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Freight trends from DAT One and DAT iQ

fleetnewsdaily | January 22, 2026

Last week’s national average spot linehaul van rate was 18 cents higher year over year

Freight trends from DAT One and DAT iQ
Spot market data for Jan. 11-17, 2026 (Week 3)

Mid-January lull hit spot load posts, rates last week
Following a surge of post-holiday stocking, load posts on DAT One predictably cooled during the week of Jan. 11-17, falling 20% to 2.67 million. The number of available trucks was 223,522, up 2% week over week. Spot rates declined for all three equipment types.

Broker-to-carrier 7-day average spot rates:
▼ Dry van: $2.33 per mile, down 7 cents week over week
▼ Refrigerated: $2.78 per mile, down 6 cents
▼ Flatbed: $2.54 per mile, down 1 cent

Dry van
▼ Van loads: 1.1 million, down 25% week over week
▲ Van equipment: 161,701, up 6% week over week
▼ Linehaul rate: $1.96 per mile, down 8 cents week over week

Reefer
▼ Reefer loads: 527,974, down 37% week over week
▼ Reefer equipment: 38,556, down 13% week over week
▼ Linehaul rate: $2.41 per mile, down 7 cents week over week

Flatbed
▲ Flatbed loads: 1 million, up 2.5% week over week
▲ Flatbed equipment: 23,265, up 2% week over week
▼ Linehaul rate: $2.17 per mile, down 1 cent week over week

Analysis from Dean Croke, Industry Analyst, DAT Freight & Analytics

Worth watching: the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture reported a shortage of trucks in all five California produce regions last week. This is normally the low point in the state’s produce-shipping season, with ample truckload capacity, as there was in 2025. The biggest change in market conditions is the increase in immigration enforcement in California. With the bulk of produce harvests still two months away, tighter capacity could make this an unprecedented produce season.

Last week’s national average spot linehaul van rate was 18 cents higher year over year, despite falling nearly 10 cents since the start of the month. Moreover, it was 26 cents above the five-year average, excluding 2020 and 2021, the pandemic years. The average linehaul van rate for DAT’s top 50 van lanes by load volume decreased by 11 cents to $2.29 per mile. In the 13 Midwest states that represent around 45% of national load volume, the average rate decreased by 11 cents to $2.37 per mile.

Reefer equipment posts dropped 13% last week, while dry van and flatbed equipment increased. This could be due to several factors: a seasonal lull in produce shipments; many owner-operators with reefer units may park them during harsh winter weather rather than risk breakdowns or dangerous driving conditions; carriers are likely keeping their reefer equipment off the market until conditions improve and the produce season ramps up in the spring.