Q&A

Where trucking profits go to die

Inefficient routes, wasted miles and the simple fix small fleets can make today

(Courtesy Arthur Axelrad)

Change is hard for any person or business. But a resistance to change—especially when it comes to technology—could inflate costs and erode service.

Arthur Axelrad, the co-founder and CEO of Dispatch Science, often sees small motor carriers stick with outdated technology. They find it familiar and fear the cost and disruption that could come with overhauling the system. The danger? That legacy dispatching system could be making operations less efficient and draining profits.

In today’s newsletter, Axelrad shares the biggest issues he sees with dispatch, along with tips for small fleets to modernize their systems and make attainable tech investments.

-Interview by Shefali Kapadia, edited by Bianca Prieto

In your work with small and mid-sized trucking fleets, what are the biggest drains you see on margins and profitability?

For Dispatch Science, we work predominantly with carriers whose fleets rely heavily on independent contractors. One of the biggest drains we see is the lack of efficient coordination and visibility. Contractors are responsible for their own costs—like fuel, maintenance, insurance—so when routes are inefficient, deadhead miles pile up or contractors spend hours waiting on assignments, those expenses often come directly out of their pocket. Over time, that erodes contractor satisfaction and makes it harder for carriers to retain reliable drivers.

Carriers also feel the impact of lost productivity and missed opportunities. Without real-time insight into contractor activity or available capacity, it’s easy to underutilize drivers, miss backhaul opportunities or delay deliveries. These gaps eventually eat into margins, weaken service performance and make it harder to compete in a market where speed and efficiency are everything.

This is where a modern Transportation Management System (TMS) becomes essential. By reducing wasted miles and idle time, carriers improve utilization and service quality while contractors maximize their earning potential. The result is a stronger bottom line for the business and a healthier, more sustainable contractor network.

What specific issues do outdated dispatching and inefficient routing create?

When routes are inefficient, drivers often travel longer distances or spend excessive time idling in traffic. This leads to higher fuel consumption, increased wear and tear on vehicles and more frequent maintenance, all of which are typically borne by the contractors themselves. Additionally, longer delivery times can result in missed time windows, customer dissatisfaction, and potential penalties from clients or platforms.

For fleet-based businesses, these inefficiencies also translate into underutilized driver capacity and poor resource allocation. Idle drivers and underloaded vehicles reflect weak operational planning, while the lack of real-time visibility into driver locations and delivery statuses limits the ability to respond dynamically to delays or changes.

In a competitive last-mile environment, where speed and reliability are paramount, these issues can lead to:

Contract breaches due to late or missed deliveries
Driver fatigue and turnover, especially when contractors are pushed to make up for poor planning
Lost business opportunities from dissatisfied customers and negative reviews
Regulatory risks, particularly around hours-of-service compliance and safety standards

What is typically the largest barrier to modernizing dispatch systems, especially for small business motor carriers?

The biggest barrier is change itself. Smaller carriers often stick with outdated tools, not because they work well, but because they’re familiar. We see this concern that adopting modern systems will be disruptive, expensive or complicated to roll out.

The reality is the opposite. Cloud-based systems today are designed to be easier to implement, affordable to scale and far more user-friendly than legacy tools. In many cases, carriers can be up and running in weeks, not months. The real risk isn’t in making the switch—it’s in not switching at all.

What we see consistently is that once carriers make the transition, they realize how much efficiency they’ve been leaving on the table. Reduced administrative work, lower operating costs, and happier customers quickly outweigh the growing pains of change.

What's one attainable investment small to medium trucking fleets can make today to start reducing their operational costs?

Adopt technology that makes life easier for both carriers and their drivers. A modern TMS is a natural starting point because it doesn’t require building new infrastructure or hiring additional staff. It simply replaces outdated, manual processes with automation and real-time visibility.

For small fleets, a TMS delivers quick wins: faster dispatching, fewer phone calls and less time wasted matching loads to available drivers. For contractors, it means clearer assignments, optimized routes that reduce unnecessary miles and better communication from the carrier. Those incremental improvements add up quickly, cutting costs on both sides and building stronger contractor relationships in the process.

Because today’s cloud-first TMS platforms are scalable and user-friendly, fleets can adopt them in weeks rather than months, too. It’s a realistic first step toward reducing costs, improving service and creating a more sustainable business model without overwhelming small teams.