trucks world news: March 2007

... Old Truck Cabs ??? ... A special Ford Transcontinental interior

UK -Biglorryblog -30 Mar 2007: -- A wonderful old (well that must be old because they are in Black & White) shots of an interior of a true spec Ford Transcontinenal with just about everything your average long-haul driver would want... Ashley tells me, "the bridal suite" (official Ford description) "complete with sink, cooker, fridge, 10 gallon water container and the best bit....a vanity mirror, complete with light. Brilliant idea. You've just done 1,000 miles across the Arabian desert and you can use it to check your eyebrows for singed hairs. Strangely though, the roof mounted air-con unit was only an option. The "lads" loved the Transconti's on the Asia runs. The cabs were big and spacious and comfy"... As this picture shows they were also toweringly tall too!... (Picture, by Ashley Coghill /Biglorryblog)

Labels: sleeping cabs

DEBATE * USA - Spending bill passes; second bill to block Mexican truck pilot program surfaces

Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -March 30, 2007: -- The U.S. Senate has passed the mammoth, $121 billion emergency supplemental spending bill that contains an amendment to further stall a pilot program to authorize Mexican trucks to travel deep into the U.S... Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., who helped sponsor the pilot program amendment to the bill, applauded the bill’s passage, as did various other groups including the Teamsters... Meanwhile, the second in what may be a series of legislators’ bills to block the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Mexican truck pilot program has surfaced. H.R. 1773 is sponsored by Rep. Nancy E. Boyda, D-Kan., and would “limit the authority of the Secretary of Transportation to grant authority to motor carriers domiciled in Mexico to operate beyond the United States municipalities and commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border”...

* USA - Representative introduces ‘Trucking Safety Act’
Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -March 29, 2007: -- Today, U.S. Congressman Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., introduced legislation “clarifying and strengthening current limitations imposed on Mexican motor carriers entering the United States,” a statement from the Congressman’s office stated... Called the “North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Trucking Safety Act,” it “specifically prohibits Mexican trucks from entering the United States beyond commercial zones along the U.S.-Mexico border without meeting specific safety and security conditions”...

Labels: mexican's trucks

RESEARCH * USA - ATRI measures impact of ACE truck e-manifest system

Alexandria,Va,USA -The Trucker -March 30, 2007: -- The American Transportation Research Institute today released research findings from an assessment of the Automated Commercial Environment Truck e-Manifest’s impact on international trucking operations... Survey and interview research conducted by ATRI revealed that physically crossing an international border into the United States is smoother when employing the ACE Truck e-Manifest, but start-up labor and equipment costs must be accommodated... Although these start-up costs are considerable for some carriers, the research shows that the ACE Truck e-Manifest has the potential to provide net operational benefits for medium and large carriers, according to the ATRI summary of its findings... To view the research summary and order a copy of the full report, visit online...

Labels: research

AWARD * Canada - Local trucking company honoured

Winnipeg,Manitoba,Canada -The Winnipeg Sun -30 Mar 2007: -- For the second straight year, Winnipeg’s Bison Transport has been named the safest trucking company in North America by the Truckload Carriers Association... Bison won in the category for fleets driving more than 25 million miles a year. The company was also deemed the safest for fleets driving more than 100 million miles annually... Based in Winnipeg since 1969, Bison Transport is one of Canada’s largest transport companies... The company employs more than 1,500 people and runs more than 900 tractors...

Labels: award

Reclamations * USA - California ports exploit truckers

CAL,USA -eTrucker -30 Mar 2007: -- Calling the current California port trucking system broken and dysfunctional, a coalition of environmental and labor groups on March 29 demanded an overhaul of the system to reduce pollution and provide better working conditions for drivers... "Under the current system, drivers are paid by the load, not by the hour, and are required to maintain their own rigs and pay for gas, repairs and insurance", Chuck Mack of the Teamsters said. "'Independent contractor' has a nice ring to it, but the reality of it is, it's really no more than exploitation," Mack said. "Their wages are too low to support their family, and most have no health insurance. They truly are the working poor."... Staff members at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are developing a framework for a truck-modernization program under the Clean Air Action Plan...

Labels: complains

PRODUCTS * USA - Trucking Along for Maximum Profits

New software for the hard roads of the trucking industry
Atlanta,GA,USA -PRWEB -March 30, 2007: -- With trucking companies facing an uncertain operating environment in 2007, due in part to rising operating costs and an economy that is giving mixed signals, finding innovative approaches to workforce and profit management are more relevant than ever. Effective Management Systems (EMS) in Atlanta, Georgia has found a way to maximize profits in the trucking industry... Robert Sullivan, President of EMS, realized that most trucking companies measure productivity in outmoded ways, such as wages as a percent of revenue, pounds per man hour, or stops and shipments per hour. In measuring the profitability of customer traffic they use operating ratio, which is confusing in making pricing decisions. Without an accurate way to measure productivity and determine the level of variable cost consumed by a customer’s traffic, companies can’t make accurate pricing decisions and are operating blind...

Labels: products

Truck Tonnage Index * USA - Increased in February

USA -Layover -30 Mar 2007: -- The American Trucking Associations advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 1.6 percent in February after falling a revised 3.1 percent in January... ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said February's tonnage increase came as a surprise given other economic trends during the month and considering the rough winter weather...

Labels: tonnage indexs

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

* USA - Freightliner Adds to Job Slump
Portland, Ore,USA -The Oregonian/Layover -30 Mar 2007: -- The last Freightliner-branded commercial truck rolled off the production line in Portland Thursday night, catapulting 750 workers onto the unemployment rolls and into a job market that's suddenly cooler than a parked sleeper rig at dawn... Even before the truckmaker's massive layoff, Oregon manufacturers had been shedding jobs since August at a faster rate than the rest of the nation... A report this week about disappointing orders for durable goods -- the type of big-ticket items that many Oregon manufacturers make for other businesses -- suggests to some economists that the U.S. economy might be headed for recession...

* USA - Peterbilt facilities in full production with 2008 models
Louisville,Ky,USA -The Trucker -March 30, 2007: -- Peterbilt Motors Co. said during a news conference at the 2007 Mid-America Trucking Show here that both Peterbilt heavy-duty truck manufacturing facilities and the PACCAR facility that assembles Peterbilt’s medium-duty vehicles are in full production with the company’s new product lineup of 2008 models...

Labels: truckmakers news

TRUCKS' MARKETS WORLDWIDE

* Belarusia - Trucks and farm machines are competitive in Venezuelan market
Minsk,Belarus -National Legal Internet Portal -30 Mar 2007: -- The Belarusian trucks and farm machines are competitive in the Venezuelan market, first vice-premier of Belarus Vladimir Semashko has told reporters in Minsk today... According to him, the Venezuelan side shows such interest in the MAZ trucks as well. The first two 20-truck consignments have already been sent to Venezuela. A contract for the third consignment has been also signed...

* China - Truck output, sales decline in Feb
Bejing,China -Xinhua/China Daily -30 Mar 2007: -- Truck output and sales declined in China in February, according to figures from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM)... China produced 133,360 trucks in February, down 1.39 percent from the same period last year and down 19.49 percent from January... Truck sales declined 3.02 percent year on year to 117,582 units from 103,816 units a month earlier... The top three best sellers were the Beijing-based Beiqi Foton, the Hubei-based Dongfeng Motor and the Anhui-based Jianghuai Automobile...

Labels: trucks markets

* USA - Woman Chases Stolen Trucks

Houston,TX,USA -Click 2 Houston.com -March 30, 2007: -- A woman chased a group of men who allegedly stole trucks from a northwest Harris County lawn care business on Thursday... Deputies said the woman was on the phone with their office while she chased the trucks... One of the trucks collided with a vehicle on Bammel North Houston Road near the Sam Houston Parkway a short time later. Investigators arrested the driver... The second truck got away... : Woman Chases Trucks Stolen From Business)

Labels: stolen trucks

DEBATE * USA - Head of agency says U.S. may have to pay $2 billion if Mexican vehicles are kept out

Penalty possible if trucks don't roll

Houston,TX,USA -Bloomberg News/The Houston Chronicle, by ANGELA GREILING KEANE -March 29, 2007: -- The U.S. government may have to pay a penalty of more than $2 billion if it doesn't open its roads to Mexican trucks, the chief of a U.S. trucking agency said Thursday... The estimate is based on a 2000 penalty figure from a board overseeing the 1995 NAFTA trade treaty, John Hill, chief of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, told a House subcommittee in Washington. He said in an interview that a penalty isn't imminent...

Labels: mexican's trucks

DANGEROUS DRIVER

* USA - Accident clogs I-95

Norwald,CT,USA -The Stamford Advocate (Stamford,CT), by Jonathan Lucas -March 29 2007: -- A truck overturned after colliding with a car on Interstate 95 shortly after 9 a.m. yesterday... The accident closed the highway and backed up traffic for miles in both directions. The truck driver, Michael Stephens, 38, of Enfield, was taken to Norwalk Hospital and treated for minor cuts to his head, according to state police... The driver of the car and his two passengers escaped unharmed... Stephens was cited for an unsafe lane change after state police said he veered from the right-hand lane across all three lanes of traffic, striking the 2000 BMW 740i, in the center lane... The truck, which was carrying metal components, drove onto the grassy median and rolled over when it became mired in the mud, Norwalk Deputy Fire Chief Dave Lepus said... (Photo by Andrew Sullivan/Greenwich Time - Wrecking crew uprights a tractor trailer on I-95 North following an accident one mile west of Exit 17)

Labels: dangerous drivers

Fighting * Poland - Railway and car transport companies to dispute for the market

PKP railway company wants to fight with car transport

Warsaw,Poland -Puls Biznesu -29 Mar 2007: -- PKP, the state-owned railway company, is going to fight to regain the cargo market. It would like to make the government raise road fees paid by trucks... In the beginning of 1990ies, 83 billion ton-km of cargo were transported by trains while 40.3 billion by trucks. Today, the proportion is completely different: TIR transport rose by three times to 119.7 billion of ton-km while railways transport nearly half of the cargo it used to 17 years ago...

Labels: taxes policy

Trucking tax * New Zealand - 'To be passed on to public'

Auckland,New Zealand -The New Zealand Herald -March 30, 2007: -- Trucking companies are angry that they were given only 48 hours' notice of a sharp rise in road user charges and say consumers will end up paying... Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven announced yesterday that road user charges for vehicles over six tonnes would increase an average 11 per cent from April 1... The Road Transport Forum, the lobby group for trucking companies, said that charges had never been increased at such short notice before and its members would not be able to adjust their contracts quickly enough to recover them by the start date...

Labels: taxes policy

PRODUCTS

* USA - Holland introduces ‘World’s lightest fifth wheel’
Holland,Mich,USA -Truck News (CAN), by James Menzies -30 Mar 2007: -- SAF-Holland has introduced what it’s calling the world’s lightest fifth wheel... The Holland FWAL Lightweight Aluminum Fifth Wheel has been designed by SAF-Holland and forged by Alcoa. It is designed for standard duty applications and forged from the same material Alcoa uses for its truck wheels. Holland officials say the new fifth wheel weighs in at 100 lbs less than competitive models...

Labels: products

Analysis * USA - Headwinds for truck engine makers getting stronger

Chicago,Ill,USA -Reuters, by Nick Carey & James B. Kelleher -Mar 28, 2007: -- Jim O'Neal says now is not a good time to be buying new trucks... "The economy is in a down cycle and the new trucks are more expensive," said the majority owner and president of Springfield, Missouri-based O&S Trucking Inc., which has a fleet of 350 trucks. "Where is the incentive to buy in an environment like that?"... After a stellar 2006, 2007 was always going to be a tough year for the U.S. heavy duty truck makers because of tough new clean-air standards... The question is: Just how bad will it be? While most truck and diesel engine makers insist 2007 is meeting admittedly low expectations, DaimlerChrysler AG's truck-making unit Freightliner LLC and truckers tell a very different story... (Photo by Gene Blevins, REUTERS: A line of trucks along the Interstate 5 wait for the freeway to reopen after a winter storm dumped snow and closed the freeway January 17, 2007. After a stellar 2006, 2007 was always going to be a tough year for the U.S. heavy duty truck makers because of tough new clean-air standards)

Labels: prognosis

Rig thieves * Canada - Hit the road

Recent cargo robberies in Ottawa region have truckers' association worried

Montreal,QUE,CAN -canoe.ca, by JON WILLING -29 Mar 2007: -- Somewhere, maybe in Montreal, $100,000 worth of Kraft shredded cheese that was produced southeast of Ottawa could be making its way into the marketplace and store owners won't even know they're peddling stolen goods... The theft was the first that kicked off a month of truck heists... Mark McDougall, president of SCAET (Stolen Cargo and Equipment Tracking Inc., a private firm that specializes in investigating cargo theft), believes 85% of cargo thefts are random and although about 90% of the trucks are returned, the load is often lost... According to McDougall, property stolen from rigs in Eastern Ontario frequently ends up in Quebec. He said Hwy. 401 is "just like a pipeline" for stolen goods going to Montreal...

