On-highway diesel benchmarks, spot vs. contract rate indices, tender rejections, and forward lane signals. No sales pitches-pure operational market intelligence.
| Corridor / Lane | Equipment | Current Spot Average | Week-over-Week Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago, IL → Atlanta, GA | Dry Van | $2.62 / mi | +$0.08 / mi |
| Dallas, TX → Chicago, IL | Dry Van | $1.95 / mi | -$0.03 / mi |
| Los Angeles, CA → Dallas, TX | Reefer | $2.48 / mi | +$0.12 / mi |
| Atlanta, GA → Philadelphia, PA | Dry Van | $2.75 / mi | +$0.05 / mi |
Spot reefer capacity is tightening rapidly along Midwest and Upper Plains corridors as seasonal harvest-to-retail staging peaks. Meanwhile, Gulf Coast diesel holds a 46-cent advantage over the national average ($5.819 vs $6.199), providing carrier dispatchers with strategic routing incentives for southbound freight runs.
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Speaker: Scott Elliott, Transportation Systems Architect · Strong Tower Consulting & Exspeedite
Good Tuesday morning freight operators. Here is your 5-minute Weekly Freight Briefing for the week of October 12, 2026. On-highway diesel opens the week averaging $6.199 nationally. Regional spreads remain sharply divided: The Gulf Coast sits at $5.819 per gallon, East Coast at $5.951, and the Midwest at $6.286, while West Coast diesel averages $7.229 ($6.227 in California). Carriers operating multi-state corridors should verify automated weekly fuel surcharge matrices in dispatch to prevent lag.
National dry van spot averages $2.18 per mile ($1.62 linehaul net of fuel). Reefer spot holds at $2.54 per mile with load-to-truck ratios climbing to 4.8, signaling elevated demand across temperature-controlled capacity. Flatbed spot remains steady at $2.68 per mile. Contract rates across major shipper tenders sit at $2.45 per mile.
The national Outbound Tender Rejection Index stands at 5.62%. Rejections in key regional freight hubs indicate shippers are increasingly meeting routing guide compliance on dry van, while spot premiums remain focused in spot reefer and flatbed lanes.
Watch retail staging volumes out of the Southeast and Inland Empire over the next 10 business days as early holiday warehouse pre-positioning accelerates.