The freight calendar

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Watch the NHC map from August. Before a storm: water, generators, plywood and fuel into the Gulf and Southeast. After: building materials, roofing and HVAC for months. Both are urgent and both pay.

Tell your shippers

Hurricane season runs June through November, with the worst weeks from mid-August to mid-October. Shipments into the Gulf Coast and Southeast can be delayed for days around a storm. Shippers in those regions should keep a few days of slack in their schedules.

For your quotes

Reefer out of Yakima, Wenatchee and Tri-Cities is busy from September. Packers and shippers book weekly. The season stretches into spring from cold storage.

Tell your shippers

Apple harvest in Washington runs from late August to November. Reefer trucks out of the state are in high demand during those months. Buyers of apples and pears should expect longer lead times for shipments from the Northwest.

For your quotes

Hopper and dump capacity is tight from Iowa to Ohio. Ethanol plants, crushers and feed mills all pull inbound. The 150-air-mile agricultural exemption is in force. Call the processors, not the farms.

Tell your shippers

Corn and soybean harvest keeps Midwest trucks busy from mid-September to mid-November. Capacity is tighter and rates higher across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Shippers in the region should book earlier than usual in those weeks.

For your quotes

Flatbed and van work out of the gins into the warehouses and toward Houston, Savannah and Charleston. Call gins and cotton warehouses in Texas and Georgia in September.

Tell your shippers

Cotton harvest runs from mid-September to the end of November. Gins and warehouses ship steadily to ports and mills through the fall. Shippers of cotton and cottonseed should expect busy lanes toward the Gulf and Southeast ports.

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Fertilizer retailers and co-ops in the Corn Belt need trucks weekly and the window can close in a week. Call them at the end of harvest.

Tell your shippers

Fall fertilizer season runs from October until the ground freezes. Agricultural retailers ship in a short, urgent window. Suppliers should have capacity ready by early October.

For your quotes

Reefer out of the cold-storage hubs into grocery DCs is busy from mid-October. Ask cold-storage operators and food distributors what moves and when.

Tell your shippers

Holiday food moves from cold storage to distribution centers from mid-October to mid-November. Reefer trucks are in demand on those lanes. Food shippers should book their holiday moves early.

For your quotes

Growers and wholesalers book trucks in October and scramble in November. Capacity competes with fall produce in the Northwest. Call growers in Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan and Wisconsin in October.

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Christmas trees ship from late October to early December. Trucks are tight in the Northwest and North Carolina during those weeks. Retailers and lot operators should confirm delivery dates with their growers early.

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Two slower days on the northbound lanes. Not a shutdown, but worth a line to shippers with loads due on the US side that week.

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November 1 and 2 are observed across Mexico. Plants and customs run slower than usual for two days. Cross-border shipments may see minor delays.

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Reefer out of Florida northbound is busy all winter, and the backhaul south is the weak leg. Ask packers in Immokalee, Plant City and the Indian River what they ship weekly.

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Florida produce ships north from November to April. Reefer capacity in the state tightens through the winter. Buyers of Florida citrus and vegetables should plan for longer lead times in those months.

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A three-week rush on dump and flatbed in the northern states, then the equipment parks until April. Ask paving contractors what still has to move.

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Northern asphalt plants close in November. Road and paving materials that must move this year should ship before mid-November. After that, most of this freight waits until spring.

For your quotes

Greenhouse growers in California, Florida, North Carolina and Ohio ship weekly to garden centers and grocers. The same growers ship bedding plants in spring: a relationship that lasts the year.

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Poinsettias and holiday plants ship from November to mid-December. They travel in temperature-controlled trucks and cannot wait. Retailers should confirm delivery windows with growers in October.

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Reefer out of Nogales and McAllen is the busiest lane of the winter. Distributors and importers on the US side book daily. Ask them what crosses and where it goes.

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Mexican produce season runs from mid-November to mid-May. Reefer trucks out of Nogales and the Texas border are in heavy demand. Importers and distributors of Mexican produce should lock in capacity before the season starts.

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A long weekend on the Mexican side. Ship Friday or Tuesday.

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The third Monday of November is a public holiday in Mexico. Most plants are closed and customs clearance is slower. Cross-border freight should be planned around the long weekend.

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Quote Monday and Tuesday of that week as premium days and expect nothing to move Thursday through Sunday. Reefer is the exception: turkeys, produce and dairy move right up to Wednesday morning.