Labels: stolen cargo

* USA - Are longer, heavier trucks the solution to freight capacity crisis?

National Industrial Transportation League's (NITL) Spring Policy Forum notebook

Washington,DC,USA -Logistics Management (Newton,MA), by John D. Schulz -March 28, 2007: -- There is a growing pile of freight forecasts over the next decade or so and the bottom line on all those reports is simple... “It is up and up and up,” said Bill Graves, president of the American Trucking Associations, told a group of 75 shippers at the National Industrial Transportation League's (NITL) Spring Policy forum held just outside of Washington earlier this week. “There’s going to be enough freight for everybody. How the pie is sliced up really doesn’t matter. We’re obviously going to have a lot more trucks out on the road.”.. Here are some of the forecasts: Commercial trucks to grow by 40 percent over the next 10 years. Intermodal growth forecast to increase by 80 percent over the next decade. ATA forecasts a need for 110,000 new drivers by 2014, with about half of those needed just to keep up with economic growth. Over the next decade, there are forecasts of 30 percent increases in freight demand across all modes...

Labels: trucking policys

DEBATE * USA - America shouldn't fear Mexican trucks

Los Angeles,CA,USA -Los Angeles Daily News, by GARY M. GALLES ( professor of economics at Pepperdine University) -27 Mar 2007: -- Although NAFTA committed the U.S. to allow Mexican trucks full access to its roads by 1995, this commitment has been repeatedly stalled by assertions that Mexican trucks were dirty and unsafe. Now, a one-year demonstration project will allow access for up to 100 Mexican trucking firms to evaluate the results, and apocalyptic claims are being recycled again. For example, Teamsters' President Jim Hoffa calls the move "Russian roulette on America's Highways."... The protectionist motive for such claims is obvious. But why do those asserting that Mexican trucks will foul our environment and terrorize our highways so stridently oppose a test of their assertions? If they are right, it would validate their position. But they know they are wrong, so they must derail any test that would prove it... The basis for claims that Mexican trucks are too dirty essentially boils down to their greater average age, while safety assertions are primarily based on high border-inspection failure rates. But both are misleading... At Otay Mesa, the main California entry point for Mexican trucks, the Department of Transportation reports that "Mexican trucks currently operating in the commercial zone are as safe as the trucks operated by companies in the United States."... If we eliminated the current inefficient, protectionist policies on Mexican trucks, combined with an effective regulatory regime, the newest, cleanest Mexican trucks would carry longer hauls in the U.S. The oldest, dirtiest trucks would disappear from the border. And the reduced time idling in line at border checkpoints would further reduce pollution... No wonder the Mexican-truck protectionists oppose a demonstration of that reality...

* Mexico - Mexican carriers want out of pilot program
Mexico,DF,MEX-Land Line Magazine ( Grain Valley,MO,USA) -March 28, 2007: -- A trade association representing Mexican motor carriers has asked the Mexican Senate to cancel the cross-border pilot program with the United States... "CANACAR has formally requested not to open the borders for trans-border services and to have the pilot program suspended until conditions for a fair competitive environment are existing and that the Mexican trucking industry has the guarantee of not being subject to unfair inequitable and discretional treatment by U.S. authorities,” CANACAR National President Tirso Martinez Angheben wrote in a press release... CANACAR is an organization which represents the general interests of the Mexican Trucking industry...

* USA - Mexico ready to send fleets on our roads
Pueblo,CO,USA -Pueblo Chieftain, by Chuck Green -29 Mar 2007: -- The United States is about to allow thousands of cargo trucks from Mexico to have full access to American highways and urban streets - without having to comply with U.S. Department of Transportation trucking regulations... The program, authorized by President George Bush under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), has all the earmarks of a disaster...

* USA - OOIDA applauds legislation putting Mexican trucks on hold
Washington,DC,USA -Truck News (CAN) -29 Mar 2007: -- The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers’ Association (OOIDA) is applauding the introduction of the NAFTA Trucking Safety Act of 2007, introduced by US Rep. Duncan Hunter... The legislation requires Mexican-domiciled trucks to be held to the same standards as US trucks. The bill could put on hold a pilot project that would provide 100 Mexican trucking companies with unfettered access to the US...

Labels: mexican's trucks

AUTOMAKERS ' NEWS

* Europe - SMMT welcomes budget’s Euro 5 incentives for trucks
London,UK -Auto Industry -28 March 2007: -- The Society of Motor Manufacturers has given a cautious welcome to the government’s plan to revive Reduced Pollution Certificates for Euro 5-compliant trucks from October this year... The SMMT says it understands over 90% of heavy truck registrations in Germany are at Euro 5, purchases having been encouraged by Autobahn toll discounts for such vehicles... Tony Pain, UK marketing director at Daf Trucks and chairman of the SMMT’s Commercial Vehicle Manufacturer’s Committee said he thinks the government’s plan bring in Reduced Pollution Certificates for Euro 5 trucks from October, won’t lead to the sort of market distortions caused by the introduction of digital tachographs and Euro 4 emissions standards: “Most truck makers already have strong order books and don’t expect cancellations. Providing operators talk to truck makers quickly, there is a good chance that many of the Euro 4 trucks on order can be upgraded to Euro 5, so that they qualify for the new RPCs.”...

Labels: automakers news

Put the brakes * USA - On bigger trucks for roads

The juxtaposition of news reports out of the state Legislature reveals clashing objectives

Ketchum,ID,USA -The Idaho Mountain Express and Guide -March 28, 2007: -- While lawmakers are struggling to find $246 million for minimal work on the Connecting Idaho highway repair and improvement program, they are at the same time considering opening up another 400 miles of state roads to monster trucks weighing up to 129,000 pounds... Politically courageous, strong-willed legislators with a heap of common sense should put the brakes on this scheme pushed by a veritable juggernaut of 38 agriculture and trucking groups with a team of lobbyists, all descended on Capitol corridors with tales of a bonanza of economic benefits trailing behind the trucks... Those driving the some 800 miles of roads now designated for heavy trucks will understandably raise their eyebrows about the proposal to add 400 more miles...

Labels: comment

Trucks banned * Australia - On city streets

Melbourne,Australia -The Melbourne Herald Sun, by Geraldine Mitchell -March 29, 2007: -- Trucks have been banned from central Footscray in a landmark move to ease congestion on suburban streets... VicRoads has approved Maribyrnong City Council's request to ban heavy trucks from its busy shopping area to improve safety for pedestrians and traffic flow for shoppers... The council had complained the trucks used the shopping area as a thoroughfare to the Port of Melbourne... It will now erect truck ban signs and monitor traffic flow...

Labels: trucks ban

‘Racism’ * USA - "Seen in Liberals" Opposition to Mexican Truckers

Syracuse,NY,USA -The NewStandard, by Michelle Chen -28 Mar 2007: -- Labor and public-interest groups are arguing that permitting Mexican truckers to drive US roads under NAFTA raises safety concerns. But the facts suggest otherwise, and some activists see a deeper problem... The southern border has become a political fault line once again, as a plan to open US highways to a select group of Mexico-based commercial traffic runs into opposition. While some labor and safety advocates decry Mexican trucks as "unsafe," others see xenophobia driving the controversy... Manuel Pérez Rocha with the Red Mexicana de Acción Frente al Libre Comercio (Mexican Action Network on Free Trade) said the trucking issue reveals "abysmal asymmetries" in free-trade agreements...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Hazards * USA - Cheap aftermarket brake actuators flooding market could present they

Charlotte,N.C.,USA -Today's Trucking (CAN) -27 Mar 2007: -- ... According to Wayne Seaman of MGM Brakes in Charlotte, N.C., some aftermarket brake manufacturers -- mainly overseas exporters from Asia who think they can make a buck producing cheaper actuators -- have re-introduced the double-clamp versions to the North American market. And in the hands of an inexperience technician, these babies are dangerous, says Seaman... In 1987, MGM re-designed the actuators with only one clamp, so the spring side was inaccessible. By the early '90s, the entire industry had embraced this design. Seaman says injuries due to inexperience essentially disappeared... Now that they’re back, he says, there’s a whole generation of technicians who have no experience with the obsolete units...

Labels: dangerous brakes

Trucking Shipments * USA - Drop by 1.7 percent

Washington,DC,USA -BusinessWeek -27 Mar 2007: -- U.S. trucking shipments declined by 1.7 percent in February compared with a year earlier, an industry trade group said... The American Trucking Associations, in a monthly report released Monday, said shipments have declined on a year-over-year basis for eight straight months. Its truck tonnage index rose 1.6 percent from January, however...

Labels: trucking shipments

Report * USA - Fine diesel trucks that don't meet emission rules, then buy cleaner ones

Torrance,CA,USA -The Daily Breeze, by Kristopher Hanson -27 Mar 2007: -- A coalition of retailers, marine terminal operators, ocean shippers and freight haulers Monday released an industry "white paper" supporting an environmental overhaul of diesel trucks in California... Among other suggestions, the document seeks to establish gate fees on drayage trucks that fail to meet proposed state diesel emission standards. The fees, collected by marine terminal operators, would be used to help purchase newer, cleaner trucks... In addition, the paper advocates using state bonds strictly for infrastructure projects and not truck-replacement programs...

Labels: reports

Research * UK - Firm to collaborate with German company to build carbon fibre commercial vehicles

UK -Automotive World -28 March, 2007: -- The Motor Industry Research Association (MIRA) has signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Germany-based The Technology Team (TTT) to study the use of advanced lightweight structures and aerospace materials like carbon fibre for use in heavy vehicles...

Labels: research

Highway Hero 2006 * USA - FedEx Freight driver it's

Louisville, Ky,USA -eTucker -28 Mar 2007: -- At the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky., Goodyear named Edward A. Regener of Perres, Calif., a FedEx Freight driver, as North America Highway Hero for 2006... Regener saved the lives of three men in a three-vehicle collision on Interstate 10 near Goodyear, Ariz., on Nov. 4, 2006. The accident occurred when a westbound car lost control, crossed the median and hit a pickup truck with such force that both vehicles struck Regener’s truck, which was carrying corrosive hazardous materials... The pickup truck and Regener's truck caught fire. Amid toxic smoke, Regener worked to remove two men from the car and a man and woman from the pickup. A police officer said Regener was crucial in helping him move the pickup driver, a large man, away from the flames... (Photo: Edward A. Regener of Perres, Calif., thanks the crowd at the Mid-America Trucking Show)

Labels: driver hero

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

* USA - Freightliner: Suppliers must be global
Louisville,Ky,USA -eTrucker, by Avery Vise -26 Mar 2007: -- In the years to come, major component suppliers to Freightliner must be prepared to do business with the entire DaimlerChrysler Truck Group, not just the Portland, Ore., based North American truck builder, Freightliner LLC President & Chief Executive Officer Chris Patterson says. That includes positioning Freightliner LLC as the sole channel for the aftermarket... And suppliers must be willing to invest and locate wherever Freightliner needs them to, he said. For example, by 2012 a significant portion of Freightliner’s output will come from Mexico...

* USA - Paccar to slash output in Renton by almost 50%
Renton,Wash,USA -Automotive World (UK -subscription), by Oliver Dixon -27 March, 2007: -- Paccar is to slash output at its Kenworth production facility in Renton, Washington, by nearly 50%... The facility will be shut down entirely between 4 April and 17 April, and will resume with a daily output of just 18 units... Its current build rate is ...

* UK - DAF building flagship XF trucks in Britain
England,UK -Automotive World (UK -subscription), by Alan Bunting -28 March, 2007: -- In order to free up manufacturing capacity in its main Eindhoven plant in the Netherlands, DAF Trucks has transferred assembly of right-hand drive XF chassis to the Paccar group's Leyland plant in the north-west of England. Right-hand drive CF and LF...

* USA - DaimlerChrysler Sprinter assembly begins at Charleston
Ladson,Charleston,SC,USA -Automotive World (UK -subscription) -28 March, 2007: -- DaimlerChrysler's plant in Ladson, Charleston in South Carolina has officially begun production of the Sprinter under the Dodge and Freightliner brands for the American market... According to the company, production capacity of 32,000 units is available...

