The latest release of ACT Research’s For-Hire Trucking Index, which includes September data, showed a continuing tight trucking market, with volume and rate surges ongoing and driver availability deteriorating.

September’s volume index rose to 70.7 (SA) while pricing hit 71.3, marking a two-year high. With capacity and driver availability in contraction territory, at 46.6 and 30.6, respectively, the combination of strong demand and tight supply pushed the supply-demand balance to its tightest level in survey history (74.1).

The ACT For-Hire Trucking Index is a monthly survey of for-hire trucking service providers. ACT Research converts responses into diffusion indexes in which neutral or flat activity level is represented by a score of 50.

“As capacity tightened further, volume (demand) also accelerated, tightening the market balance even further from already tight levels in recent months,” Tim Denoyer, vice president and senior analyst of ACT Research, said. “Class 8 retail sales have improved recently, suggesting equipment capacity will gradually start to grow over the next few quarters, but the ongoing driver market capacity constraints argue for tightness to continue in the near-term. After the holiday season, we would expect some rebalancing as parked trucks are redeployed and extended unemployment benefits expire. Strong demand from restocking should keep the market fairly tight in the near-term, with supply and demand likely to find better balance into the medium term.”