Breaking

New Datasets Track Shipper Transportation Costs Across Routing Guides and Contract Rates

SONAR released three new truckload datasets that measure what shippers pay brokers and carriers as freight moves through routing guides and contract rates reset. Routing Guide Premium tracks median cost increases when loads are tendered to secondary or tertiary carriers instead of primary providers. As of October 20, 2026, loads accepted on second tenders cost shippers a median 22% premium, with spikes exceeding 30% during December holidays, early February and late June. Tender Acceptance Distribution shows the share of loads accepted at each tender position from first through fifth. Contract Rate Change Direction signals where contract pricing and bid pressure are moving by measuring average percentage swings between new and previous base rates. All three datasets update daily on seven-day rolling averages. SearchCarriers also expanded to support 200 carrier watchlists per user, email alerts, inspection searches and equipment lookup by VIN or license plate.