Today's Transportation Pulse
Logistics costs dip to $2.4 trillion as volatility becomes the new normal
The 2026 State of Logistics Report finds U.S. logistics expenses fell to $2.4 trillion, or 7.8% of GDP, down from $2.6 trillion in 2025. The study declares supply‑chain volatility a permanent condition driven by uneven global growth, tighter finance, geoeconomic shifts, labor constraints and energy price swings.
Also developing:
By the numbers: US IDFC partners with Chubb on $20B maritime reinsurance plan
Trump’s Funding Freeze Has Derailed Transit, Undermining Growth and Economic Opportunity For All Americans
The Trump administration has signed no new Capital Investment Grant contracts for rail transit, effectively freezing federal matching funds for new subway, elevated, and light‑metro projects. State and local rail‑funding contributions have slumped to $7 billion in 2025, down from $16 billion in 2021, the lowest level in at least 15 years. This funding drought has stalled major projects, such as the Gateway Tunnel, and contributed to a decline in U.S. metro‑line kilometers per capita, leaving the nation behind global transit leaders. Analysts warn that without swift congressional action, the U.S. will continue losing economic and environmental benefits tied to robust rail networks.
Southwest Keeps Service, Raises Prices to Delta Levels
Southwest has been giving spirit and frontier service and rules but with delta pricing ever since they made these changes.
Club Eurostar Has Launched a Big Reward Seat Sale – Worth an Amex Transfer?
Club Eurostar has opened a 20% discount sale on all reward seats, with no blackout dates and travel allowed through 12 December. Bookings must be completed by 4 p.m. on Thursday 19 March, and the reduced pricing applies to Standard, Plus and Premier...
NIQ Study: Quality Expectations Evolve Across Thailand’s Auto Market
NielsenIQ’s 2025 Thailand Automotive Quality Study surveyed 3,479 new‑car owners, revealing that battery‑electric vehicles (BEVs) posted a slightly higher Problems‑per‑100‑Vehicles (PP100) score of 174 versus 169 for conventional models. The research shows a clear shift in consumer expectations toward real‑world...
West Coast Port Volume Set to Rebound Late March
The West Coast isn’t participating in the tight trucking market, as Chinese New Years was a few weeks later this year. Last year, we had pull forward of imports. We are roughly where we were in 2024. We should do a return of...
From Toilet Paper to Diesel: Are We Creating the Shortage?
Australia’s diesel imports remain strong, with about 5.8 million tonnes expected by the end of March 2026 – the second‑largest first‑quarter volume on record. Real‑time tanker tracking from LSEG Vessel Explorer captures roughly 90 % of these shipments, confirming that physical supply...
IATA: E-Commerce Will Drive 30% of Air Cargo by 2027
IATA says e‑commerce will drive 30% of air cargo by 2027, up from 20% today. It projects total air freight volume reaching 71.6 million tons in 2026 with a 2.4% annual increase. Growth is strongest in Asia‑Pacific, especially Southeast Asia, where...
BOC Digitizes Car Import Process
The Philippine Bureau of Customs (BOC) has rolled out the Electronic Certificate of Payment (e‑CP) System, a real‑time digital platform that automates duty and tax validation for imported vehicles. The system links BOC directly with the Land Transportation Office (LTO),...
NYC Car Life: Double Parking Fees, Persistent Snow, Naïve Waze
NY car musings: - Waze naively asking if the pot hole in NYC is still there - NY parking rate model: basically $14 to park your car, $14 to bring it back. Otherwise quite cheap (25c/hr from 8->24hrs) - still a couple meagre...
Slow Widebody Freighter Manufacturing Supply Chains Hamper Capacity
Widebody freighter capacity remains constrained in 2026 as manufacturers grapple with lingering supply‑chain disruptions. IATA’s director general Willie Walsh warned that OEMs are still struggling to stabilize production, pushing the Boeing 777‑8F launch to 2028 and delaying Airbus’s A350F entry...
U.S. Shipping Irrelevance Drives Major Conference Collapse
In truth this is *supposed* to be the largest shipowner conference in North America. Once it was. Just five or six years ago maritime companies used to buy out every billboard along I-95. Every hotel within 20 miles sold out...
Most Late Flyers Could Avoid Hassle With Ten Extra Minutes
I fly almost every week and I’m telling you on 90% of flights there’s always somebody showing up late after they’ve ended boarding and they always have some super valid excuse on why the airline should make an exception and...
VinFast Hires Seasoned Auto Executives to Accelerate India Expansion
VinFast has pledged roughly $2 billion to expand in India and has hired more than half a dozen senior executives from Hyundai, Honda, Nissan, Renault, BMW and MG. The talent drive is designed to accelerate the launch of affordable electric cars,...
