Carriers are becoming increasingly anxious about finding good drivers. Good drivers want to know why, in a time of shortage, they are not being rewarded better. And shippers are keeping their fingers crossed, hoping trucks will continue to be readily available - and affordable.

Rocky Mountain Tracking Inc. has announced development of a new software to measure engine run-time. The engine run-time feature will enable customers to monitor vehicle usage during both scheduled work times and off-hours.

Although fleet bankruptcies get most of the attention, the slow, steady and largely unnoticed downsizing of fleets will have a major impact on freight capacity as tonnage picks up, according to Derek Leathers, president and COO of Werner Enterprises.

Truckload carriers continue to innovate to remain profitable, particularly through service diversification and driver retention, according to TMW Systems' first Transportation & Logistics Study - North America For-Hire Truckload Carrier Benchmarking Survey. Truckload carriers that are diversifying their businesses are adding new higher margin services, including brokerage, logistics, LTL-to-TL consolidation, dedicated services and intermodal services. Those looking to expand are exploring dedicated services first (27 percent), followed by brokerage services (21 percent). The majority of them are working on an accelerated schedule, within a one-year time frame.

The wholesale used market was the only segment to grow from 2011 to 2012, up 3 percent. The auction and retail markets both fell 11 percent. The update on the used market was reported in the latest release of the State of the Industry: U.S. Classes 3-8 Used Trucks, published by ACT Research.