At the start of the new year, the transportation world is slow. The holidays have passed and the need to ship items quiets down. This brings us to season number 1.
Season 1: (January – March): These are known as the quiet months. The transportation industry is quiet because the holiday season is over and customers are finalizing sales for the rest of the year. Carriers are slowly getting back on the road and looking for work. During this season, truckload rates are in favor of the customer. Shipping volumes are at a low point but by early spring, volumes start to ramp up as summer approaches.
Season 2: (April – July): During this season, shipping/load volumes increase around the country as summer approaches. The shipping industry is happy and things are moving right along. Customers are moving their products and drivers are finding work more easily. This is around the time when customers are reaching out to transportation brokers to find them a truck.
Season 3: (August – October): This is considered peak season because now it is the latter part of the summer and produces season is starting to slow down. Over the next three months is when sales explode and orders increase. Therefore, shipping volumes increase as well. Everyone prepares for the “back to school” season and starts gearing up for the holidays. During this time, shipping volumes are so high that customers end up needing more trucks than usual to fulfill the demands.
Season 4: (November – December): This is the holiday season and carriers are looking for those final good-paying loads that are going to bring home the money. After Thanksgiving, the peak shipping season tappers to an end. The holidays come and go and just like that we are back to the slow season.
Now that you have this knowledge on how transportation demands are broken down into 4 seasons, you can take advantage of lower rates and anticipating a hectic increase in transportation volume.
Next time you find yourself in a bind, give Hughes Custom Logistics a call at (888) 253-3272 to take care of all of your transport logistics in bucks county no matter what time of year it is.
