ARLINGTON, Va. — Truck tonnage dropped 0.2 percent in August after a revised 0.8 percent drop in July 2011, reported the American Trucking Association (ATA) in their advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index.

“Freight has been going sideways for much of this year," said ATA chief economist Bob Costello in a press release, "but it isn’t falling significantly either," adding that the numbers suggest the U.S. might dodge a double-dip recession.

Castello also said that carriers are moving as much freight as possible because of less industry supply.

"The number of trucks operated by the truckload industry is still down about 12 percent from the height in late 2006," he noted, "yet tonnage levels are about the same as in late 2006. Additionally, most carriers are finding it very difficult to hire new truck drivers, which mean they can’t add too many trucks.”