Monday’s Forecast? Twists, Turns, and Teleops
Good morning! ☀️
Welcome back to The Workday Dash, where the supply chain never sleeps — even when Mother Nature, organized labor, and Elon Musk all clock in at once.
🌪 First up: a powerful tornado ripped through St. Louis on Friday, leaving behind tragedy, debris, and logistical chaos. Freight routes and recovery crews are bracing for delays.
🚉 Meanwhile, NJ Transit engineers walked off the job, and let’s just say 350,000 daily riders aren’t the only ones scrambling — regional freight and airport access are in for a rough ride too.
🚘 And over in Austin, Tesla’s rolling out its not-so-driverless robotaxi fleet. Spoiler: there’s still a human babysitter behind the screen. Autonomy? More like “autonomeh.”
Grab your coffee, check your reroutes, and let’s make sense of the madness.
“The only thing worse than starting something and failing … is not starting something.”
Tornado Devastates St. Louis — and It’s Not Just a Local Problem
Friday night, a deadly tornado tore through St. Louis, claiming at least 5 lives and damaging over 5,000 buildings. Homes were ripped apart, power lines were yanked down, and nearly 100,000 properties went dark. Emergency crews have been going door-to-door, and curfews are now in place in the worst-hit areas to prevent looting and further injuries.
The National Weather Service confirmed at least six more tornadoes across Missouri and Illinois, with storm activity reaching all the way to the East Coast. One fatality happened during a church rescue attempt. Mayor Cara Spencer called it “truly horrendous” — and the city’s now focused on rescue, recovery, and rebuilding.
Why This Matters:
This isn’t just a weather story — it’s a freight disruption on every level. Power outages, curfews, blocked highways, and infrastructure damage mean delays, reroutes, and chaos in your network. If St. Louis is part of your supply chain, it just became your problem too.
🔥 Hot Take:
If your disaster plan is just crossing your fingers and hoping for clear skies, it’s time for a serious upgrade. Tornadoes don’t care about your delivery windows.
NJ Transit Strike Paralyzes Rail Service, Leaves 350K Riders Scrambling
NJ Transit engineers officially walked off the job Friday, triggering the state's first major transit strike in over 40 years — and it’s already shaking up more than just commuter routines.
With no deal on the table after Thursday’s talks, engineers are demanding pay parity with peers at Amtrak and the LIRR. As of midnight, all NJ Transit trains stopped rolling, leaving 350,000 daily riders scrambling for plan B — from buses to Ubers to ferries. Friday's lighter post-COVID travel patterns kept chaos manageable… but Monday? That’s a wild card.
Concerts got canceled, flights got missed, and tempers flared at platforms across the region. Union reps say they’re not backing down, while state leaders warn budget limits could derail talks. Mediation picks back up Sunday.
Why This Matters:
Rail strikes don’t just delay passengers — they throttle freight flow. Expect ripple effects through Newark Airport access, last-mile delivery delays, clogged roadways, and higher freight costs. If this lingers, so do the headaches.
🔥 Hot Take:
When train crews hit pause, so does your Northeast logistics map. Hope your drivers packed snacks — gridlock's about to headline Monday’s commute.
Tesla’s Austin Robotaxi Fleet to Launch with Human Backup Behind the Scenes
Tesla’s getting ready to soft launch its robotaxi fleet in Austin, but let’s be clear—it’s not quite the autonomous revolution we were promised. According to Morgan Stanley’s Adam Jonas, the pilot will be tiny (think 10–20 Model Ys), limited to a geo-fenced area, and invite-only. Oh, and here’s the kicker: instead of truly “self-driving,” Tesla will be using teleoperators—yep, humans behind screens ready to take the wheel if things go sideways.
They’re calling it “Supervised FSD,” but let’s not kid ourselves: it’s basically remote-control ride-hailing with a cooler paint job. Meanwhile, competitors like Waymo have been running driverless services for years.
Why This Matters:
If you’re in logistics or last-mile delivery, this test isn’t just about Teslas—it’s a glimpse into how cities might handle shared curb space, routing rules, and real-time traffic with autonomous-ish vehicles on the road.
🔥 Hot Take:
If your robotaxi needs a babysitter, it’s not leading the future—it's shadowing it.
The Workday Dash is an aggregation of articles regarding the transportation logistics, trucking, and supply chain industries for June 26, 2025, from iLevel Logistics Inc.