Uber Freight research paper makes the case for the need to eliminate empty miles

A research paper recently issued by San Francisco-based Uber Freight, a subsidiary of the ubiquitous, ride-sharing service Uber, whose proprietary app matches trucking companies with loads to haul, and a non-asset-based third-party logistics services provider, takes a long look at empty miles, which the company said is one of the most overlooked and prevalent crises in freight transportation and logistics.

The research paper, entitled “Can Empty Miles in Freight Be Eliminated?” looks at ways in which how the trucking industry can build a more sustainable and efficient future?”

In addressing how empty miles can be inefficient and problematic in trucking, the research paper observed that in using Uber Freight’s access to freight shipment data and optimization techniques, the company found that there is a “major opportunity” for the trucking industry to reduce empty miles by up to 64%, which would represent a 23% reduction in overall miles driven by trucks through optimization techniques, in tandem with broad visibility, as well as the ongoing growth of autonomous trucking technology.

“Such a massive reduction in trucking miles will have ramifications well beyond the freight industry,” the research paper observed. “First, a reduction in empty miles will have positive effects on road congestion and fatal accidents. The effect a single truck can have on traffic flow is the equivalent of 2-15 passenger cars, depending on terrain and traffic conditions. In addition, trucks travel 5.5X more miles per vehicle than light-duty vehicles, and account for 9% of all vehicles involved in fatal crashes. Furthermore, freight trucking is responsible for a staggering 79% of US Greenhouse Gas emissions.”

What’s more, Uber Freight found that the elimination of empty miles will save 1.5%-to-2.5% of U.S. GHG emissions, which is the equivalent of 7%-to-11% of the U.S. national power grid to renewable sources.

Uber Freight noted that the root causes for empty miles within freight networks can be broken down into three categories, including:

• fragmentation and poor planning;
• intrinsic network imbalance; and
• supply demand and imbalance

When asked about some of the key steps, or measures, that can be taken to cut down on empty miles (for both shippers and carriers), Mazen Danaf, economist at Uber Freight, told LM that it is estimated that 20-to-35% of trucking miles in the U.S. are driven empty.

“Although the percentage of empty miles driven by medium and large-sized fleets have been decreasing over the past few years, carriers’ ability to improve utilization remains limited by visibility into demand and rigid contracts with shippers,” said Danaf. “Shippers can turn to transportation management solutions and technology to utilize advanced consolidation services that reduce trucking miles. For example, shippers can combine orders into LTL and multi-stop shipments.” 

And he added that carriers of all sizes should be using optimization to reduce their deadhead.

“Owner operators and smaller carriers might not have the skills or capabilities of doing so—at Uber Freight, we offer them alternative solutions such as bundles (an Uber Freight offering that allows carriers to move from point A to point B as efficiently as possible) and personalized recommendations,” he said.

As trucking becomes even more fragmented, Danaf said there are various strategies and concepts that can be implemented to improve the current situation, including: load consolidation; the aforementioned bundling; network optimization at a carrier network level

collaboration between different carriers and shippers (for example, flexible appointments and drop loads); and partnering with companies like Uber Freight to increase visibility for carriers.

To read the complete research paper, please click here.