* USA - DaimlerChrysler to launch new test fleet of plug-in hybrid Sprinters
USA -Automotive World (UK -subscription) -28 March, 2007: -- DaimlerChrysler, which is expanding its concept plug-in hybrid programme to include the all-new 2007 Dodge Sprinter, will begin testing a fleet of commercial vans capable of running on battery power alone. Up to 20 Dodge Sprinter Plug-in Hybrid Elect...

* Taiwan - Renault Trucks assembles first Euro IV trucks in Taiwan
Taipei,Taiwan -Automotive World (UK -subscription) -28 March, 2007: -- The first of Renault's new generation Euro IV standard Premium trucks has been assembled in Taiwan... Sold in CKD (completely knocked-down) form, the first eight Renault Premium 450.26 T 6x2 trucks have been assembled in the Arcadia Motor plant, Renault ...

Labels: truckmakers news

What will be the hottest trucking issues over the next decade?

Diesel hovering around a buck a liter is here to stay for now. But how much higher will prices jump beyond that?

Toronto,ONT,Canada -Today's Trucking -26 Mar 2007: -- The myriad issues surrounding 2007 -- from the introduction of smog-free engine technology, to new hours-of-service rules, to a recent downturn in freight volume -- is making this year one of the thorniest in trucking's history... But what's further over the horizon? Does the future look even more controversial for trucking, or will things eventually get simpler?.. Peter Nesvold of renowned Wall Street transportation market analyst firm Bear Stearns recently outlined what he and his clients believe will be the trucking industry’s 10 most pressing issues over the next decade. Here they are:

* 10 Longer life cycles

* 9. Global consolidation at all levels

* 8. Fuel costs and alternative power

* 7. Vertical integration

* 6. Vehicle idling creates demands for auxiliary power units, but are there alternatives for fleets that don’t want the added weight? How will the world of aerodynamics bring?
* 5. Global sourcing

* 4. Safety

* 3. Driver and technician shortage

* 2. Diesel emissions

* 1. Highway congestion

(Photo: Freight volume keeps growing while North American highway capacity doesn't budge. Something's gotta' give)

Labels: prognosis

PRODUCTS * Thailand - RFID-Based, Electronically-Sealed Cargo Information

Savi Networks Provides to Western Digital for Efficient and Secure Transport in Thailand
Bangkok,Tahiland & Moutain View,CA,USA -Industrial Embedded Systems (press release -St Clair Shores,MI,USA) -March 26, 2007: -- Savi Networks and Western Digital have dramatically cut time and costs from customs clearances while boosting security measures by automating shipment information from active Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) seals on freight transportation trucks in Thailand... The ongoing operation involves agreements with Royal Thai Customs and the Thailand-based TIFFA EDI Services Co. Ltd., resulting in key benefits for Western Digital, which include: enhanced automation; a reduction in overhead; reduced waiting times for Customs clearance; less individual transaction cost and increased accuracy of shipment information...

* USA - ZF Lemforder to use MTS simulator
USA - Automotive World (London,UK) -26 March, 2007: -- ZF Lemforder has selected MTS Systems' road simulator for testing suspension designs for heavy trucks... Mike Schulz, senior product manager at MTS, claims that MTS' new heavy truck road simulator meets the testing needs of the market at a much lower cost than road or proving ground testing. According to him, the new heavy truck road simulator includes tyre-coupled testing solutions, heavy-duty multi-axial simulation tables and the latest generation of truck mounted wheel force transducers... MTS Systems offers testing hardware and software to help customers improve their design, development and manufacturing processes and to determine the mechanical behaviour of materials, products and structures...

Labels: products

DRIVERS' SHORTAGE * USA - Trucking companies don't have enough drivers for the long haul

Aging truckers will likely leave large void when they retire
Bellevue,WI,USA -The Green Bay Press Gazette (Green Bay,WI), by Nathan Phelps -25 Mar 2007: -- Jason Ostenson, an independent truck driver from Edgemont, S.D., sees advertisements from trucking firms seeking drivers all over the place... Demark Express Inc. co-owner Louise Potts also said finding drivers has become more difficult. Like other firms, they work with their seven drivers to give them as much home time as possible in an effort to retain them. Potts said they have not changed their standards either, and continue to look for qualified drivers... She has seen some interest from younger people in long-haul trucking, but they face some barriers coming into the industry, including age regulations that require commercial drivers to be at least 21 years old... The average driver age at Schneider is the early 40s... In terms of finding drivers, trucking companies say they expect that will continue to be a challenge in the coming years and decades... For more than a decade, small and large long-haul carriers alike have looked for ways to attract new drivers to their businesses and the industry — which says it is facing a shortage of qualified long-haul drivers... (Photo by H. Marc Larson/Press-Gazette - Instructor Wanda Barry observes Thursday as student driver Christopher Corn practices backing up a tractor-trailer at the Schneider National Driver Training Academy in Ashwaubenon)

Labels: drivers shortage

97 feets long * USA - That string of trucks just got a little longer

St. Louis,MO,USA -The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, by Elisa Crouch -26 Mar 2007: -- ... Last week, the Federal Highway Administration loosened its length limitations on "four-ways," a slang term for a truck towing three other trucks. Used to be, they couldn't stretch longer than 75 feet. Now it's 97. Just what we needed... There's been increased pressure from truck safety groups to reduce the number of truck-related deaths, which reached about 5,200 in 2005, according to the Truck Safety Coalition. That same year, Congress said OK to the 97-foot-long truck combinations... Nevertheless, the rule published last week by the Federal Highway Administration cites studies from groups that say safety concerns from the truck drivers are unfounded. It's nice to think that's true. But there's something about a line of trucks 97 feet long that's pretty scary at 70 mph...

Labels: largest trucks

DEBATE* USA - Mexican's Trucks

Keep on trucking
Salt Lake City,UT,USA -The Salt Lake Tribune/Public Forum Letter, by Barbara Bindrup ( Logan,UT) -24 Mar 2007: -- President Bush recently announced that Mexican truck drivers will soon be allowed to drive trucks on our highways... Bush has made many errors during his presidency: Iraq, weapons of mass destruction, 9/11, outsourcing American jobs, open borders, the Katrina aid disaster, prisons overloaded with illegals, the Patriot Act, a monstrous national debt and much more... Now our dedicated American truck drivers are getting a stab in the back! Mexican truckers will undercut the wages of American truck drivers, and soon Bush will recite his famous mantra, "Mexican drivers will do the jobs Americans won't do." ... This will prove to be a national disaster. He is sending a clear message that American workers are not an asset to America... Thanks to this presidency, 1 million Americans have lost their jobs and America's manufacturing sector has lost 3 million jobs... How is America going to stay afloat once our middle-class workers are sold down the river?...

* USA - Truckers boycott border states
Boise,ID,USA -NewsByUs, by Frosty Wooldridge -Mar 26, 2007: -- President Bush displaces American truckers out of their jobs within 45 days with his Mexican trucker pilot program. Bush signed a bill that allows thousands of substandard 18 wheeler long haul rigs from Mexico onto America’s Interstate system. Mexican drivers, who can’t read, speak or understand English--receive full access to America’s highways... Bush places all American motorists at risk with Mexican drivers with average 6th grade educations from a Third World country, gross incompetence and habitually drunk Mexican drivers as well as their unsafe trucks and trailers. Not only will American truckers lose their jobs, but American motorists become collateral damage in accidents guaranteed to occur...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Lawsuit * USA - Ford worker took millions in kickbacks, officials say

Milwaukee,WIS,USA - The Morning Journal (Lorain,OH) -24 Mar 2007: -- Federal prosecutors have forced a retired Ford Motor Co. manager, who at one time worked at the Lorain Assembly Plant, to hand over nearly $660,000... Prosecutors said John K. Perry amassed the money in they called a kickback scheme with trucking companies that generated millions over several years... No criminal charges have been filed against Perry, former manager of material planning and logistics at Ford's assembly plant in St. Louis, but a civil lawsuit U.S. Attorney Steven M. Biskupic filed this week in Milwaukee federal court says authorities seized about $660,000 Perry had in a brokerage account...

Labels: lawsuit

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

* Sweden - Volvo to complete $1.1bn takeover
Stockholm,Sweden -Finance24 (Cape Town,South Africa) -25 Mar 2007: -- Swedish truck and busmaker AB Volvo on Saturday said it will complete its 7.5 billion kronor $1.1bn) takeover bid for Japan's Nissan Diesel after roughly 96% of shareholders accepted its offer of the company... The acceptance period for the deal expired on Friday and Volvo said it would now redeem the remaining shares... Volvo's offer will give it full ownership of Nissan Diesel and highlights its ambitions in Asia, where the company has lacked a local brand. It owns Mack Trucks in the US and Renault Trucks in Europe...

* USA - Volvo stabilizes vocational truck
Louisville,Ky,USA -Truck News (CAN), by Steven Macleod -26 Mar 2007: -- The Volvo VHD vocational truck now has Volvo Enhanced Stability Technology (VEST) as standard equipment on all concrete mixers, the technology is also standard across Volvo’s entire range of highway tractors in North America. Volvo made the announcement during the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky. on March 23 along with updates on other company product developments... VEST is a full electronic stability program, engineered to bring a higher level of protection from truck rollover and jackknife, using a standard pneumatic foundation brake system. The Volvo VHD also has a standard antilock brake system (ABS), as well as ABS-based traction control... (Photo: VEST is now standard equipment on Volvo's concrete mixers)

Labels: truckmakers news

Tax Incentive * USA - Missouri lawmakers proposes for trucking firms

State lawmakers want to give tractor-trailer drivers and companies a sweeter deal for reducing noxious exhaust

pringfield,MO,USA -Joplin Globe (Joplin,MO)/The Associated Press -March 24, 2007: -- The large trucks that move goods through Missouri and across the country can idle for the equivalent of eight hours each day and 100 days a year while the truck is loaded and unloaded and when the driver rests... All this idling keeps the engine block warm and the living compartments lighted and heated or cooled, but it also spills carbon dioxide and other air pollutants into the atmosphere without getting the products in the trailer any closer to market... But the idling comes at a cost. Studies from the U.S. Department of Transportation show that 458,000 trucks, requiring heat 85 days per year and cooling 218 days per year idle, would use more than 838 million gallons of petroleum and produce 9.6 tons of carbon dioxide just by idling... If the trucks used generators that connect to the tractors and allow the drivers to turn off the engines while keeping the engines warm, they would burn two-thirds less petroleum and produce 80 percent less carbon dioxide...

Labels: taxes policy

Trucks in fast lane * Australia - Heighten hazards

Melbourne,Victoria,Australia -The Age, by Stephen Cauchi & Reid Sexton -March 25, 2007: -- Speeding truck drivers are to blame for accidents like Friday's Burnley Tunnel inferno, according to a road safety expert... Raphael Grzebieta, associate professor at the department of civil engineering at Monash University and a past president of the Australian College of Road Safety, said trucks should be banned from the right-hand lane on freeways — as is the case in Britain — and the speed limit cut to 60 km/h in tunnels... But the chief executive of the Australian Trucking Association, Stuart St Clair, said it was too early to apportion blame for the accident and said trucks should be able to drive in any lane as long as they did not speed. "We need to see what the coroner's view is of the accident," he told...

* Australia - Safety overhaul for Vic's Burnley Tunnel
Melbourne,Victoria,Australia -The West Australian (Perth,Western Australia) -25 March 2007: -- Victoria Police will examine the need to overhaul the Burnley Tunnel after three people died in a fiery multi-vehicle crash... State assistant commissioner for traffic Noel Ashby said possible changes to the tunnel included reducing the 80km/h speed limit, restricting trucks to the inside lane and installing emergency lanes... Mr Ashby said the police and coronial investigation would dictate future action, newspapers report...

* Australia - Drivers unaware of tunnel etiquette, says road expert
Melbourne,Victoria,Australia -The Age (Melbourne,Victoria), by Stephen Moynihan & Ben Doherty -March 26, 2007: -- Melbourne drivers are immature in tunnels, according to a world expert on road safety... As debate raged over truck access to tunnels and freeways, Arnold Dix, an adjunct professor of engineering and a member of the Permanent International Association of Road Congresses, said more education should be given to drivers... Another Victorian road expert said many drivers felt intimidated when driving close to trucks, particularly in the CityLink tunnels. There have been calls to educate motorists to safely share roads with trucks...