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Thanksgiving week compresses a full week of freight into three days. Anything due before the holiday should be on a truck by Tuesday. Oversize loads cannot move from Wednesday to Sunday in most states.

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Retail inbound is done. The freight this week is DC-to-store restock in dry van, short and urgent, and the parcel networks are saturated. Ask retailers and 3PLs what they are short on and where.

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Black Friday and Cyber Monday put the pressure on distribution centers, not on inbound freight. Restock orders will be urgent and short-haul. Returns start arriving the following week and need trucks going the other way.

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Northbound freight out of Mexico drops from mid-December and restarts around January 7. Ship ahead in the first half of December.

Tell your shippers

Mexico's holiday season runs from December 12 to January 6. Plants slow down or close for much of that time and customs clearance is slower. Cross-border shipments should move in early December or wait for the second week of January.

For your quotes

The last shipping week of the year ends around December 19. Use the quiet two weeks to visit or call shippers who are still at their desks, and set up the first quarter.

Tell your shippers

Most plants close from a few days before Christmas to early January. Freight that must move this year should ship by December 19. The second week of January is the restart.

For your quotes

The last full shipping week of the year is the one before Christmas. Anything after December 22 is a favor. Book your January lanes now, while shippers are still at their desks.

Tell your shippers

Most plants and warehouses close from Christmas Eve to early January and carriers thin out. Freight that must arrive before the holidays should be tendered by December 19. Anything not urgent is better shipped in the first week of January.

For your quotes

Shippers who need revenue in the year will pay for a truck on December 22 and 23. The rest waits for January.

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The last shipping days of the year fall right before Christmas. Anything that must ship this year should be tendered by December 19. What can wait is cheaper in January.

For your quotes

The last loads of the year want to move before December 23. The first week of January is loose: rates soften and trucks are easy to find, which is your window to lock in lanes for the quarter.

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Most carriers run a skeleton fleet between Christmas and New Year. Anything that must arrive before the holiday should be tendered a week early. The first days of January are a good time to book freight, since trucks are available and rates are lower.

For your quotes

Returns freight is under-covered by brokers and often unowned on the shipper side. Ask retailers and returns processors who moves their reverse loads and on what schedule.

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January brings the year's largest wave of returns. Returns need trucks from stores back to warehouses, often on short notice. Retailers should plan the reverse lanes before the holiday, not after.

For your quotes

Expect a burst of port drayage and transload work four to six weeks after the holiday, then a lull. Ask importers what landed before the factories closed and where it is going.

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Chinese factories close for about two weeks around the lunar new year. Goods ordered for spring should ship before the holiday. Expect a bunch of arrivals four to six weeks after, and a quiet stretch after that.

For your quotes

A dump or bulk shipper in Michigan needs seven trucks instead of five for the same tonnage. Call aggregate, scrap, lumber and agricultural shippers in the frost-law states: their capacity need jumps for six weeks.

Tell your shippers

Spring weight restrictions are in force on many northern roads from late February to May. Loads that usually move at full weight have to be split. Shippers in Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Northeast should plan for more trucks per shipment.

For your quotes

Fertilizer retailers and co-ops in Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska and Kansas need trucks weekly for two months. The window closes when planting starts. Call them in early March.

Tell your shippers

Spring fertilizer season runs from mid-March to mid-May. Agricultural retailers restock weekly and trucks are in demand across the Midwest. Suppliers of fertilizer and crop inputs should line up capacity before the window opens.

For your quotes

Northbound freight out of Monterrey, Saltillo and Reynosa drops the week before Easter and restarts the Monday after. Ship ahead, and expect the Tuesday after to be tight.

Tell your shippers

Holy Week slows Mexican plants and border crossings for about a week before Easter. Cross-border shipments should move before the week starts. Expect a restart delay on the Monday after Easter.

For your quotes

The last week of the quarter is a good week for spot freight: shippers pay to ship on time. Ask what has to leave the dock by the thirty-first.

Tell your shippers

Many companies push shipments out in the last week of a quarter. Trucks are in demand and rates firm up. Shipments that can wait a week are cheaper in the first days of the next month.

For your quotes

Call aggregate quarries, asphalt plants, roofing distributors and shingle plants in late March. The first three weeks of the season are the tightest for dump trailers and flatbeds.

Tell your shippers

Road and roofing work restarts in April across the northern states. Dump trucks and flatbeds get scarce for the first weeks of the season. Construction suppliers should book their spring capacity in March.

