Truck rentals on key trunk routes down by further 5-7% in past fortnight

Poor fleet utilisation, lack of return loads weighs on capacity of transporters to repay truck loans, puts question mark on business viability

Truck rentals on key routes have fallen by another 5 to 7 per cent in the past 15 days, reflecting a slowdown in the overall economic activity as a deadly second wave ravages the country.
 
This comes on back of a sharp decline in the factory output and pandemic-induced restrictions in various states, according to the freight rate data released by Indian Foundation of Transport Research and Training (IFTRT) on Sunday.
 
The New Delhi-based think-tank warns of a long road to recovery for the road transport sector as Covid-19 makes deeper inroads in the hinterlands.
 
“The situation