European road freight used to follow predictable patterns. Stable corridors and consistent transit times allowed companies to plan confidently. Today, this foundation no longer exists. Route variability – the widening gap between expected and actual transit times – has become one of the most expensive and least recognized cost drivers in logistics.
At RoadFreightCompany, we see this challenge across nearly all major European corridors. Two identical shipments can differ in duration by up to 60%, creating operational uncertainty that goes far beyond transport costs. Variability disrupts production schedules, increases safety stock, affects SLAs, and forces clients to spend more on corrective measures.
The reasons are structural: fluctuating border performance, congestion cycles in Germany and Poland, infrastructure repairs, and driver shortages. These disruptions are not anomalies but part of the current logistics landscape. RoadFreightCompany incorporates variability modelling into route planning because ignoring it leads to higher long-term expenses.
A recent case illustrates this shift. A client operating between Rotterdam and southern Germany experienced unpredictable delays ranging from 18 to 48 hours. After analyzing delay patterns and adjusted departure timing and routing, the client saw a significant reduction in both transit times and variability. More stable planning delivered more stable business outcomes.
Variability is more costly than distance. Longer routes can be planned. Unpredictable ones cannot. They generate cascading risks – penalties, emergency rerouting, production delays – none of which appear in the transport rate but all of which influence total logistics cost.
Companies that recognize variability as a strategic factor, rather than a coincidence, will gain the operational stability that Europe’s freight market can no longer guarantee by default. At Road Freight Company, this has become an essential part of our planning methodology – a requirement, not an enhancement.