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This post is in reference to the FreightWaves “Wait times plummet as capacity tightens” article which can be found here.

In a recent FreightWaves article, there was the possibility of a relationship between capacity and wait times for carriers. Based on their own internal data, the assumption was made that as capacity tightens (shown in tender rejections), wait times decrease.

There is one caveat to this data, which was explicitly stated in the piece. “The Wait Time Index is created off telematics and geofencing data. Because of social distancing, there is the possibility that carriers have to now wait outside the normal waiting area, which is outside of the geofence, therefore creating the illusion of reduced wait time.”

Based on DrayNow data, which factors in arrival times reported by carriers, we have actually seen wait times at both shipper & consignee remain fairly consistent in 2020 (averaging 106 minutes at the shipper & 86 at the consignee). There was no clear indication that any volume or capacity issues impacted wait times.

Where does the discrepancy in data come from? It all comes down to the source. FreightWaves used geofencing technology to gather information on wait times, while we used actual carrier arrival times as reported in the app. Carriers that use DrayNow let us know when they have arrived within the app, so it does not matter if they are distanced from the warehouse, we will still have accurate wait times.

Fluctuations in our data were consistent from week-to-week and month-to-month. With that being said, it’s very difficult to define a clear impact that capacity, volume and social distancing measures have done to wait times with the intermodal freight coming from our platform.

FreightWaves internal data is clearly showing an inverse relationship between capacity and wait times. Here at DrayNow, our precise data doesn’t show any significant changes, no matter what may be happening externally.