Labels: fast lane

Fury mounts * UK - After trucks block A14

Felixstowe,England,UK -The Suffolk Evening Star (Ipswich,England,UK), by RICHARD CORNWELL -23 March 2007: -- High winds which close Felixstowe port have a knock-on effect which stretches far beyond its boundaries - causing chaos for residents and turning the A14 into a giant lorry and car park... Emergency services could find themselves stuck miles from the scene of a major incident in Felixstowe if the port was closed - because of lorries gridlocking the A14... That was the fear voiced today in the wake of the latest failing of the Operation Stack system used to deal with trucks when high winds force Britain's biggest container terminal to close for safety reasons... How Operation Stack works... When high winds close the port, parking areas inside the complex are used first - providing space for hundreds of trucks... Chaos caused by Operation Stack has left residents furious...

Labels: blockade

Teamsters Protest * USA - Against Cummins, Inc. at Mid-America Trucking Show

Workers Call on Cummins to Act Socially Responsible
Washington,DC,USA -PRNewswire-USNewswire -23 Mar 2007: -- Yesterday dozens of Teamsters swept through the event hall at the Mid-America Trucking Show, one of the world's largest heavy-duty trucking events, to protest diesel engine manufacturer Cummins, Inc.... Wearing t-shirts reading, "What's Wrong with Cummins?" workers decried Cummins' recent attempts to slash health care for employees at its South Charleston, West Virginia plant. The protesters also cited Cummins' repeated labor law violations and history of restructuring moves that deprive workers of union representation...

Labels: protests

Book * USA - The Truth About Trucking

Nashville,TN,USA -The Nashville City Paper, by Ron Wynnr -March 23, 2007: -- Nashville trucker Steven R. Zellers has logged more than three million miles in his career as a driver, hauling any and everything while dealing with changing regulations, interstate highways and the rigors of being behind the wheel day after day for more than 20 years... During that time, he has dealt with numerous challenges, from satisfying the requirements to earn his commercial license to handling weather dilemmas, physical exhaustion, various state transportation officials and bureaus, and even passing on his expertise to new drivers...

Labels: books

BORDER NEWS

* Bulgaria/Turkey - Drivers of 70 Heavy Load Trucks Block Sofia to Protest
Sofia,Bulgaria -Sofia News Agency -23 March 2007: -- Bulgaria's Association of Automobile Transport organized a protest, blocking Sofia's ring road with more than 70 heavy load trucks on Friday. Members of the Association protest against the passing of Turkish truck through country's territory without paid permits to do that, which, according to the protesters will defraud the revenue with more than EUR 60 M a year... If the Turkish trucks are allowed to pass through the country, this will also put the Bulgarian drivers in a non-equivalent position...

* USA/MEXICO - Cross-border trucking touted as big for S.A.
San Antonio,TX,USA -The San Antonio Express, by Meena Thiruvengadam -22 Mar 2007: -- Under the North American Free Trade Agreement, San Antonio was to become a hub for warehousing and distribution. That hasn't yet happened, but the city could come closer to realizing its potential under a pilot cross-border trucking program, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said Thursday... Peters toured Southern Warehousing and Distribution, the city's oldest public warehouse, to describe how the cross-border trucking program the Department of Transportation announced last month could impact local warehousing and distribution operations...

Labels: border news

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

* Sweden - Europe behind the high delivery volumes for Volvo Trucks in February
Stockholm,Sweden -Easier (Chester,UK) -23 March 2007: -- Volvo Trucks deliveries in January and February 2007 totalled just over 15,000 vehicles, an increase of five percent compared with the same period last year... On the European market, deliveries rose by 25 percent, totalling 8,284 trucks (6,604)... North American deliveries amounted to 3,661 (5,284), which is a drop of 31 percent compared to the same period in 2006... For South America, the positive trend continued with deliveries totalling 1,060 (769) for the first two months of 2007. Asia and the Middle East also show an increase in deliveries of 17 and 16 per cent respectively...

* India - Daimler may make trucks
Mumbai,India -Daily News & Analysis, by Rabin Ghosh -March 23, 2007: -- DaimlerChrysler trucks, which are currently being sold as CBUs (completely built units) in the country, may be manufactured locally... Currently, DaimlerChrysler markets only the Mercedes Benz Actros range trucks, which it launched in the country only late last year... DaimlerChrysler India is setting up a greenfield plant in Pune spread across 100 acres of land. The new plot would have space for a possible truck assembly line, if the company decides to set up a such a facility...

Labels: truckmakers news

DEBATE * USA - Mexican's Trucks

* Plan to let Mexican trucks deep in U.S. stalls
Washington,DC,USA -AP/El Paso Times (El Paso,TX) -23 Mar 2007: -- Mexican trucks could have to wait longer than anticipated to haul freight deep into the United States... A Senate panel on Thursday voted to delay the plan by requiring the administration to publish details about it and giving the public time to comment on it... "The administration is rushing to open the border to Mexican-domiciled trucks without assuring their safety and enforcement of the law of the U.S.," said Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen. "They can't go rushing forward in opening the border without having explained what their pilot project is."...

* Mexican Trucks Plan Will Begin Despite Senate Amendment, Official Says
Washington,DC,USA -Congressional Quarterly -March 23, 2007: -- The Bush administration has no immediate plans to delay a pilot program that would allow Mexican trucks greater access to U.S. highways, despite language Senate appropriators added to an emergency spending measure, an administration spokesman said today... The Transportation Department “is committed to moving forward with this program, and will continue to work with members of Congress to address their concerns,” said department spokesman Brian Turmail...

* Cross-Border Trucking Program On Hold
Alexandria,VA,USA -CNSNews.com, by Susan Jones -March 23, 2007: -- Labor union leaders are claiming another victory on Capitol Hill, after a Senate committee voted to block President Bush's "reckless plan" to open the U.S. border to "unsafe" Mexican trucks... However, business and industry groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, calls cross-border trucking an important step in enhancing competitiveness, reducing pollution (from trucks idling at the border), and promoting economic growth in both Mexico and the U.S...

* Senate amendment stalls DOT cross-border trucking pilot program
Washington,DC,USA -Logistics Management (subscription - Newton,MA) -23 Mar 2007: -- An amendment introduced yesterday by the Senate Appropriations Committee for the Senate’s Fiscal 2007 Supplemental Funding Legislation has refused to finance the funds needed to take the next steps to launch the Department of Transportation’s proposed cross-border trucking pilot program between the United States and Mexico... The amendment, introduced by Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would require the pilot program to be subject to an open, transparent process that will require public comment, quantifiable measures of success, and a requirement that safety be enhanced, according to a summary...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Intrastate Truck Rules * USA - Washington state bill would change

Wash,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,USA) -March 21, 2007: -- Unsafe trucking companies are the subject of a bill moving through the Washington Legislature... Rep. Ruth Kagi, D-Lake Forest Park, has introduced a bill that would make it easier to shut down trucking operations in the state with faulty trucks and people who drive them recklessly... The House voted 88-9 to approve a bill that would authorize the Washington State Patrol more authority to monitor, inspect and penalize intrastate carriers. It has been forwarded to the Senate...

Labels: rural trucking

Toll Road * USA -

* Opposition on Indiana hearings draw
IN,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 21, 2007: -- A hearing this week generated opposition and debate about a proposed tolled bypass of Indianapolis... The Indiana House Roads and Transportation Committee has two hearings left concerning the controversial Indiana Commerce Connector, a crescent-shaped bypass around eastern Indianapolis that would link to interstates in six counties... News agencies around the state reported one of the hearings, which was Tuesday, March 20 in Martinsville, IN, drew hundreds – many armed with signs of opposition and a sharp word or two about the proposal...

* Florida bill could authorize toll road lease
FL,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 22, 2007: -- A bill is on the agenda for Florida’s House of Representatives this week that, if approved, could pave the way for highway privatization in that state... The bill – HB7033 – would authorize the state’s Department of Transportation to lease toll roads to private entities. The bill would apply to any existing toll facilities in the state’s highway system, except the Florida Turnpike... The bill also limits the leases to 50 years, though it does leave room for the possibility of extending those agreements to 75 years or more...

* Poll shows NJ residents oppose toll road lease or sale
NJ,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 22, 2007: -- AA poll released this week by AAA Clubs of New Jersey found that more than half of the motorists surveyed are opposed to the leasing or selling of the New Jersey Turnpike to a private contractor... The auto club surveyed 1,000 drivers in the state and found that 56 percent opposed a sale or lease. However, 65 percent said that, if such a deal were to take place, all proceeds should be exclusively reserved for transportation needs...

Labels: toll roads

Idling Reduction Devices * USA - Minnesota bill offers incentive to install they

Minn,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 21, 2007: -- A bill in the Minnesota House is intended to minimize the need for truck drivers to idle their trucks... Sponsored by Rep. Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, the bill would establish a grant program for idling reduction technology purchases. The state could award grants to eligible applicants for up to 50 percent of the purchase and installation costs for one or more qualifying idling reduction devices...

Labels: anti idlling areas

"Vibrating Seatbelt" * UK ... OK ??? ...

... a study conducted by Oxford University

UK -Biglorryblog -22 Mar 2007: -- A story in yesterday's Daily Telegraph (UK) said that one in seven road crashes could be prevented if only the driver had been wearing a 'vibrating seatbelt'. It appears that 'mutiple warning signals', including vibrating seatbelts and 'directed alarms' (presumably along the lines of 'Oii! Birdbrain!--you're going to hit the car in front!!) are the way to cut the number of road crashes and according to a study conducted by Oxford University such fittings could speed up a driver's reaction time by almost half a second, thereby reducing rear-end shunts by 60%. Of course you could simply leave a greater gap between you and the vehicle in front but...nah...where's the fun in that?... Meanwhile, Biglorryblog has an even better idea. Such seatbelts should not only be mandatory on all 'hot-hatchbacks' driven by pimply youths... but modified so that every time one of them turns the ignition key the inertia reel mechanism tightens the belt sufficiently to strangle all the little stinkers before they create even more mayhem on our roads....harummphhhh....

Labels: safety

Mid-America Truck Show * USA - Lots of axles...

Louisville,Ky,USA -Biglorryblog (UK) -22 Mar 2007: -- ... this rather esoteric collection of pictures from the Mid-America Truck Show which is happening right now in Louisville, Kentucky. The right shot shows one of those weird and wonderful 'Michigan Roadtrain' trailer chassis on the bottom where there's an axle every other metre... On top is one of those extra long (53ft or so) all-aluminium flat beds with a really W-I-D-E spread bogie (I shudder to think of the tyre scrub). Look closely and you can just see the built-in 'positive bow' of the trailer platform which settles into the horizontal once it's got a load on it... (Photo: by Ollie Dixon/Big Lorry Blog)

Labels: shows

Mid-America Truck Show * USA - ... a great big truck sandcastle...

All in a day's work at the

Louisville,Ky,USA -Biglorryblog (UK) -22 Mar 2007: -- ... Right a picture of a magnificent dumper truck sandcastle being produced on the Western Star stand--although it's clearly be captured by Ollie during the builders' tea-break as apparently they've all wandered off for a quick cough and a drag...with 30 minutes to go before the doors open... (Photo: by Ollie Dixon/Big Lorry Blog)

Labels: shows

DANGEROUS ROADS * Guinea - 70 reported killed in a truck crash

Conakry,Guinea -Associated Press, by ABOU BAKR -21 March, 2007: -- A bridge collapsed under an overloaded truck in Guinea, throwing scores of passengers into a river and killing at least 70, witnesses and the West African country‘s state radio said Wednesday... The 50-year-old rock and concrete bridge collapsed as the truck was crossing, tipping the vehicle and sending people as well as bags of cement and sacks of rice crashing into the river. Many of the passengers drowned, trapped under the cargo, RTG said... In rural areas where buses are rare, large open-backed trucks are often a main form of transport — carrying grain sacks, sheep, bicycles and people. Trucks are often piled high with merchandise, and then passengers climb on top, or hang onto the sides...

Labels: dangerous roads

* USA - Ford recalls Super Duty trucks after tailpipe fires

Detroit,Mich,USA -Reuters, by Kevin Krolicki -Mar 21, 2007: -- Ford Motor Co. said on Wednesday it was recalling over 37,000 of its new 2008 model-year F-Series Super Duty trucks after reported tailpipe fires in the diesel version of the pickups... Ford said it had received reports of three cases where leaking fuel or oil ignited when trapped in a diesel particulate filter near the tailpipe of the new trucks...

