Truck Rentals Flat in April Despite Toll Hike

Mumbai, May 6 (PTI) Truck rentals largely remained flat sequentially in April, despite a 5-10 per cent hike in toll charges across various routes.

A rise in goods movement, coupled with movement of summer fruits contributed to a subtle positive undercurrent in the freight market, an industry report said on Tuesday.

Truck rentals on most key trunk routes remained unchanged. The Delhi-Chennai-Delhi corridor saw a sharp sequential increase of 2.5 per cent, while the Delhi-Bengaluru-Delhi route recorded a decline of 1.6 per cent, it said.


On a year-on-year basis, truck rentals posted healthy growth in the Kolkata-Guwahati-Kolkata route rising 14 per cent, and the Mumbai-?Chennai-?Mumbai corridor up 8 per cent, as per the report.

Rural demand and improved connectivity led to a 12 per cent month-on-month rise in two-wheeler sales. Bus sales grew 4 per cent, continuing momentum from March's all-time high while electric rickshaws with carts saw the strongest annual growth at 77 per cent.

However, lower-than-expected government infrastructure spending impacted monthly commercial vehicle sales with tractors declining 13 per cent, it said, adding that e-way bill generation also saw robust growth in March, with intra-state bills rising 12 per cent sequentially and inter-state bills increasing 11 per cent.