Old Dominion to raise rates 5.6%

Less-than-truckload carrier Old Dominion will be raising its base rates by an average of 5.6 percent from Feb. 16, the North Carolina-based trucking firm said Friday.

The general increase involves a restructure that provides for increases in our rates based on length of haul rather than the traditional across-the-board increases, said Rick Keeler, senior vice president of pricing and strategic development. "The rate increase does not affect minimum charges in intrastate, interstate or cross-border lanes. Although each customer will have a different financial impact based on the lanes and distance their shipments move, the overall impact of the increase is approximately 5.6 percent. Smaller increases will be taken on Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Caribbean and Mexico. The increase is necessary to offset higher costs as a result of new equipment, new service centers, state-of-the art technology, insurance costs as well as wages and benefits.   The tariffs affected by the increase are the ODFL 559/555 and the 505 Canadian tariffs.

Source: American Shipper