Labels: recalls

Litigation * Jamaica - Government has brought against Daimler Chrysler/Mercedes Benz

Grounded trucks slow Rapid Response to drought-hit areas

Kingston,Jamaica -The Jamaica Observer -March 21, 2007: -- The grounding of majority of the 100 trucks bought by the water ministry in 1999 for its Rapid Response Unit has become a major obstacle in assisting drought-afflicted communities in rural Jamaica... In the meantime, the government has brought litigation against Daimler Chrysler/Mercedes Benz - manufacturer of the trucks - over transmission problems which have grounded the majority of the water trucks in the first couple of years of their operation... The then Ministry of Water and Housing took a decision in January 2005 to take legal action against the German manufacturers after nearly half of the fleet were grounded because of various transmission problems... The government accused the automaker of failing to repair or replace the trucks, which began developing mechanical problems less than eight months after they were bought...

Labels: litigation

* Greece - Old buses, trucks hike crash rate

Athens,Greece -Kathimerini -21 Mar 2007: -- About 40 percent of traffic accidents in Greece involve buses or trucks and twice as many people die in such crashes as in car accidents, according to figures made public yesterday... Also, the buses and trucks in these crashes are five times more likely to be more than 15 years old, said the Association of Greek Car Importers (SEAA), which unveiled the statistics...

Labels: crash rates

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

* USA - Navistar backs industry outlook; shares rise
New York,NY,USA -Reuters -Mar 20, 2007: -- Truck and engine maker Navistar International Corp., on Tuesday backed its fiscal-year outlook for industry volume for the United States and Canada and said its global quarterly shipments were unchanged, sending its shares up more than 5 percent... Navistar held its market share position in its core medium- and heavy-duty truck and engine businesses during the quarter and maintained its stance on pricing, Chief Executive Daniel Ustian said in a statement...

* Sweden - Volvo Jan-Feb truck shipments fall 13 pct yr/yr
Stockholm,Sweden -Reuters -Mar 20, 2007: -- World number two truck maker Volvo said on Tuesday shipments of its trucks fell 13 percent in January through February, mainly due to weaker demand in its second biggest market, North America... Volvo delivered 28,275 trucks in the period, down from 32,336 a year earlier, it said in a statement. This would mean shipments in February alone fell 18 percent year-on-year to 14,313 trucks, according to Reuters' calculations...

* South Korea - Volvo Trucks inaugurates new head office
Hwaseong Dongtan,S.Korea -Automotive World (UK - Subscription) -21 March, 2007: -- Volvo Trucks has inaugurated a new South Korean head office and dealer facility, along with an integrated training centre, in Hwaseong Dongtan...

* Taiwan - Formosa Automobile denies planning China jv with DAF Trucks
Taipei,Taiwan -Economic Daily News/XFN-ASIA/AFX News Limited/Forbes(USA) -21 Mar 2007: -- Formosa Automobile Corp, an affiliate of the Formosa Plastics group, said that it is planning to spend over 4 bln twd to form a joint venture with DAF Trucks NV of the Netherlands to produce heavy-duty trucks in China is groundless...

* Sweden - Scania Receives Important Order in Russia - Will Deliver 144 Trucks to Expansive Grocery Chain
Stockholm,Sweden -Business Wire (USA) -March 21, 2007: -- With an order for 144 trucks from X5 Retail Group, Scania is consolidating its position as the largest western European make in the fast-growing Russian market... “X5 Retail Group plans to open shops in most large cities in Russia and is choosing Scania because we both have trucks with low operating costs and a well-developed service network,” says Raimo Lehtiö, Managing Director of Scania Russia...

* USA - Mack Trucks slams on the brakes - Deliveries plunge; truckers bought heavily last year to beat new, expensive emissions technology
Allentown,PA,USA -The Allentown Morning Call, by Spencer Soper -21 Mar 2007: -- February sales of Mack Trucks were down nearly 50 percent as the company endured an expected drop in sales that has forced the layoffs of 450 workers in recent months... Mack delivered 1,522 trucks in February, a 46 percent drop from the same month a year ago, according to its parent company, Volvo AB. That was its worst February performance since 2003, when the Allentown company delivered 1,199 vehicles...

* Taiwan -CMC begins assembly of Mitsubishi Fuso Canter
Taipei,Taiwan -Automotive World (UK) -21 March, 2007: -- Assembly of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck & Bus' Canter light-duty truck by China Motor Corporation (CMC) has started in Taiwan... According to Fuso, Taiwan is the company's third largest market after Japan and Indonesia... The company sold 12,100 vehicles...

* USA - Market to Drop by 75 Per Cent?
USA -Road Transport, by Oliver Dixon -March 22, 2007: -- No names here, but we've just been talking to a chap who works at a fairly high level for one of the Tier 1 suppliers to the US truck business... His view of the Class 8 market for 2007? A drop off of between 75 and 80 per cent. the word 'cliff' was used - in fact a number of words were used, few of which can be repeated here... Forty per cent is bad enough, but 75? That is carnage on a grand scale, and a market collapse that will inevitably impact upon Europe as well... Chapter 11's approaching?...

Labels: truckmakers news

DEBATE * USA - Trial Run for Mexican Trucks Hits Roadblocks

New York,NY,USA -Bloomberg, by Cindy Skrzycki -March 20, 2007: -- The latest plan to let Mexican trucks cross the U.S. border to deliver goods to the heartland is facing the same kind of obstacles that stalled earlier efforts... In announcing the plan, the department sidestepped its usual rulemaking procedure, so the new program wouldn't have to undergo the usual time-consuming comment period... A key issue remains whether administration officials already have decided that a full opening of the border is safe... Transportation officials said they had no intention of making that memo a binding document. The administration simply seized the moment, after Mexico recently agreed to let U.S. inspectors audit trucks in Mexico, to announce the program... A few American trucking companies already have set up shop in Mexico. Others said they are having doubts about traveling south of the border... The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has long opposed what it views as a potential flood of cheap labor competing for its drivers' jobs while using unsafe rigs... "They do not meet our standards,'' Teamsters President James Hoffa said in an interview... He said the Teamsters will sue if necessary to stop the program...

Labels: mexican's trucks

DANGEROUS DRIVERS * South Africa - Nine-vehicle crash on highway injures 13

Cape Town,South Africa -The Independent Online -March 20 2007: -- Three trucks and six cars had been involved in a collision on the N3 Durban bound between the Pavillion Shopping Centre and the N2/N3 interchange, also known as Spaghetti Junction, on Tuesday morning... Police and emergency workers called to the scene found that a fully laden, cargo truck, which was travelling towards Durban, allegedly collided with two other trucks, causing one to roll onto its roof, before they crashed into the centre of the freeway... According to ER24, the upside down truck was obstructing the fast lane of the Johannesburg bound carriageway while the 26-wheeler truck cut off access to the fast lane of the Durban-bound carriageway...

Labels: dangerous drivers

Opposes new state regulations * USA - That allow big rigs to use Route 27

South Bruns. wants trucks to hit the road
Edison,NJ,USA -The Edison Sentinel, by CHRIS GAETANO -22 Mar 2007: -- The new state regulations establish a hierarchy of roads consisting of federal interstates at the top, state highways in the middle and local roads at the bottom... According to the state Department of Transportation's (DOT) proposal, large trucks would be required to drive only on federal roads unless the shortest distance between two points is through the use of a road on the state network. Large trucks on the state network must leave as soon as possible. Meanwhile, large trucks on the state network may only drive on local roads if the shortest distance between itself and its destination involves the local road, and the driver is expected to leave as soon as possible... (Photo: JEFF GRANIT staff A car waits to turn onto Heathcote Road as a truck drives through the intersection with Route 27 in Kingston. Larger trucks are going to be allowed on the road due to a new set of state trucking regulations, which officials in South Brunswick and other municipalities oppose)

Labels: regulations

RESEARCH * USA - Keep on Trucking -- Safely

Fayetteville,Ark,USA -Today's Trucking -March 20, 2007: -- When 30 tons of big rig come barreling down the road, drivers in the path want to be assured that everything has been done to maximize safety and minimize the likelihood of a crash. To do this, researchers at the University of Arkansas recommend that trucking companies and transportation policymakers take a holistic approach to truck safety, and they have suggestions for where to start... Fredrick Muyia Nafukho, Barbara E. Hinton and Carroll M. Graham found that there has been only limited research on the performance of tractor trailer drivers and the reduction of road traffic crashes. To learn more about the factors involved in truck drivers' job performance, they examined a year's worth of data for 14,340 drivers employed by a major trucking company. They found that a majority of the drivers in the study - 80.73 percent - had good performance records... In part, research results support current efforts of the U.S. Department of Transportation to allow more driving time per day while limiting total on-duty time. The UA study found that when drivers' average miles driven per month are lower, the number of crashes per driver is reduced...

Labels: HOS debate

Biodiesel * USA - Fleet testing reports success

Stay tuned for the more results as they come in from Decker’s Two-Million Mile Run

Louisville,Ky,USA -Today's Trucking -22 Mar 2007: -- Dale Decker, a third-generation operator whose family business runs about 700 trucks and more than 1,400 trailers out of the Fort Dodge, Iowa., really really wants to believe in biodiesel. And he’s putting his money where his fuel spout is... Decker’s submitting a good chunk of his fleet to the biodiesel test. In cooperation with the National Biodiesel Board, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Iowa Central Community College, as well as the Renewable Enegery Group (REG), a biodiesel manufacturer, Decker is going to run 10 of his trucks a million miles using B-20 biodiesel (20 percent biodiesel and 80-percent No. 2 diesel) and 10 other identical trucks on identical runs but with regular fuel. And they reach the end, he’s going to determine which fuel works best -- which had the best mileage, the least maintenance problems, and the greatest driver satisfaction...

Labels: biofuels

TRUCKS

* USA - Kenworth adds to MD line, including class 6 hybrid
Louisville,Ken,USA -Today's Trucking -22 Mar 2007: -- A new class 7 tractor and class 6 hybrid was introduced by Kenworth Truck yesterday at the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, KY.... The T370 conventional is available as a tractor or a straight truck with single or tandem axles. It's available with either the PACCAR PX-6 engine (rated to 325 hp and 750 ft-lb of torque), or the PACCAR PX-8 engine (rated to 330 hp and 1,000 ft-lb of torque). Front axle ratings are from 10,000 to 14,600 pounds with rears from 17,000 to 40,000 pounds... Customers can choose manual or automatic transmissions and air or hydraulic brakes. The T370 also offers many exhaust options for the various wheelbases, especially important to body builders that work with medium duty customers...

* USA - Peterbilt new '08 lineup in production; more hybrids on the way
Louisville,Ken,USA -Today's Trucking -22 Mar 2007: -- Peterbilt says its manufacturing plants are in full production with the company's new product lineup of 2008 models, which represent the largest product development investment in the nearly 70-year history of the company... The new trucks include: The aerodynamically styled Model 384 and Model 387 day cab, which join the Model 387 and Model 386 to complete the company's aero truck lineup; The traditionally styled Model 389 and Model 388; The vocational Model 367, Model 365 and Model 340;a nd The cabover Model 220 and conventional Model 330, which join the Model 335 to complete the company's medium duty truck lineup...

Labels: trucks

Lane Safety Systems * USA - FMCSA has eye on

LDWS are not yet the industry norm, but fleets that spec them say they can't image fleet life without the technology

Washington,DC,USA -Today's Trucking -21 Mar 2007: -- U.S. federal trucking regulators are taking a keen interest in new lane departure warning technology as a way to mitigate the rate of off-road accidents and rollovers on North American highways... Yesterday, Amy Houser of the Federal Motor Carrier Administration discussed some findings from recent field operational tests in heavy commercial trucks, which were part of the Department of Transport's Intelligent Vehicle Initiative program... The pilot project, which focused mainly on roadway departures on both straight and curbed roads with a fleet of Mack trucks, found that lane departure warning systems (LDWS) reduce single vehicle roadway departures (where the truck veers off the road) were reduced by 21 to 24 percent. Also, the FMCSA realized a potential 17 to 21-percent reduction in rollover crashes... Utilizing optical, electromagnetic, or GPS technology, LDWS are in-vehicle devices that warn a driver of a lane departure with either a loud alarm or by mimicking a "rumble strip" vibration...

Labels: lane safety systems

Bill * USA - Proposed one, would increase truck GVW by 17,000 lbs

Washington,DC,USA -Today's Trucking (CAN) -20 Mar 2007: -- Legislation proposed by two U.S. senators could substantially raise the allowable weight limit for heavy trucks if passed... The Security and Fuel Efficiency (SAFE) Energy Act -- introduced last week by Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho) -- is an attempt to improve fuel economy by 4 percent in new vehicle fleets, including automobiles, medium trucks, and heavy trucks from 2012-2030... The bill also authorizes the Dept. of Transportation to increase freight efficiency by raising the maximum allowable gross weight for highway vehicles from 80,000 to 97,000 pounds, "so long as road safety is not compromised."...

