Express carrier DHL is expecting freight shipments to peak today due to the holidays, with the bulk of that business being handled by its ground network.
“We are seeing heavy customer reliance on ground shipping this holiday season and are prepared to manage today’s expected spike in ground volume,” said John Cameron, executive vp-operations for DHL. He noted the company added more than 440 daily truck routes to its regular network schedule earlier this year, a 25% increase over its average daily ground linehaul capacity, in expectation of a holiday freight surge.
Today, DHL expects a 50% increase over its average daily volume during the first three quarters of this year, as it will deliver approximately 2.5 million packages and pick up 2.3 million packages across the U.S.
In addition to its primary hub in Wilmington, OH, this volume increase will be shared by DHL’s Allentown, PA, facility on the East Coast, which will process up to 90,000 shipments per hour today, and its West Coast facility in Riverside, CA, which will process 60,000 shipments per hour, said Cameron.
