Source: Amazon.com
Amazon is reportedly developing an app that connects truck drivers with shippers.
A source close to the developments told Business Insider that the app, scheduled to launch next summer, “is designed to make it easier for truck drivers to find shippers that need goods moved, much in the way Uber connects drivers with riders.”
The app would include real-time pricing, tracking and payment options as well as trucker-friendly features such as directions, truck stop recommendations and a suggested "tour" of loads to pick up and drop off. The project builds on the Amazon Flex program, its on-demand car delivery platform.
Amazon’s app would join a number of digital startups, including Convoy, Trucker Path and Transfix, looking to replace the traditional third-party middlemen, such as C.H. Robinson and J.B. Hunt, that have long arranged deliveries between shipping docks or warehouses. In August, Uber acquired Otto, a self-driving trucking company, and in late November launched UberFreight, a platform matching truck drivers and fleet managers with freight waiting to be shipped.
Communicating through phone calls, e-mails and faxes, the traditional third-party services are said to work slowly and inefficiently. Empty trucks log some 20 billion miles per year in the U.S., Transfix told Recode last year.
The traditional middleman also charge a fee of around 15 percent. In its third quarter, Amazon’s fulfillment and shipping costs rose faster than its sales as it focused on improving shipping times for its Prime members. Convoy told Business Insider that 84 percent of all freight costs involved trucking.
With other moves including building its own network of cargo planes and tractor trailers, Amazon is increasingly looking to take logistics and shipping into its own hands. While Amazon claims its objective is only to supplement UPS, FedEx and others during peak periods, creating a full-fledged logistics company would to drive significant cost savings.
- Amazon is secretly building an 'Uber for trucking' app, setting its sights on a massive $800 billion market - Business Insider
- Amazon is considering a trucking app, report says – Seattle Times
- Amazon reportedly developing Uber-like app for truckers – Supply Chain Dive
- Transfix Brings the Uber Model to the $800 Billion Trucking Industry – Recode
- Amazon To Add Trucking App to Shipping Network Push – Fortune