Labels: weight allowances

* Europe - Whether EU roads will be open for Turkish trucks depends on the Bulgarian/Turkish agreement

From Turkey to the EU

Sofia,Bulgaria -Sofia Echo, by Petar Kostadinov -19 Mar 2007: -- The bilateral goods carriage agreement between Bulgaria and Turkey that was to be signed on March 15 was not welcomed by Bulgarian transport businesses... The Bulgarian side claims that such an agreement will fully liberalise road transport between the two countries and that this will have a negative impact on the Bulgarian transport sector...

Labels: routes

"GREEN" NEWS

* USA - Walmart, equipment suppliers working on hybrid fleet rollout
Bentonville,Ark,USA -Today's Trucking (CAN) -19 Mar 2007: -- The company that operates North America's second-largest trucking fleet, Wal-Mart Stores is supporting development of new hybrid technologies, developed jointly by Peterbilt Motors Co. and Eaton Corp., by helping to validate the concept and refine the final design...

* Canada - Biofuels get big play in federal budget
Ottawa,Ont,CAN -Today's Trucking -20 Mar 2007: -- Building on last year's pledge to implement a 2 percent biodiesel standard for Canadian fuel by 2012, the federal Conservatives' 2007 budget announced yesterday included $2 billion to get the aspiring renewable fuels industry off the ground... Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says the government will provide about $1.5 billion over 7 years to domestic ethanol and biodiesel producers, and create a $500 million fund for the commercialization of next generation renewable fuels technologies such as cellulose ethanol. The money will also help build new biodiesel facilities in Canada... About $200 million will also be spent to encourage farmers to invest in biodiesel production...

Labels: green news

Invents * Canada - to see what really happens inside a van trailer

Robert Findings from a securement table Robert Transport created could one day be the industry standard

Montreal,Que,CAN -Today's Trucking -19 Mar 2007: -- You have to secure a load on a flat-bed trailer? No problem. Standard 10 of the National Safety Code on Cargo Securement, adopted in 2004, should give you pretty good instructions on how to proceed... But what about securing loads inside a van trailer? Know anyone else who wings it?.. The Minister of Transport of Quebec (MTQ) wants to know. In collaboration with Camtech Consultants, an engineering firm from St. Nicolas, Que., the MTQ recently performed an array of tests to determine how loads react when they are submitted to lateral and longitudinal strengths... To see inside the box, the engineering team did not install cameras in a moving vehicle nor did they observe a load of pallets with X-rays. Instead, they rented a tilt table designed by innovative carrier Transport Robert of Rougement, Que...

Labels: inside, van trailer

TRUCK MARKET * China - Large-power trucks favored

Beijing,China -Auto China/China Daily, by Rong Xiandong -20 Mar 2007: -- The commercial vehicle market, especially the heavy-duty truck market, will have bright prospects this year, said a company executive in the industry recently... Heavy truck sales in 2007 are expected to rise 10 percent to 330,000 units after the sales figure surged 29.3 percent in 2006 to 305,432 units, said Wu Qiwei, vice-general manager of Yuchai Machinery Co Ltd... Medium and light truck sales are estimated at 210,000 and 1.03 million units, a year-on-year increase of 3.5 and 8.5 percent respectively... "Large-power multi-axle trucks will be favorite in the heavy truck market and fuel-efficient models with a gross weight of between 19 and 32 tons will be the most popular," Wu predicted...

Labels: trucks markets

Experts * USA - SCR looks more viable as 2010 solution

Incremental costs of SCR don't figure to be much of a hurdle for 2010
NEW YORK,NY,USA -Today's Trucking (Canada) -19 Mar 2007: -- Some of the barriers to making SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) the 2010 emissions solution of choice are falling in North America, according to industry experts... After discussions with stakeholders and officials from Cummins at a recent teleconference, analysts at New York-based transportation market firm Bear Stearns say that SCR is likely the engine technology to be used to meet upcoming EPA emissions regulations for 2010 since past concerns over availability are not the insurmountable hurdle that was first thought... So far, engine manufacturers have been discussing two potential solutions: the use of particulate filters coupled with either NOX adsorbers, or SCR. Not only does the latter have a proven track record in meeting European emissions standards, but SCR could also carry a modest fuel economy benefit, Bear Stearns states in a follow-up report...

Labels: Selective Catalytic Reduction

Report * Ireland - The Worldwide Freight Trucking Long Distance Industry - Examine 2008 Estimates

Dublin,Ireland -Business Wire -March 19, 2007: -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of 2007 Worldwide Freight Trucking Long Distance Industry Report to their offering... The Freight Trucking Long Distance Industry report features 2007 current and 2008 forecast estimates on the size of the industry (sales, establishments, employment) for the 47 largest world countries... The report also includes industry definition, 5-year historical trends on industry sales, establishments and employment and estimates on up to 10 sub-industries, including contract haulers, mobile homes transport, household goods transport, and heavy haulers...

Labels: reports

* Canada - TIDA forms Canadian Relations Committee

Niles, Ill,USA -Truck News (Ont,CAN), by Adam Ledlow-19 Mar 2007: -- The Trucking Industry Defense Association (TIDA) has announced the formation of the Canadian Relations Committee. The committee has been established to foster new and better relationships with trucking companies, insurers and attorneys in Canada... TIDA serves more than 1,000 members from the trucking industry, including in-house counsel, trucking attorneys in private practice, claims, safety, and risk management professionals at trucking and truck insurance companies, and claims servicing organizations...

Labels: Trucking Defense

Federal Budget * Canada - To Restore 80% Tax Deduction for Truck Driver Meals

Ottawa,ONT,CAN -CCNMatthews -March 19, 2007: -- Today's federal budget, introduced in the House of Commons by finance minister, Jim Flaherty, had something for everyone, including truck drivers... Starting immediately the federal government will begin to restore the meal tax deductibility for long-haul truck drivers (or the company that reimburses them) to 80% from the 50% level it has been at since 1994... To be eligible, drivers must be away for at least 24 consecutive hours, and the purpose of the trip is to transport goods beyond a 160 km radius from the home location; in addition, the vehicle must have a GVWR of greater than 11,788 kgs...

Labels: tax break

RECALLS * USA - Honda Recalling 165,000 Cars and Trucks

Chicago,IL,USA -Cars.com -19 Mar 2007: -- As part of a larger global recall, Honda is recalling about 165,000 cars and trucks in the U.S. from the 2005 – 06 model years due to potential engine defects. The problem stems from sealer material that can leak onto a coil wire inside the fuel pump, causing the wire to snap. That would lead to the cars stalling or failing to start... Vehicles involved include 2005 Honda Accord coupes, sedans and hybrids, Odyssey minivans and 2006 Ridgeline pickups, as well as 2005 Acura RL, TL and TSX sedans. The recall is scheduled for early April...

* USA - Truckers Can't Stop the Pollution Their Trucks Cause

Oakland, CA,USA -New California Media (San Francisco,CA), by Viji Sundaram -Mar 19, 2007: -- California's trucks pump out a sizeable chunk of heavy air pollution. But with little incentive to upgrade their trucks and low pay, California's truckers, many of them immigrants, can't afford to retrofit their trucks or healthcare and are among those who suffer most from their vehicles' emissions... When Erick Gaines leaves home for work in the morning, he makes sure he leaves with his inhaler. Gaines is a trucker and he likes it. He loves being able to set his own hours, and he enjoys the independence his job gives him. But he wishes driving a truck wouldn’t take such a heavy toll on his lungs...

Labels: opinion

COMPLAINS * USA - Officials hope to crack down on heavy trucks

Saratoga Springs,NY,USA -The Glens Falls Post-Star (Glens Falls,NY), by CHARLES FIEGL -March 19, 2007: -- City lawmakers are considering strengthening a law prohibiting overweight trucks from rolling through the Spa City... Public Safety Commissioner Ronald Kim wants to raise fines, tripling them in some cases, to deter the overloaded trucks from driving on city streets... Residents and business owners in the downtown district have complained about heavy truck traffic on Broadway. Outdoor cafe owners have said the loud roar of a truck and pollution hurts their business...

Labels: complains

PRODUCTION * Azerbaijan - Ganja Auto Plant to assemble MAZ trucks

Azerbaijan -Azeri Press Agency (subscription) -19 Mar 2007: -- The plant director Khanlar Fatiyev told APA-Bureau that the ambassador was briefed that the plant is ready to assemble Belarus-made MAZ tractors and trucks. ...

Labels: production

The youngest driver in the world ??? ....

It's Toby, publisher's grandson... !!!

Buenos Aires,CABA,Argentine -Trucks World News -19 Mar 2007: ...

Labels: internal affairs

Drivers' Sleeping Cabs ... TODAY !! ...

...What's the worst truck you've ever slept in?...

London,UK -Big Lorry Blog/bizbuzzmedia.com -19 Mar 2007: -- 'Alternative' MoTIS bunk layout has bed running along the length of the cab...thereby creating room at the back for other fittings. Not a bad idea reckons...

Labels: sleeping cabs

... and YESTERDAY !!!

What's the worst truck you've ever slept in?

UK -roadtransport.com -March 19, 2007: -- Spare a thought for these two poor sods over-nighting in a Sentinel DG6 'sleeper' steam wagon back in 1928. No mattresses, no curtains and no windows either. This really would have been just one very small step away from sleeping rough... But what they did get was a huge amount of heat from that massive boiler. I'm sure it was welcome in the winter - but not particularly pleasant in the summer months... (Picture by Will Shiers)

Labels: sleeping cabs

Back to School

(PN: This could help to avoid accidents & killings)

London,UK -TNN, by Gerald Woodgate (Originally published: 23 Nov 2005) -17 Mar 2007: -- ... went back to school with Tex and Grafta, two of the Truckitts, and their 'friends' Bob Russett, Kate Gibbs and Steve Williams to see how they helped children learn both about what trucks do and also how to be safe around them... The Truckitts are a family of trucks that appear in a series of children's books written by Bob Russett, Kate Gibbs and Angela Mitchell. Thanks to support from manufacturers, the cartoon trucks all have real-life counterparts, so it was Grafta (an Isuzu NKR-S 3.5 tonne dropside) and, making his first ever Truckitts appearance, his much larger brother Tex (a DAF X95F) that certainly caused a stir when they arrived in the car park of Broadfield Junior School in Hemel Hempstead last week... The aim of a Truckitts visit is to make the learning fun and, judging by the looks on the children's faces as each class came out to meet Tex and Grafta, they were definitely excited by the prospect... The following morning I had a conversation with Matthew Heasman, Broadfield's Headmaster about how the day had gone. Matthew said, "The children were really buzzing when they came back into school from meeting the Truckitts"... "Not only did they learn important road safety messages but they thoroughly enjoyed themselves in the process"...

Labels: Back to School

Truck Speed * USA - ... Too Fast, Too Slow?

NY,USA -Forbes, by Robert Malone -6 Mar 2007: -- Big truck speed is up for grabs... There are truckers and there are truckers. Fleet truckers and independent truckers are upstairs and downstairs. The former are big owners with big staffs, in contrast to the proudly independent truckers. The former are served by the American Trucking Association (ATA) and the latter by the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA)... If a motorist is asked, trucks are always going too fast down hills or too slow up hills. Trucks can go very fast, but there is both a cost and a gain depending upon the context. If a truck goes fast it delivers faster and spends less time on the road. If a truck goes too fast it uses more fuel and may cause more accidents... Each year about 5,000 die on U.S. highways as a result of truck crashes. Excess speed is often given as the cause but the issue is, to a degree, clouded. In the large truck causation study by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), traveling too fast was found to be the critical precrash event in 18% of all crashes where trucks were analyzed as the core cause of the accident... In the American Transportation Research Institute's (ATRI) high-risk study, it was shown that of those drivers convicted of 15 mph speeding offenses, 56% were found to be involved in a truck crash the following year... Speed of a truck picking up or delivering can be perceived as a value in a world of just-in-time. However, whatever value is attached would have to be measured against the loss of life. The issue is not merely independent truckers as against fleet managed truckers, as speed can be a value for either and yet neither side wants to advocate a life threatening standard... The issue is also a green issue and a cost issue, as slower speed saves fuel. All the parameters of the truck speed issue need closer examination and a great deal more attention to the correlation between speed and fuel use, and speed and logistics savings... Further the issue needs closer monitoring of exactly how many fatalities are produced by every mile in excess of 68 mph, or other standard speed. Certainly there are many contributing factors and some of them can be more or less the cause of the accident: environmental conditions such as ice, sleet, rain or fog... These are targeted by the FMCSA and ATRI but it is not clear from the information presented as to the correlation between factors...