For your quotes

Reefer capacity out of Fresno, Bakersfield, Salinas and the Imperial Valley is tight all summer. Ask packers and shippers what they move weekly and to which markets.

Tell your shippers

California produce season runs from May to September. Reefer trucks out of the state are in high demand all summer. Buyers of California fruit and vegetables should expect higher freight costs and book early.

For your quotes

One day, but when it lands mid-week it can strand a northbound load. Check which weekday it falls on and ship the day before.

Tell your shippers

May 1 is a public holiday in Mexico. Most Mexican plants are closed and customs clearance is slower. Cross-border shipments should clear the day before.

For your quotes

Spot rates typically rise the week of Roadcheck and fall back the week after. Warn shippers with time-critical loads and quote that week up. The exact dates are on the CVSA site.

Tell your shippers

Roadcheck is a three-day inspection blitz every May. Some carriers stay off the road those days, so trucks are harder to find and rates rise for the week. Time-sensitive freight should avoid those three days if it can.

For your quotes

The Wednesday and Thursday before are the tightest days of the month: quote them up, and move anything oversize by Thursday or after Tuesday. Reefer produce out of the South and California does not wait for the holiday.

Tell your shippers

Trucks are scarce on the Thursday and Friday before Memorial Day, and oversize loads cannot move over the weekend in most states. Shipments due that week should be tendered early. Deliveries scheduled for the Tuesday after often slip a day.

For your quotes

Watch the NHC map from August. Before a storm: water, generators, plywood and fuel into the Gulf and Southeast. After: building materials, roofing and HVAC for months. Both are urgent and both pay.

Tell your shippers

Hurricane season runs June through November, with the worst weeks from mid-August to mid-October. Shipments into the Gulf Coast and Southeast can be delayed for days around a storm. Shippers in those regions should keep a few days of slack in their schedules.

For your quotes

Follow the harvest north. Elevators and mills need hopper capacity, and the agricultural hours-of-service exemption applies within 150 air miles of the source during harvest.

Tell your shippers

Wheat harvest runs from June in Texas to late July in the northern Plains. Trucks are in heavy demand around the elevators as each region comes in. Grain and milling shippers should expect tighter capacity as the harvest reaches them.

For your quotes

The last week of the quarter is a good week for spot freight: shippers pay to ship on time. Ask what has to leave the dock by the thirtieth.

Tell your shippers

Many companies push shipments out in the last week of a quarter. Trucks are in demand and rates firm up. Shipments that can wait a week are cheaper in the first days of the next month.

For your quotes

Tier suppliers ship ahead of the shutdown and restart hard after. The two weeks are slow in the auto belt, but the machinery movers and plant contractors are busy.

Tell your shippers

Auto plants shut for retooling in the first two weeks of July. Suppliers to the auto industry ship less in that window and restart fast after. Freight around the plants is lighter, then heavier.

For your quotes

Dry van into retail DCs is busiest in July. Watch the paper, apparel and electronics importers, and the DC-to-store lanes in August. It is the first sign of how the holiday season will look.

Tell your shippers

Retail warehouses are at their busiest in July for back-to-school. Inbound appointments get harder to book and detention rises. Suppliers to retail should ship early in the month.

For your quotes

Canada-US freight is thin from June 30 to July 5. Ship the last week of June.

Tell your shippers

Canada Day on July 1 and the US Fourth of July fall in the same week. Cross-border shipments with Canada lose several working days. Plan those moves for the last week of June.

For your quotes

A modest capacity dip, smaller than Roadcheck. Worth a line to shippers who ask why that week is tight, and a reason to quote time-critical loads a little higher.

Tell your shippers

A one-week enforcement blitz in July puts more patrols on the highway. Some carriers reduce runs that week. Not a major disruption, but worth knowing when planning tight deliveries.

For your quotes

Check which weekday the Fourth lands on this year and quote the two days before as holiday days. Fireworks, beverages and grills have moved by mid-June; what is left is the plant shutdown wave in the auto belt.

Tell your shippers

The Fourth of July stops oversize moves and takes drivers off the road for two to four days. Freight due that week should be tendered by the previous Friday. Plants that close for the holiday week should tell their carriers early.

For your quotes

It lands right before Labor Day, so the two stack up into a tight last week of August. Quote that week up and move anything urgent early in the month.

Tell your shippers

Late August brings a week of brake inspections, followed by the Labor Day weekend. Together they make the last week of August a tight one for trucks. Freight due before Labor Day should move early in the month.

