Surface Transportation intermodal rates rose 10 cents to $ 1.64 per mile on the same routes. Fuel-inclusive contract truckload rates surged 27 cents to $ 2.25 per mile, while contract intermodal prices climbed 15 cents to $ 1.65 per mile on the same routes.

Contract truckload rates, excluding fuel spikes, rose 4.6 % year over year in the first quarter, while contract intermodal rates climbed 2.5 % year over year on the same lanes. In dollar terms, shippers saved an average of $ 1,025 per container on spot market intermodal in the first quarter compared with truckload, and $ 900 per box on contract moves. In the first quarter of 2025, spot and contract intermodal savings averaged $ 675 and $ 830 per container, respectively.

Put to the test

The coming months will be the first major stress test for the railroads and IMC drayage networks since the service meltdowns during the pandemic-related freight surge. Multiple shippers have told the Journal of Commerce that on-time pickups and deliveries slipped in March, with their intermodal partners citing drayage capacity as a root cause.

The pressure isn’ t likely to dissipate anytime soon.

The Journal of Commerce forecasts that domestic intermodal volume will grow between 3 % and 4.5 % year over year in the second quarter. Using advanced statistical analysis, the Journal of Commerce forecasts a 98 % probability that volumes will exceed the 2.12 million loads hauled in the second quarter of 2025.

Average intermodal train speeds among the US Class I railroads rose 2.7 % in the first four months of the year compared with the same 2025 period, according to the US Surface Transportation Board. That came as the number of rail cars carrying containers that idled for more than 48 hours through the first four months of the year declined 14 % compared with a year ago.

Both data points show that, for now, intermodal trains are moving quickly through their service networks, and the handoffs between railroads and trucks remain fluid at most US rail hubs.

The data behind the Contract ISI and Spot ISI is available to Journal of Commerce subscribers with a Gold-tier subscription.

email: ari. ashe @ spglobal. com

Safety assumptions in‘ carrier of the year’ honors appear misguided

By Ari Ashe

Shippers often assume the honors bestowed by freight brokers on the truck carriers they use mean the carriers are doing things the right way, including— and perhaps most importantly— operating safely on US highways. But a Journal of Commerce review found several instances where that assumption is not necessarily accurate.

Indeed, the awards themselves, which are essentially self-congratulatory promotional marketing for the brokers and carriers involved, appear to reflect service performance, rather than a strong safety culture or the skill of the drivers behind the wheel.

In a recent example that received a lot of publicity for all the wrong reasons, broker C. H. Robinson Worldwide gave a“ Carrier of the Year” award to SuperEgo Holding last September, an honor the broker said recognizes those that“ exemplify the best in the industry.”

SuperEgo later became the subject of a CBS 60 Minutes investigation that found the carrier and related entities were tied to 15,000 safety violations and 500 accidents over two years. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration( FMCSA) is also investigating SuperEgo over allegations it operated as a“ chameleon” carrier, meaning a trucking company that shuts down and rebrands itself under a new name to evade federal safety enforcement, fines, insurance scrutiny or poor safety records while operating with the same management.

www. joc. com

But SuperEgo was not the only“ award-winning” carrier with a high-risk profile. A review by the Journal of Commerce found that C. H. Robinson, Echo Global Logistics and Uber Freight have honored other carriers with serious safety or driver qualification issues on their records.

Gray areas

Shippers rely on brokers to thoroughly vet the carriers handling their freight, but the process can be nebulous.

Adam Miller, CEO of Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings, said most“ Carrier of the Year”-type awards are not tied to safety, but rather how much capacity a carrier provides and at what rates, even though shippers may view the awards as broader endorsements of safe, low-risk carriers.

“ The shippers I talk to just make the assumption you’ re doing everything you can around safety,” Miller said.“ When a driver exhibits bad or unsafe behavior, you are at a higher risk for having an accident, even a serious accident.”

Knight-Swift culled 30 % of third-party carriers out of its logistics division in the first quarter, citing increased vetting to ensure higher safety standards and in a bid to reduce the likelihood of cargo theft.

The brokerage industry relies on FMSCA to determine whether a carrier is fit to operate, according to Chris Burroughs, president of the Transportation Intermediaries Association( TIA). The TIA represents 1,800 third-party logistics companies in North America.

“ If the FMCSA can’ t decipher [ who is safe to operate ], how is the general public supposed to decipher it?” Burroughs said.

Through its Compliance, Safety, Accountability( CSA) program, the FMCSA measures trucking companies on six criteria: unsafe driving, crash indicators, hours-of-service compliance, vehicle maintenance, controlled substances or alcohol, and driver fitness. FMCSA publishes the results in the online Safety Measurement System( SMS) and uses the

June 1, 2026 | Journal of Commerce 43