Labels: comment

New technology * India - To make road shipments much safer

Insurance costs have been rising in India following the elimination of the fixed tariff regime

Kolkata,India -Banking & Finance, by Pradeep Gooptu -March 19, 2007: -- Insurance companies providing cover to shipments being sent by truck, and enterprises shipping goods by road are putting pressure on transporters and truck fleet owners to invest in new technologies and products available in the market to enhance the safety of shipped goods... The fleet owners are being told that the new generation truck and related safety technology and products offered then as well as their shippers the opportunity to reduce their accident and insurance costs, while at the same time enable them to charge a small premium for the additional value proposition offered, the source added... According to the insurance source, this would also enable truck manufacturers to influence bookings and this was a trend that was noticeable in developed countries like the United States...

Labels: insurance

... and the possibly TRUCK !!! ...

At last... the perfect way to get around a tyre blow-out on your tractor. Just ask the wife to lend a hand!

UK -Big Lorry Blog -15 Mar 2007: -- ... this excellent shot which clearly illustrates the advantage of being married if you're a farmer... with comment: "... you could show just what a kind wife this lady is, or maybe you could send it to VOSA to check if this new tractor 'accessory' is OK? You've heard of run flat tyres, so no need for a spare, we've got space savers and now wifey-counter balances, why change it when you can strap her on and away you go!"... and reply: "Well yes---but only as long as you use a proper ratchet strap with the appropriate breaking strain, clear CE marking on the webbing and secure lashing points on" ... (Picture: Nick Smith, brand training specialist at Mercede-Benz Commercial Vehicles)

Labels: rural trucking

TRUCKS Cab Concept * Germany - The MOTIS

Or how to have a shave and a shower (and anything else for that matter) in your truck cab !!!

Hannover,Germany -Biglorryblog (UK) -16 Mar 2007: -- ... the MoTIS cab concept (it stands for Modular Truck Interior System) which was launched at last September's Hanover truck show and provides some alternative ideas on how to best use the space in a top weight artic. The designs come out of conversations with professional HGV drivers and have been developed by a Pfzorzheim-based company called Hymer idc which has already worked with various truck manufacturers as well as recreational vehicle makers... The resulting options appear to have been based around an Actros cab but provide food for thought on what could be delivered inside your average artic which let's face it is little more than a steel box measuring roughly 2.5 x 2.0 x 1.8m... The bathroom module would be a Godsend for any HGV driver parked in an isolated layby or stuck in an RDC with an awkward jobsworth security guard who won't let you use the toilets as it comes with its own self contained, odourless (it would have to be) toilet, sink and shower stall..and speaking of which here's a happy chappie enjoying a hot shower thanks to MoTIS...

Labels: nice trucks

DEBATE * USA/Mexico - Keep on Truckin’

It’s time to take another step toward full NAFTA implementation and welcome a trucking system that makes North America economically stronger and more efficient

Arlington, Iowa -The Truth About Trade & Technology (Des Moine,IA), by Tim Burrack -16 Mar 2007: -- ... It was the 19th-century equivalent of sitting on an airport runway for six hours... Such wasteful delays wouldn’t be acceptable today. Yet we permit something very much like it when it comes to North American trucking... That’s why a new pilot program, administered by the Department of Transportation, makes so much sense: It will remove protectionist barriers that currently forbid well-qualified Mexican long-haul drivers from operating on American highways... This is an innovation that should have happened years ago. Under NAFTA, the United States was supposed to lift restrictions on Mexican trucks in 2000. Yet the prohibitions never went away, in large part because opponents of free trade raised concerns about the safety of Mexican trucks... If Mexican trucks aren’t safe, they obviously shouldn’t gain access to American roads...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Solidarity * Canada - Million dollar donation from trucking firm to new hospital

Brampton,Ontario,Canada -The Brampton Guardian, by PETER CRISCIONE -16 Mar 2007: -- The family behind a major Canadian trucking firm has decided to park a lot of cash toward the construction of Brampton's new hospital... Doug Munro, President of Brampton-based freight lines company Maritime-Ontario, announced this week that his family will donate $1 million to Brampton Civic Hospital...

Labels: solidarity

TYRES * UK - How nitrogen can improve road safety

Filling HGV's tyres using the latest nitrogen generation technology can improve safety
Cornwall,UK -gasworld.com, by Francesca Ross -March 16th 2007: -- Parker Hannifin Process Air and Gas believe filling an HGV's tyres using the latest nitrogen generation technology can improve the safety of vehicles, while also reducing operating costs... The company's sales and marketing manager, David Wright explains that under-inflated tyres can have a significant impact on the performance of commercial vehicles, negatively affecting safety, steering balance, braking ability and ride characteristics. These problems, he warns, can ultimately lead to rising operating costs for fleet operators, with problems such as excessive wear, premature tyre replacement and even decreased fuel efficiency...

Labels: tyres

Award * USA - For a Women In Trucking Member

From Orlando Trucker's Conference
FL,USA -Layover -16 Mar 2007: -- Glenda Campbell may look like a grandma, but she's a grandma with a CDL who travels the country as an over the road truck driver... Because of her career accomplishments, Glenda was honored for being the "Orlando Woman Trucker of the Year" at the recent Orlando Trucker's Conference held at the Orange County Convention Center. The award was sponsored by Women In Trucking Association which encourages women to consider careers in the trucking industry...

Labels: womans in trucking

PRODUCTS

* Canada - DaimlerChrysler expands diesel offerings
Saskatoon,Saskatchewan,Canada -CanWest News Service/The StarPhoenix, by Chris Chase -March 16, 2007: -- DaimlerChrysler's Dodge and Jeep truck divisions will expand their diesel engine offerings in 2007, with the Dodge ram pickup trucks to become the first Chrysler Group vehicles to benefit from parent company Mercedes-Benz's ultra-clean BLUETEC diesel engine technology...

Labels: products

TRUCKS

*

Italy - Iveco launches facelifted Stralis heavy-duty range
Rome,Italy -Automotive World -16 March, 2007: -- Iveco has announced the launch of a revised 19- to 44-tonne Stralis heavy-duty truck range... The main exterior change is to the radiator cowling, which has been enhanced by a larger grille. Iveco has also integrated the bumper into this cowling. The two bodysides now feature electric power controlled compartments which are 60% larger than the original model...

* USA - Workhorse sharpens focus on walk-in truck market
Fort Atkinson,WI,USA -AMonline.com -March 16, 2007: -- Workhorse Custom Chassis is in the process of developing a one-two punch aimed at revitalizing the market for walk-in trucks... Since its acquisition by International Truck and Engine Corp. in 2005, said Jay Sandler, Workhorse vice president of commercial product, in a prepared statement... there has been a recent surge in walk-in sales the last two years, which can be attributed to an increase in parcel delivery vehicles, as more people are shopping through the Internet, the Home Shopping Network and other sources. He says that trend should keep fleets expanding for several years, and for multiple stops over short distances, the walk-in truck is the perfect vehicle...

Labels: trucks

* Canada - Police find 70% of trucks fail tests

Yesterday's spot inspection had one of London's worst results
London,Ontario,Canada -The London Free Press, by JOE MATYAS -March 16, 2007: -- Seventy per cent of trucks pulled over for full inspections during a police blitz in London yesterday were ordered off the road... Twenty eight charges were laid under the Highway Traffic Act and 14 of 20 trucks were taken out of service after inspections in the parking lot of a former bingo hall at Gore and Hamilton roads...

Labels: controls

PRODUCTION

* Egypt - Local assembly for Oshkosh army trucks
El Cairo,Egipt -Automotive World (UK), by Bill Godwin (Subscription)-15 March, 2007: -- Oshkosh vehicles have been in service with the Egyptian military since 1990 and now the country's Ministry of Defence has placed an order with the US builder for the supply of Medium Tactical trucks to upgrade the army's logistics equipment... The US$4....

Labels: production

... and the future TRUCKS

* An exclusive glimpse of the future from the 'Master Designer of Mercedes-Benz' Bertrand Janssen

UK - Big Lorry Blog -15 Mar 2007: -- ... Merc's number one truck designer Bertrand Janssen... the man with a real pedigree in 'real' truck design as he also happens to be the father of the Daf Super Space Cab--the one truck that finally took the battle to Scania and shook the Swedes down to the core. He now works for Mercedes (the Germans pulled off a pretty clever premier leagure transfer too wooing him away from the Dutch)... Notice the artistic 'treatment' of a futuristic tractor. Will we be seeing wind-cheating artics like this in 10-years time? What am I, some kind of future-guesser? Just sit back and enjoy the ride OK?... (Picture: THANKS TO Big Lorry Blog)

Labels: trucks future

TRUCKS': The past...

A nostalgic view to the sixties and seventies trucking pictures with 'Laydeeze' in unlikely overalls....

UK - Big Lorry Blog -15 Mar 2007: -- ... Either that or I've stumbled on the famous missing photo of secret tests of prototype lycra overalls for brewery wagon drivers and drayman which I sadly were never adopted--though for the life of me I can't think why not...(Picture: THANKS TO Big Lorry Blog)

Labels: older trucks

"GREEN" NEWS * USA - LA ports allocate $6.3 million to truck fleet upgrade

Los Angeles & Long Beach,Cal,USA -The Trucker -15 Mar 2007: -- In an effort to replace older, dirtier diesel trucks with newer, less polluting vehicles, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are allocating an additional $6.3 million in funding for the maintenance of the Fleet Modernization Program by the Gateway Cities Council of Governments... The bridge funding, the port authorities explained in a March 15 news release, will be used by Gateway Cities to continue the replacement of older harbor trucks in the short term as the ports complete the development of a truck fleet modernization initiative as outlined in the San Pedro Bay Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP) and approved by both ports’ harbor commissions last November...

Labels: green news

* Canada - Tariff committee recommends freight rate increase

Fort Erie,Ont,CAN -Truck News (CAN), by Steven Macleod -12 Mar 2007: -- The Tariff Advisory Committee (TAC) has recommended carriers raise their freight rates 4.9% effective April 2, 2007 and rates from or to Alberta be increased an additional 3%... If the trucking industry is to be successful in attracting capital and maintaining capacity, rates need to be increased, according to the committee... The driver shortage, labour cost increases and regulatory changes are just a few of the factors currently increasing costs for the trucking industry... TAC, a committee of the Freight Carriers Association (FCA), meets periodically to monitor economic conditions as well as the latest statistics on the profitability of general freight carriers...

Labels: freight rates

OOIDA's NEWS * USA

* Now 150,000 members strong
Grain Valley,Mo,USA -Truck News (CAN) -13 March 2007: -- North America’s largest owner/operator association has reached a new milestone, reaching the 150,000 member mark... The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has grown from just a handful of truckers in 1973 to its current membership of 150,000... "I think the reason we've seen all this growth is simply because we have delivered on our commitment to professional drivers," says Todd Spencer, OOIDA executive vice-president. "And the members themselves help spread the word to each other about the need for greater participation. To reach the 150,000 mark, you can bet there has not been much idling going on around here.”...

* Dates for OOIDA’s next business seminar approaching
Grain Valley,Mo,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 15, 2007: -- OOIDA is partnering with a community college in the Kansas City area to offer its second three-day seminar on the business aspects of trucking... The next seminar is scheduled for April 3-5 at the Blue River Community College campus in Blue Springs, MO, just east of Kansas City, MO...

Labels: OOIDA news

PRODUCTION * USA - Nissan abandons heavy duty plans

USA -MotorTrend Magazine, by Kirill Ougarov -15 March 2007: -- Nissan has suspended plans for a heavy-duty version of its Titan truck, according to an Autoweek report... According to Nissan product development chief Carlos Tavares, the company decided that, at least for the time being, the cost of developing the necessary components to field a heavy-duty truck was not worth the potential return, especially considering the potential volatility of today's truck market due to ever-increasing gas prices...

Labels: production

MARKETS * VietNam - Tax on specialised trucks to be raised

Hanoi,Vietnam -The VietNamNet Bridge –15 Mar 2007: -- The Ministry of Finance (MoF) is considering raising import tax rates on trucks in order to protect local production... The import tax rates on over 20 tonne tracks will be raised from 15-20% to 25-30%. The rates on used trucks will be 1.5 times higher than brand new vehicles... MoF said that the tax increase would have big influences on vehicle users, especially the transport companies which have high demand for trucks. It is estimated that with the new tax rates, the prices of trucks will be 8.3-8.7% higher than the current levels...

