newsworthy
22 DC VELOCITY DECEMBER 2017 www.dcvelocity.com
Amazon offers truckers an app for expedited check-in at DCs
Amazon has launched a smartphone app that offers truckers expedited check-in at its DCs, a service that could save
drivers crucial time as the industry prepares to comply with
the federal electronic logging device (ELD) mandate.
Amazon has not publicly announced the product.
However, in information posted on the Google
Play app store, Amazon said its “Amazon Relay”
app is meant to help truck drivers save time at
Amazon Fulfillment and Sort Centers by checking in online before they arrive. Drivers who are
picking up or delivering cargo at Amazon facilities can use the free app to preregister their loads
and get gate passes delivered to their phones,
according to Amazon. Once they have generated the gate pass, drivers can display the quick response
(QR) code, also known as a three-dimensional bar code, to
quickly move through the warehouse gate and gain access
to reserved lanes, the company said.
In a note to investors, the investment firm Baird said the
app could be effective in streamlining the pickup and deliv-
ery process. The ELD mandate will tighten scrutiny on how
many hours drivers spend on the job. Carriers, brokers, and
shippers will all be looking for ways to maximize drivers’
productivity within that legal window, Baird said.
While Amazon describes the app as being merely a tool to
streamline the flow of trucks to and from its DCs, industry
figures have long been wary that Amazon may have greater
ambitions. Some brokers worry that Amazon
could develop an “Uber for trucking”-like app
and open its vast logistics network up for use by
external, non-fulfillment customers. That suspi-
cion was reinforced in 2016 when the company
referred to itself in a government filing as a
“transportation service provider.”
The Baird memo found that the Amazon Relay
app in its current form could not supply such
full-fledged truck brokerage capabilities, but that it still
marked a potential threat to incumbent truck brokers. “The
app seemingly stops short of introducing broader ‘truck
brokerage’ capabilities, though such additional capabilities
could be added to the application over time,” Baird Senior
Research Analyst Benjamin Hartford said in the note. “That
said, we note that the functionality of the app at present,
given initial reviews, appears to be very rudimentary.”
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