For your quotes

Drayage out of Los Angeles, Long Beach, Savannah and New York is tightest in September and October. Ask importers and 3PLs when their peak containers land and whether they have trucks for the transload.

Tell your shippers

Holiday inventory arrives at the ports between mid-August and the end of October. Drayage and warehouse space are tight in that window, and appointment slots fill early. Importers should book their inland moves ahead of arrival.

For your quotes

Reefer out of Yakima, Wenatchee and Tri-Cities is busy from September. Packers and shippers book weekly. The season stretches into spring from cold storage.

Tell your shippers

Apple harvest in Washington runs from late August to November. Reefer trucks out of the state are in high demand during those months. Buyers of apples and pears should expect longer lead times for shipments from the Northwest.

For your quotes

Short regional flatbed and van work, mostly to grocery DCs and garden centers. A small season, but a timely opening line for produce shippers in the Midwest.

Tell your shippers

Pumpkins ship from September to late October, mostly regionally. Trucks are needed on short notice and the season ends abruptly at Halloween. Retailers should plan deliveries by mid-October.

For your quotes

The Thursday and Friday before are tight and the Tuesday after is slow to restart. Use the week after to reset lanes for the fall: produce shifts north, and the ports are at their busiest through October.

Tell your shippers

Labor Day weekend takes drivers off the road from Friday afternoon to Tuesday morning, and oversize permits stop in most states. Shipments due early that week should move the week before. Fall volumes start rising right after.

For your quotes

Potatoes move to fresh packers and processors; beets pile at receiving stations and move to the factory all winter. Call packers and processors in September.

Tell your shippers

Potato and sugar beet harvest runs through October in Idaho, the Red River Valley and Michigan. Trucks are in heavy demand near the packing sheds and factories. Buyers of potatoes and sugar should expect tighter schedules in those weeks.

For your quotes

Hopper and dump capacity is tight from Iowa to Ohio. Ethanol plants, crushers and feed mills all pull inbound. The 150-air-mile agricultural exemption is in force. Call the processors, not the farms.

Tell your shippers

Corn and soybean harvest keeps Midwest trucks busy from mid-September to mid-November. Capacity is tighter and rates higher across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Shippers in the region should book earlier than usual in those weeks.

For your quotes

Flatbed and van work out of the gins into the warehouses and toward Houston, Savannah and Charleston. Call gins and cotton warehouses in Texas and Georgia in September.

Tell your shippers

Cotton harvest runs from mid-September to the end of November. Gins and warehouses ship steadily to ports and mills through the fall. Shippers of cotton and cottonseed should expect busy lanes toward the Gulf and Southeast ports.

For your quotes

A one-day gap in cross-border freight, often stretched into a long weekend. Ship the day before.

Tell your shippers

September 16 is Mexico's Independence Day and a public holiday. Most Mexican plants are closed and customs clearance is slower. Shipments should be planned around it.

For your quotes

The last week of the quarter is a good week for spot freight: shippers pay to ship on time. Ask what has to leave the dock by the thirtieth.

Tell your shippers

Many companies push shipments out in the last week of a quarter. Trucks are in demand and rates firm up. Shipments that can wait a week are cheaper in the first days of the next month.

For your quotes

Fertilizer retailers and co-ops in the Corn Belt need trucks weekly and the window can close in a week. Call them at the end of harvest.

Tell your shippers

Fall fertilizer season runs from October until the ground freezes. Agricultural retailers ship in a short, urgent window. Suppliers should have capacity ready by early October.

For your quotes

One day, but it can strand a cross-border load over a long weekend. Check the date.

Tell your shippers

The second Monday of October is a public holiday in Canada. Canadian plants are closed and customs clearance is slower. Cross-border shipments should be planned around the long weekend.

For your quotes

Reefer out of the cold-storage hubs into grocery DCs is busy from mid-October. Ask cold-storage operators and food distributors what moves and when.

Tell your shippers

Holiday food moves from cold storage to distribution centers from mid-October to mid-November. Reefer trucks are in demand on those lanes. Food shippers should book their holiday moves early.

For your quotes

Growers and wholesalers book trucks in October and scramble in November. Capacity competes with fall produce in the Northwest. Call growers in Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan and Wisconsin in October.

Tell your shippers

Christmas trees ship from late October to early December. Trucks are tight in the Northwest and North Carolina during those weeks. Retailers and lot operators should confirm delivery dates with their growers early.