I’ve been pounding you over the head about technology in this blog for the past couple of weeks. And I thought maybe it was time to put all of this in the context of a bigger picture: The future.
In a sense, every topic I hear discussed in the trucking industry today is –at its core – about the future of trucking. And if you had to boil all these discussions down to a single, concise sentence summing it all up, I’d propose this one: How are fleets and owner-operators going to make a living with all the changes the OEMs, the government, environmentalists, the geopolitical situation and the free market are pushing on us?
Without a doubt, this is a time of upheaval for the trucking industry. It is possible it will endure more change to the way we do business in the next 10 to 20 years than the last 50 combined. In fact, a strong argument could be made that the tidal wave of change began with diesel exhaust emissions mandates not long after the turn of the century and has only accelerated since then.
Understandably, when I talk to fleet executives, owner-operators and drivers, sooner or later the conversation turns to the uncertain future and angst about how that person, or their business will survive as those theoretical changes become reality.
So, let me interject a big jolt of good news into the conversation.
This week, the American Trucking Associations released a report on trucking’s outlook for the next 10 years or so. And guess what? The report is insanely positive! ATA predicts general industry growth of around 23 percent by 2025 and increase of freight revenues by an astounding 72 percent.
The takeaway here is obvious: No matter what happens inside the trucking industry, the freight is going to be there. That means the money is going to be there. And lots of it, it seems. So all the doom and gloom aside, trucking remains a vital national industry. And it appears its importance is only going to grow in the next decade.
