Disasters and the Freight Network

1. Disasters and the Freight Network Eric Fuller Vice President of Xpress Direct

2. Xpress Direct • Expedited Solutions Provider • Last minute freight solutions • Provide capacity at anytime • Special Projects • Disaster Recovery • Holiday Surge Projects • Special Equipment Needs • 5,600 Company Tractors and 20,000+ from other carriers

3. Disaster Experience • Hurricane recovery since 2003 • Pulled over 5,600 disaster recovery loads in 2005 for govt agencies • Sub-contractor to a number of direct contractors for FEMA, FAA, DOT, and State Govts • Pulled over 2,300 loads for disaster recovery for private sector

4. Issues Faced During Disasters • Disruption of normal freight network • Communication Issues • Safety/Infrastructure • Disaster recovery

5. Disruption of freight network • August through November is the busy freight season and is the busy portion of the hurricane season • 16,000 loads for govt hurricane relief in 2005 • Very little excess capacity nationwide during hurricane • Carriers and shippers greatly increase rail usage during disasters

6. Communications Issues • Wireless networks down for as much as a few weeks at a time • Satellite communication is spotty due to government taking bandwith from the private sector

7. Safety/Infrastructure • Lack of information on bridge and road outage • Info does not get to right people • Internet listings a possible solution • List approved routes and not just a list of roads • Most shipments of water from 50,000 to 60,000 lbs • No info on weight limits for bridges and lightly damaged highways

8. Safety/Infrastructure • Many trucking companies in hurricane damaged area w/o power and phones for weeks at a time despite their help in the relief effort • Need for a way to apply for priority in restoration of services • Scarcity of fuel • Trucks idling for a week run low on fuel with few places to refuel

9. Disaster Recovery • Freight is pre-positioned often in the path of the hurricane • Concern for drivers and equipment in the path • These points need to be determined logistically • Example: Points that are far enough inland but along a major highway to efficiently get in to the effected area once the storm hits

10. Disaster Recovery • Need for a “just in time” program to eliminate the massive wait times • Trucks sat on average from 7 to 10 days before delivering • Govt could access more capacity at a cheaper price by eliminating or minimizing the wait time on the ground • Many companies will not participate because of the uncertainty of when they’ll get their truck back • Need to focus on the “last mile”

11. Disaster Recovery • Loads that originated within a hundred miles or so of the delivery point would often travel 500 miles or more to staging area and then back to delivery • Example: Water picked up in Miami area taken to Jacksonville, sat 5 days and then delivered back to Miami • Create system to deliver straight from origin

12. Disaster Recovery • Confusion on who is in charge • Numerous individuals from a number of different agencies and companies directing drivers where to go on the ground • Often times what we are told by our customer and what the drivers are being told by govt officials do not match up • Drivers often sent to sites that did not need anymore supplies or had already been shutdown

13. Conclusion • Use the internet to provide more info on safety and infrastructure issues • Have one agency or group manage the logistics and have procedures in place so all carriers know their role beforehand • Possibly create an SOP and FAQ document to minimize confusion

14. Conclusion • Create just in time processes • Will lessen impact of disasters on national freight network. • Reduce costs • Reduce congestion in affected areas by limiting the amount of trucks driving back and forth