Fleet failures slow down

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Trucking bankruptcies were the lowest in the third quarter of 2010 compared to the last couple of years, but still continued to bite into capacity.

According to investment firm Avondale Partners, fleet failures fell 18.5 percent from 2009 in the third quarter, taking 10,685 trucks out of the market.

While the number of bankruptcies declined over the first nine months this year, nearly 55,405 trucks were idled, nearly 40 percent of that in the first quarter, Avondale told investors.

The analysts said that creditors that were formerly lenient with underperforming carriers began to seize assets as freight volumes increased and the value of iron started to rise for the first time since 2007.