for future considerations,” Brewster said. We want to know what worked, what didn’t work and what we could better plan for in the future.”

These survey responses might help trucking companies and owner-operators change business operations going forward, Brewster added. “That will better inform the industry to be proactive in the future,” she said.

Already there is actionable data gathered from the current crisis. New data is showing that trucks are continuing to move – in many cases faster than usual – to respond to the demands placed on the industry by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“ATRI’s real-time GPS data comes from more than a million trucks, allowing us to analyze freight flows, and so far in March, what we are seeing is an unprecedented level of truck movement,” Brewster said. “Not only are trucks continuing to move, but they are doing so at speeds well in excess of normal traffic patterns.”

For example, according to ATRI’s data, at the intersection of I-85 and I-285 in Atlanta, known locally as Spaghetti Junction, afternoon rush hour truck speeds are typically less than 15 MPH due to congestion.  Last week, truck speeds averaged 53 MPH.

“Spaghetti Junction is typical of what we’ve seen across the country, especially in areas hit hard by the virus and subject to quarantines and lockdowns,” Brewster said. “As other traffic dissipates, trucks continue to move, delivering much-needed relief supplies to markets, hospitals, gas stations and other essential businesses.”

Among the hardest hit states, New York, California and Illinois, the data is showing similar changes.

In New York, along I-495 in Queens, the afternoon rush hour typically sees average truck speeds of 16 MPH. Speeds have now more than doubled, averaging 38 MPH, still below the posted speed limit but certainly an improvement.

In Los Angeles, at the intersection of I-710 and I-105, truck speeds during highly congested morning rush hours are normally less than 25 MPH between the hours of 6 and 8 a.m. Truck speeds are now averaging 53 MPH in the morning as Californians stay home but truck deliveries increase.

At the Byrne Interchange in Chicago, where I-290 intersects with I-90/I-94, morning truck speeds are now averaging 43 MPH, more than twice the typical morning rush hour speed of 20 MPH.

According to ATRI’s analysis, these results can be explained by several COVID-19 related factors: first is the dramatic reduction in commuter traffic, allowing trucks to operate at higher speeds, particularly during traditional rush hours.  Second, is the continuous 24/7 truck operations that generate higher average truck speeds across nearly all hours of the day.

Results of the driver survey “will help us confirm what we know anecdotally,” said Tom Weakley, Director of the OOIDA Foundation. Specifically, he said, “that the trucking industry is leading the charge in responding to food and medicine shortages among other critical supplies.  We need everyone’s input on this effort.”

 OOIDA is the largest truck driver association in North America, representing more than 160,000 truck drivers and small fleets.

The survey link can be found here. Anyone involved in trucking operations is urged to respond.

“Our goal is to complete the data analysis as quickly as possible, as it can provide important guidance to public and private decision-makers.  The Covid-19 pandemic is a moving target, and we can’t afford to design policies and supply chains around guesswork,” said Dan Murray, Senior Vice President at ATRI.

 After the survey closes April 8, ATRI’s Brewster said, “We will turn it around as quickly as we can. We will fast track the analysis. We will have it out this spring.”