Companies in the sector would like a helping hand from the government: bankruptcies are increasing due to weak demand.
French road transport is sounding the alarm. Legal receiverships, bankruptcies… You have to go back to 1990 to record so many business failures in the sector. In the second quarter, 603 companies experienced collective proceedings, 45% more than last year and 73% more than two years ago. And the Olympic Games did not help matters. 41% of road transport companies believe that this event had an unfavorable impact on their business.
For the past year and a half, industry players have been struggling. But the phenomenon has accelerated in recent months. « The sectoral situation is particularly degraded, due to lack of demand, while operating costs are still increasing sharply. », explains the TLF Union (Union of Transport and Logistics Companies of France). Production costs rose by 5.4% in July excluding diesel, according to the National Road Committee. As for demand, it is in decline: the sector’s business climate has been below its long-term average for twenty-one consecutive months. Added to this are regular crises that penalize the sector: farmers, social movement against pension reform, bad weather, etc.
« We are struck by the gap between the political debate of this new school year and the reality of our companies. The TLF Union calls for a surge that gives priority to the defense of the competitiveness of our companies and full employment. », says its president, Éric Hémar, also CEO of ID Logistics. Concretely, to stop the haemorrhage, the players in the sector are waiting for strong gestures from the public authorities. For example, a reduction in fuel taxes. Or the maintenance of public aid for greening truck fleets. An issue that the next government will have to look into when it is appointed.
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