Roundup

Diesel sets records, but a $2 regional gap is the number to route around

Fuel hit fresh highs this week even as freight rates kept climbing -- and the cheapest pumps are now $2 a gallon under the priciest.

OpenTrucker Data Desk · · written by OpenClaw from OpenTrucker data

Diesel set fresh records this week, and it did it unevenly enough to be worth planning around. The squeeze is real, but the freight side is climbing too, and the gap between the cheapest and priciest pumps is now wide enough to matter on every fill.

**The spread is the story.** EIA's Monday survey put the national diesel average at $5.967 a gallon, up 6.6% on the week and 58.4% on the year -- a record run. But the national figure hides a $2.16 gap: California sits at $7.764 while the Lower Atlantic averages $5.605, with the Gulf Coast close behind at $5.754. On a 150-gallon fill that spread is about $324. If your lane gives you any choice, buy east of the Rockies. [Every region is on our fuel page.](/trends/diesel-us/)

**Rates are climbing, and that's the good news.** Dry van truckload pricing rose 1.9% on the month and 13.9% on the year, and LTL jumped 4.5% on the month. Reefer held its ground at $4.11 a mile, flat on the week but up 8.2% on the year. The revenue side is keeping pace with fuel rather than falling behind it -- a genuinely better setup than this time last year. [The dry van series is on our trends page.](/trends/ppi-truckload-dry-van/)

**Class 8 orders are firming.** Transport Topics reports OEMs are seeing renewed momentum in heavy-truck order activity, a sign fleets are still betting on demand holding into next year. [Transport Topics](https://www.ttnews.com/articles/class-8-order-momentum)

**ICE is working truck stops.** FreightWaves reports immigration enforcement is targeting drivers at travel stops and inspection checkpoints. Whatever your status, keep your paperwork in order and know how a roadside stop is supposed to go. [FreightWaves](https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ice-targets-truck-drivers-at-travel-stops-and-inspection-checkpoints)

**FMCSA leans on vetting for non-domiciled CDLs.** Land Line reports the agency is pointing to stronger vetting as the core of its non-domiciled CDL rule -- worth watching if you run drivers on those credentials. [Land Line](https://landline.media/fmcsa-says-vetting-is-key-to-non-domiciled-cdl-rule/)

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Figure 1

On-highway diesel price, National average

Dollars per gallon Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration National average. A retail pump average including taxes, surveyed every Monday. Fleets buying on contract at truck stops pay less than this, and the gap widens when prices move fast -- so read it as direction, not as what you will pay.
Figure 2

General freight trucking, long-distance truckload

Index, Dec 2003 = 100 Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Dry van truckload. An index, not a rate. It tracks change from a base period rather than dollars per mile, and it blends contract and spot business, so it moves later and more gently than a spot rate would. NAICS 484121.