Everyone has experienced package delays during periods of high volume, whether that’s panic buying essentials at the beginning of the pandemic or ordering something close to the holiday season. While all consumers have to do is click “order” when buying online, it’s easy to forget there’s an entire industry dedicated to getting your packages to you on time. And it’s not perfect. Factors outside of anyone’s control affect the day-to-day of the industry. If you want to learn more about it, take a look at how extreme weather affects the shipping industry.
Trucking
If you drive, no doubt you’re familiar with the dangers that inclement weather poses. Driving down icy roads can be treacherous, and freeways often fill up with collisions. Imagine having to drive your car in these conditions for your entire workday. Then imagine your car is three times are tall and five times as long, carrying tons of cargo. Rain and heavy winds can make these drives dangerous; the rain can slick the road and the winds can sway large vehicles. Accidents slow everyone on the road down even if they’re not involved. This can cause shipments to miss important deadlines. In some way or another, it’ll cost money for everyone involved. On top of all that, truckers need to remember that these conditions can cause items to move inside their truck. To help prevent this, they use load-securing systems such as the ones we make at Logistick.
Ocean
Ocean freights can suffer from similar problems to trucks, but they also pose their own unique set of challenges, including the potential to lose cargo at sea. Storms cause the sea levels to change; they can rise and fall. Depending on which way they go, size and weight restrictions change on travel through channels, and rising high enough can mean ships can no longer pass under bridges on their way into inland ports. Lower water levels can also mean that some ships and barges are unable to move once they get close to land.
Air
If you’ve flown even a handful of times, you’ve probably experienced a flight delay. Cargo planes follow virtually the same set of rules that passenger planes follow at airports. Storms can cause delays and even cancellations of flights, which in turn pushes back the deliveries of anything onboard. With many coastal airports actually sitting below sea level, it doesn’t take much for some of those runways to flood. The danger this could pose if a plane were to hydroplane off the tarmac would be catastrophic. More expensive shipping options are often taken by air, and a severe storm is a prime example of how extreme weather affects the shipping industry.
Next time you order a package online, remember that there could be dozens of people tasked with handling that package along its journey. No matter if it’s traveling by land, air, or sea, the weather can change it all. If your package ends up delayed by a day or two, try to be patient and understand that sometimes things are just out of someone’s control.