Cathay Pacific Profit Jumps 9.5% on Robust Demand
Cathay Pacific posts 9.5% rise in annual profit on strong passenger and cargo demand https://t.co/cz0Ox6vR1O
Choosing a Second Option Adds $800 per Load
It’s always good to get a second options Especially when you can make +$800 more on a load
Huge Accrued Financial Losses at Beijing Capital Airport – COVID and Dual Hub Operations to Blame
Beijing Capital International Airport, once the world’s second‑busiest hub, has slipped to 15th place in 2025 with passenger volumes at just 70% of 2019 levels. Over the past five years the airport has accumulated roughly $1.6 billion in losses, and analysts...
Mass Truck Driver Layoff Panic Was Overblown
Remember 10 years ago when there was a minor panic over what we were going to do about the imminent mass layoffs of truck drivers? That was weird. https://t.co/DLQmJBUiDt
Driver’s Licenses Still Required for Next 3‑5 Years
We talk a lot about incoming autonomous vehicle fleets and revolutions worldwide, but trust me within the next 3-5 years you’ll still need a drivers license.
Air Cargo Cushioned Tariff Shocks and Powered Trade Growth in 2025
IATA’s 2025 World Cargo Symposium report finds air freight was pivotal in cushioning severe trade‑policy shocks, enabling $157 bn of front‑loaded U.S. imports in Q1. By accelerating shipments and opening new lanes, air cargo helped global trade expand 2.4%, pushing global...
Northern Powerhouse Rail: Watchdog Queries Governance, Delivery, Growth Strategy Alignment
The National Audit Office released a report on the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme, warning that its governance and alignment with the newly‑announced Northern Growth Strategy are inadequate. The DfT’s £45 billion funding cap forces tough trade‑offs, such as the choice between...
Navigator Holdings Ltd (NVGS) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
Scorpio Tankers reported Q4 2025 adjusted EBITDA of $152 million, bringing full‑year adjusted EBITDA to $568 million. The company shifted from a $3.1 billion net‑debt position in 2021 to a $309 million net‑cash balance, supported by $1.7 billion of total liquidity and $450 million of debt...
San Francisco Moves to Expand Curbside Electric Vehicle Charging
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie unveiled legislation to create a permitting pathway for expanding curbside electric‑vehicle (EV) charging stations. The plan targets 100 publicly accessible chargers by 2030, with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency handling permits and private firms...
Trump’s EPA Claims Strong Enforcement. But the Data Tells a Different Story.
The EPA’s recent press release boasts that more enforcement cases were closed in President Donald Trump’s first year of his second term than in any year of the Biden administration. However, EPA records reveal that 75 % of the 61 criminal...
Iran Weaponizes Hormuz, Blocks Oil; US Pushes Escort Reopening
WHEN THE ARTERY THAT SUPPLIES A FIFTH OF GLOBAL OIL NEEDS, THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ, IS WEAPONISED. Iran says it won’t let traffic through, bills its continued closure as victory. US wants to reopen it, proposes naval escorts if necessary. Here’s Iran’s Araghchi...
Bristow Receives First Airbus H160s From Milestone for Offshore Transportation in Nigeria
Bristow Group has taken delivery of the first two Airbus H160 medium‑twin helicopters leased from Milestone Aviation, marking the aircraft’s debut on the African continent. The helicopters are undergoing final preparations in Nigeria ahead of entry into offshore oil‑and‑gas transport...
Downtown Brooklyn Office Converts to 1,200 Homes, 300 Affordable
An underutilized office building in Downtown Brooklyn will become 1200 homes (300 permanently affordable), with a new subway entrance. More of this, please.
Record T
I’m at the biggest shipowner conference in North America right now. I live in a very liberal town in Massachusetts and yet I have never seen worse cases of TDS in my life. The London shipping cabal is PISSED
Two Things You Can Control Right Now When Fuel Is Trying to Break You
Diesel prices are edging toward $5 a gallon, squeezing margins for owner‑operators and carriers. While macro forces such as Middle‑East tensions and Fed policy are beyond a driver’s control, two levers remain: where fuel is purchased and how much is...
Embedding Unpredictability Into Boxship Supply Chains
Wan Hai deepens newbuild push with LNG & methanol-ready boxships. Newbuilds vs Iraq war & questions on supply chain design & operation. And the critical logistics. A takeaway from 6 years is how to build unpredictability into supply chains. More...
Aluminum at Hormuz: Supply Chains Won’t Restart Instantly
Add aluminum to the Hormuz choke point. Restarting supply chain trade flows and maritime will not be like turning on a light switch.
Ford Is Giving Its Commercial Fleet Business an AI Makeover
Ford unveiled Ford Pro AI, a generative‑AI chatbot embedded in its Pro telematics platform, to turn fleet telemetry into actionable insights for its 840,000 paid subscribers. The model‑agnostic service runs on Google Cloud, operates in read‑only mode and still requires human oversight,...
Future Drivers Face Tougher Tests as Cars Outpace Safety
Not so crazy prediction: 25 years from now, humans will be monstrously less safe than autonomous cars. What will happen? Driving tests will become more rigorous.
