There are numerous challenges which carriers face in a volatile freight market. Carrier challenges are inevitable in an industry which is fast-moving and fast-evolving, meaning that many carriers end up failing to drive forward their bottom line and get the results that they’re looking for. Here we go over some of the most fundamental carrier challenges that are plaguing cold chain logisticsfleets and refrigerated truck drivers across the country.

Shortening deadlines

Reefer drivers face a difficult set of carrier challenges by which they must balance various processes. For example, they have to ensure that their cargo is properly temperature-controlled and cared for while simultaneously driving safely (and within the speed limit) yet quickly enough to meet ever-shortening deadlines. This is a massive challenge as the growing freight market becomes more and more competitive, with companies wanting to increase their delivery speeds but running into bottlenecks. Is it ethical for a company to risk its drivers’ safety while trying to keep up the pace of deliveries?

Stricter regulations

The FDA continues to enforce stricter regulations of cold chain transportation companies and refrigerated truck drivers, looking to ensure that food cargo does not spoil or undergo cross-contamination with allergens. Although these regulations might be good for helping to promote food safety, they inevitably provide transporters with a range of logistical problems to tackle. For example, cargo needs to be transported from one refrigerated area to another very quickly, ensuring that its temperature doesn’t drop in between. This is easier said than done unless your company has the top-tierinfrastructure in place. The resources needed to clean the trucks is also a source of rising overheads which can mean even more expenses and carrier challenges ahead.

A lack of new drivers

Did you know that the average age of a truck driver in the US is 55 years old? That’s alarmingly high, and many younger people are deterred from truck driving as a career. This now means that demand is beginning to outweighthe supply of new drivers, and automated self-driving trucks aren’t going to evolve quickly enough to keep up. This lack of interest from young people is partially due to the unglamorous image of the freight industry, however, age restrictions on truck driving are also to blame. In most states, you have to be 21 years old to drive a commercial truck, despite being able to drive from 16. This is making it difficult to attract high school graduates to the career, with some states dropping the truck-driving age to 18 in an effort to attract new blood to this field.

The freight industry sees carrier challenges expanding more and more with time. Nonetheless, the future is bright for the freight industry, and the majority of these challenges are being addressed by key players in the industry.