Alternative Freight Contracts

We propose an empirical modeling approach utilizing large, detailed microeconomic data sets to help shippers and carriers form better contractual relationships given present uncertainties. Previous research on TL procurement and operations has predominantly taken analytical approaches due to limited availability of real-world industry data. Thus, it has been limited in addressing the three sources of uncertainty: (1) demand from shippers, (2) capacity supplied by carriers, and (3) the fluctuations in the freight market that shift the power back and forth between parties.