First Operational Speeder Bike Turns Sci‑Fi Dream Real
From Fantasy to Reality: The First Operational Speeder Bike Is Here by @Volonaut #EmergingTech #Innovation #Technology https://t.co/kSjUD6H77P
Why Not: 2027 Ford Super Duty Chassis Cab Now Comes in Luxury Platinum Trim
Ford is launching a 2027 Super Duty chassis‑cab lineup (F‑350, F‑450, F‑550) in a high‑end Platinum trim. The package adds leather seats, a 12‑inch SYNC 4 infotainment screen, a 14‑speaker B&O Unleashed audio system, and distinctive exterior cues such as a...
Blend Engineering and Human Factors for Successful AVs
Quick day trip to Amsterdam🇳🇱 for @intertraffic. And had a fascinating panel discussion on "User Acceptance of Automated Vehicles (AVs)". It's time that we don't differentiate engineering & human factors when it comes to product design. They come together for...
All New Cars Will Be Autonomous Within a Decade
"10 years from now, every single car sold will have autonomous capabilities" - @dkhos at @Abundance360 2026 summit.
Amazon Defrauded: Guilty Plea in $3M+ Fraud Involving Trailers
A Connecticut‑based freight operator, Ameer Nasir, pleaded guilty to wire fraud for submitting more than $3 million in false invoices to Amazon Logistics. Between December 2019 and February 2021, he created 23 phantom trucking companies and used a manual override in...
Navy Warns Danger, Trump Urges Risky Hormuz Passage
If the Navy says it’s too dangerous to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, but Trump says tankers should have the guts to sail through. This is some serious mixed messaging.
Charging Delays Make EVs Impractical, Not Propaganda
There is no car in the known universe worth sitting in line waiting to charge my car then waiting while it actually charges Elon must really love this electric car propaganda
Cybercab & Cybertruck With Sensor Racks Spotted in Palo Alto
Two Tesla Cybercab and Cybertruck prototypes equipped with lidar and camera sensor racks were observed driving together on El Camino Real in Palo Alto and Mountain View on March 10, 2026. The vehicles were also spotted a week earlier, indicating...
Put TSA Under FAA for Safer, Efficient Travel
Here’s a move GOP and Democrats should support. Move TSA under the FAA and end this nonsense. FAA’s mission. “Our continuing mission is to provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world.” https://t.co/owLsvwbRZv
Uber's Platform, Not Car Makers, Will Win Robotaxi Race
Everyone's arguing over who wins the autonomous vehicle race. Tesla? Waymo? Google? Wrong question. Uber is building the Marriott model for robotaxis. Their vision is financial giants & people own their fleets. Uber provides the operating platform. $1 trillion upside.
U.S. Maritime Administrator Carmel Warns U.S. Must Rebuild Entire Maritime ‘System,’ Not Just Shipyards
U.S. Maritime Administrator Stephen Carmel warned that rebuilding American maritime power requires more than expanding shipyard capacity; the United States must reconstruct an entire maritime ecosystem. He highlighted that the U.S. now produces only 0.1% of global commercial ships and...
Uber Invites Tesla, Aims to Own Ride‑network
Uber has a fascinating response to Elon’s vertical approach to autonomy: “We’d welcome Tesla on the Uber platform.” Smart move. Tesla may own the cars, but Uber wants to OWN the network.
Future Mobility: Hybrid Mix of AVs and Human Drivers
Uber CEO @dkhos mentioned something very important: Our society will not be ALL autonomous vehicles or all human. It's hybrid. AV fleets in some cities, human drivers in others. The binary debate is dead.
Port Pitching for Offshore Wind Hub Says Turbine Trade Could More than Double Its Shipping Traffic
Port of Hastings is positioning itself as Australia’s first dedicated offshore‑wind construction hub through the proposed Victorian Renewable Energy Terminal (VRET). The hub could raise annual vessel visits from 150 to roughly 350, effectively doubling port traffic and supporting Victoria’s...
‘Effective Immediately’: Alaskan Dream Cruises Abruptly Closes, Cancels All Future Sailings
Alaskan Dream Cruises, a Sitka‑based small‑vessel operator, announced it is shutting down immediately after a 15‑year run, cancelling all future sailings. The cruise line, part of the family‑owned Allen Marine Tours, thanked guests and highlighted its role in showcasing Alaska’s...
Amtrak Beats Driving to Airport From NYC
From NYC, the amtrak to Boston for whatever reasons is less than a car to the airport. (The regional, my personal preference).
TTC Operated By ENSCO –– Continuous Welded Rail: Managing Track Buckling and Stability
Continuous welded rail (CWR) underpins modern rail networks by removing joints, lowering maintenance costs, and supporting heavier traffic. However, its thermal sensitivity creates longitudinal forces that can cause tensile breaks in cold weather or compressive buckles in heat. Rail neutral...
Navy Halts Escorts, Raising Hormuz Supply‑Chain Risks
US Navy refusing to escort commercial ships thru the Strait. Saying the risk is too high. Is the end of the war not as close as some infer? Is supply chain risk escalating? Can a prolonged war fracture some of...