Guide to Inland Distribution & Warehousing

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Barrs said FMCSA also is examining relationships among companies and individuals suspected of using multiple identities.“ We are looking into those and investigating those individuals that we believe are on the top list of our chameleon carrier list that are evading safety [ rules ],” he said.

The scale of the transition has been substantial.

Barrs said in early June that during Motus’ first week, the system received more than 120,000 new user applications, processed more than 10,000 regulated-entity applications and helped more than 13,000 motor carriers claim their USDOT numbers.

email: contactdanronan @ gmail. com number of incidents falling 14 % from the previous quarter and 26 % year over year.

“ Lower incident volume should not be mistaken for lower risk,” said Keith Lewis, Verisk CargoNet’ s VP of operations.“ The groups driving the largest losses are not necessarily trying to steal more freight; they are trying to identify the right shipment.”

The cost of cargo theft continues to climb, reaching $ 304.6 million in the second quarter, more than double the yearago total of $ 135.7 million, according to Verisk CargoNet.

During the first half of 2026, cargo thefts decreased 6 % year over year, although incidents rose sequentially in the first and second quarters, according to Overhaul’ s Q2 2026 Cargo Theft Report. The first-half decrease approximately tracks the drop in capacity.

From the first quarter to the second quarter, full truckload theft as a share of total theft dropped from 24 % to 21 %, while facility theft decreased from 22 % to 16 %, said Overhaul. Deceptive pickups increased slightly as a share of the total, rising from 10 % to 11 %.

Organized crime, however, operates with an agility many shippers would envy.

“ We’ re still seeing them trying to get their feet back under them in terms of restaffing personnel,” Ramon said. Thieves are also shifting focus to other types of cargo crime.

“ Criminals, like water, are going to find the path of least resistance,” he said, hence the increase in the pilferage of trucks, trains and warehouses, which represented 46 % of cargo thefts in the second quarter, up from 37 % in the first quarter.

There’ s also been an increase in violent cargo crime in the US, according to Ramon.

“[ The criminals ] are using more confrontational tactics, something we haven’ t seen before,” he said, noting, for example, ramming escort vehicles to isolate a targeted tractor-trailer.

FREIGHT STRATEGY FOR A

From marine terminals to inland distribution, Kimley-Horn helps plan resilient freight networks built for change.

We connect port operations, rail, trucking, warehousing, and last-mile systems to keep freight moving smarter. email: bill. cassidy @ spglobal. com

www. joc. com September 7, 2026 | Journal of Commerce 19