TORONTO, Ont. – Canadian spot market load volumes soared 42% in June, marking the largest ever May to June improvement in Loadlink’s history, the company reported.

The surge in loads came as many Canadian regions entered Phase 2 of reopening their economies. Loads in the first two weeks of June were up 9% compared to the last two weeks in May, and the second half of the month saw loads increase another 10% compared to early June.

Average daily load volumes at the end of June were up 53% compared to early May. Both cross-border and domestic load volumes saw gains across all regions, Loadlink reported, led by Indiana-Ontario, Texas-Ontario, and Alberta-Manitoba lanes.

Early July, traditionally a slow time for freight with holidays in the U.S. and Canada, showed increased load postings. Several lanes stood out including Montana-Ontario (up 21%), New Jersey-Quebec (up 19%), Georgia-Quebec (up 13%) and Florida-Quebec (up 11%).

Capacity also tightened in June by 27%, with a truck-to-load ratio of 3.84 – down from May’s 5.27 ratio. Year-over-year, the truck-to-load ratio was 16% higher compared to 3.31 in June 2019. Loadlink indicated the truck-to-load ratio was up significantly in early July to 3.95 trucks for every load.