Labels: taxes policy

DEBATE: Border Plan * USA/Mexico

* USA - Senator critical of DOT and ‘lack of communication’ over Mexican trucks
Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -March 14, 2007: -- U.S. Senator Mark Pryor, D-Ark., today sent a letter to Department of Transportation Secretary Mary Peters expressing his concerns about the agency’s plans for a pilot project to allow Mexican trucks to operate beyond their current limits. Noting his “disappointment” with the Department and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s “lack of communication” with the regard to the Feb. 23 announcement of the pilot program, Pryor reminded Peters that he had asked her about the status of such a plan during her confirmation hearing last September...

* USA - Public Citizen sues over pilot plan; FMCSA says it's making 'good faith' effort
Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -March 15, 2007: -- Public Citizen says it has filed suit against the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) on behalf of a highway safety organization to compel the agency to release information about a “controversial” program to allow Mexico-domiciled trucks on all U.S. highways...

* USA - FMCSA responds to criticism of NAFTA pilot program
Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -March 15, 2007: -- The U.S. Department of Transportation’s announcement in February of a pilot program to allow 100 approved Mexican carriers beyond the narrow, close-to-the-border trade zones has predictably sparked heated response... Recently John Hill, administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), responded to some of the criticism... Hill said under the pilot program, a Mexican driver must pass a medical exam administered by an agency within the SCT (Mexico’s equivalent of DOT), provide proof of residence, proof of age, provide a certificate of secondary education to prove he or she has studied English, and provide a driver training certificate performed by a SCT-accredited training center. If a training certificate isn’t provided, the SCT will administer testing, he said...

* USA - OPINION - Trucks from Mexico: Try it
Albany,OR,USA -The Albany Democrat Herald -15 Mar 2007: -- Peter DeFazio, our congressman from the 4th District, continues to work against allowing Mexican trucking companies to operate in the United States. He says he’s worried about safety, but what is the evidence that Mexican trucks would be driven any less safely than those already on the road?... DeFazio reported from Washington Tuesday that he had just held a congressional hearing on the U.S. plan to allow 100 Mexican truck companies to operate on U.S. highways... If the United States and Mexico are ever to have normal trade relations — not characterized by millions of illegal immigrants and workers sending money home — then the Mexican economy is going to have to be improved. That’s what the North American Free Trade Agreement was supposed to accomplish, among other things. It hardly makes sense for the United States to drag its feet any further in carrying out the parts of the treaty that deal with trucks...

Labels: mexican's trucks

* USA - Governors Highway Safety Association supports speed governors

Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker -7 Mar 2007: -- The Executive Board of the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) voted unanimously to support a petition to require speed governors to be set at no more than 68 mph on trucks weighing more than 26,000 pounds. Speed governors are devices fitted to the engines of vehicles to limit their maximum speed... The petition was filed by Road Safe America and a consortium of trucking industry leaders. In January, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced that the petition was open for public comment until March 27...

Labels: speed limiters

STORY * India - There are around 2,000 houses in the village and almost 1,200 trucks

Kutch village turns its trucks from bane to boon
Ratnal,Kutch,India -Daily News & Analysis (Mumbai,India), by Anshuman G Dutta -March 15, 2007: -- In the ‘90s, Ratnal village in Kutch was known as a village of widows. Every house in the village had a truck and a widow, with each family losing one member — in most cases, the breadwinner — to accidents... Now, things have taken a turn for the better and the village is on the road to prosperity. The change is a result of the adaptability and tenacity of the residents. Ratnal has shed its infamous tag and is now known only as the hub of the trucking industry. “The village witnessed tragedies because most truck owners did not have experience yet drove the vehicles themselves. Or, they hired untrained village youngsters,” says former gram panchayat member, Bhurabhai Ahir. The bad roads of Kutch contributed to the problem...

Labels: story

Fuel additive * USA - It's one way to reduce emissions in troubled Texas region

Sometimes adding one thing can help take something else away

TX,USA -Land Line Magazine -15 Mar 2007: -- ... Texas Commission on Environmental Quality demands that all fuel, including biodiesel, meet the strict standards of the Texas Low Emission Diesel program, also referred to as the TxLED program. The commission recently approved a product called Oryxe LED, the first-ever biodiesel additive to be approved for use in Texas by fuel producers to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions, also known as NOx... Produced by the California company Oryxe Energy International, the product can be added to biodiesel blends up to B20 – which is 80 percent petroleum diesel blended with 20 percent biodiesel...

Labels: fuel additive

Tax break * USA - For biodiesel could be extended until 2017

Washington,DC,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 15, 2007: -- Producers of biodiesel could continue to get tax breaks until 2017, and federal officials say that will help ensure a competitive price at the pump for renewable fuels... A bill introduced Wednesday, March 14, in the U.S. Senate would extend the existing $1-per-gallon federal excise tax credit and income tax credit on pure biodiesel by 10 years... The intent of the law, which dates back to 2004, has been to entice producers to build more plants and add capacity, National Biodiesel Board spokeswoman Amber Pearson told...

Labels: tax break

RULES * USA - Red-Light Cameras

* Nevada bills would OK red-light cameras, stricter seat-belt rule
Nev,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 14, 2007: -- A couple of bills moving through the Nevada Senate are intended to make the state’s roadways a little safer... The Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee voted Tuesday, March 13, to approve a bill that would allow red-light cameras to be posted throughout the state and another bill that would permit police to pull over drivers for failure to buckle up... Another bill offered by Nolan, that is headed to the Senate floor would allow for primary enforcement of the state’s seat belt law. Currently, law enforcement officers in the state can issue seat-belt citations to drivers only after stopping a vehicle for another traffic violation, such as speeding...

* Texas bills target red light cameras
TX,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 12, 2007: -- A handful of bills in the Texas Legislature would either rein in or eliminate cities’ use of automated cameras... The cameras, which snap pictures of red-light runners or speeders’ vehicle tags, have been authorized in various cities throughout the state since 2003. Tickets are mailed to vehicle owners, regardless who was driving at the time... A bill offered by Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Chairman John Carona, R-Dallas, is intended to make the use of red-light cameras less lucrative for local coffers. The bill – SB125 – would cap fines for running red lights and require cities to share fines generated by the cameras with the state...

Labels: rules

DANGEROUS DRIVERS

* USA - Montana man’s magical mystery tour
Montana,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 14, 2007: -- Apparently, when you already have five drunken-driving convictions, you’ll try almost anything to get out of a sixth... The proof is a Montana man who crashed his pickup truck into a light pole in Billings recently... When asked who was driving, the 42-year-old man told responding police officers that it wasn’t his fault because he wasn’t driving the truck – a unicorn was behind the wheel at the time... The judge didn’t buy the unicorn story, and charged the man with drunken driving and criminal endangerment...
* Unicorn wasn’t driving after all
Montana,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO,)by Reed Black -March 15, 2007: -- A lot of fun was poked yesterday at a story out of Billings, MT, where an alleged drunken driver who crashed his car supposedly told police officers that a unicorn was driving... It seems veterans in the prosecutor’s office have their own code words for defendants who say they weren’t driving. The prosecutors call it the “unicorn defense.”... When the case went to court, Deputy Prosecutor Ingrid Rosenquist – who didn’t know about the code words – saw “unicorn defense” on a memo from another lawyer in the office, and told the judge the driver had claimed a unicorn was driving...

Labels: dangerous drivers

MARKETS SHARES

* USA - YRC Worldwide Ranks Number One in its Industry for the Fifth Consecutive Year on the FORTUNE Magazine Annual List of America's Most Admired Companies
Overland Park,Kan,USA -PRNewswire-FirstCall -9 Mar 2007: -- For the fifth consecutive year YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq: YRCW - News), one of the largest transportation service providers in the world, has been ranked Number One in its industry on the FORTUNE Magazine annual list of America's Most Admired Companies. In addition, YRC Worldwide ranked number one in all eight categories, an exceptional recognition achieved by only 11 other companies...

* USA - Con-way Ranked No. 1 in Transportation and Logistics on FORTUNE's 2007 List of 'America's Most Admired Companies
SAN MATEO, Cal,USA -PRNewswire-FirstCall -March 8, 2007: -- Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW - News) announced today that it was named the most admired company in the transportation and logistics industry on FORTUNE's 2007 list of "America's Most Admired Companies."...

Labels: market shares

Big Rig Accidents * USA - Texas, tops list for most fatal ones

Tx,USA -txcn.com/11 News, by Dan Lauck -March 12, 2007: -- A new study released Monday said Texans have good reason to be nervous about sharing the road with big rigs... The state is number one when it comes to deadly big rig accidents... Texas, on average, kills 100 more people a year than whatever state is second...

Labels: big rig accidents

TRUCKERS' STORIES

* Canada - Solidarity - NBers ride to the rescue

Moncton,CAN -canadaeast.com/Times & Transcript, by Aloma Jardine -March 13th, 2007: -- Moncton's Norm Short and his wife Linda are packing up to head south with an extra special cargo. After reading about the plight of Terry and Deborah VanDuzee in Monday's Times & Transcript, the Shorts agreed to carry Terry's possessions, which have been in a storage locker in Moncton for more than two years, to the VanDuzees' North Carolina home free of charge... (Picture: Greg Agnew/Times & Transcript)

* USA - Trucker claims half of richest U.S. jackpot -
Tickets share $390M prize
Dalton,Ga,USA -The Edmonton Sun/AP -March 8, 2007: -- A Georgia truck driver stepped forward yesterday to claim one-half of a $390-million US jackpot, the richest lottery prize in U.S. history... "I'm still numb," Ed Nabors of Rocky Face, Ga., about 150 km north of Atlanta, said in a deep Southern drawl... He elected to take home his winnings in a lump sum, instead of annual instalments and will receive $116.5 million before taxes...

Labels: drivers' stories

PRODUCTS

* USA - International outfits ProStar with increased horsepower

Warrenville,Ill,USA -Truck News, by Steven Macleod -13 Mar 2007: -- International Truck and Engine revealed it will offer its new Class 8 tractor – the flagship International ProStar – with a 600-hp engine for buyers seeking the higher-performance engine as well as the tractor's fuel-efficient, aerodynamic features... International ProStar tractors with the Cummins 600HP ISX engine are expected to be available early this summer... (Picture: The new International ProStar comes equipped with Cummins ISX engines from 385 to 600 horsepower)

* USA - Eaton’s hybrid technology to be commercially available this year

Indianapolis,Ind,USA -Truck News, by James Menzies -13 Mar 2007: -- Visitors to the Work Truck Show last week had the opportunity to take part in a hybrid ride-and-drive hosted by Eaton to get a feel for the technology that will soon be widely available to the industry... Demonstration vehicles included chassis from International, Peterbilt and Freightliner, each equipped with an Eaton hybrid electric system... The Eaton system will be commercially available this year through most major North American OEMs, the company announced at the show...

* USA - Willis APU manufacturer offering do-it-yourself installation program for fleets

Sparks,Nev,USA -Truck News, by Adam Ledlow -13 Mar 2007: -- Auxiliary Power Dynamics, manufacturer of the Willis APU, has recently begun offering fleets a unique installation and service training program for fleet technicians... The program is available to fleets with their own maintenance facilities that make qualified purchases of the Willis APU... The program has been introduced in an effort to avoid the downtime and loss of business often associated with APU installation; an inconvenience which APD officials say deters many fleets from installing APUs at all...

Labels: products

* USA - International Truck to build engine factory at Jetplex

Airport authority OKs sale of 30-acre lot for $1.8 million
Huntsville,AL,USA -The Huntsville Times, by Marian Accardi -March 14, 2007: -- A 300,000-square-foot plant to assemble International Truck and Engine Corp.'s new "big-bore" diesel engines for heavy-duty trucks is expected to be completed by next March... The Huntsville/Madison County Airport Authority on Tuesday authorized the sale of a 30-acre lot in Jetplex Industrial Park North to International Big Bore Diesels LLC. The plant will be about a quarter of a mile northwest of the existing 700,000-square-foot Huntsville plant - International Diesel of Alabama LLC, a subsidiary of International Truck and Engine Corp...

Labels: production

MARKETS * Japan -Vehicle Sales May Fall in 2007 on Truck Slump

Tokyo,Japan -Bloomberg, by Naoko Fujimura -March 15, 2007: -- Vehicle sales in Japan, the world's third-largest auto market, may fall to a 23-year low next fiscal year as truck sales are expected to decline following a surge in demand triggered by new environmental rules... Sales of cars, minicars, trucks and buses may drop 2 percent to 5.52 million vehicles in the 12 months starting April 1, from an estimated 5.63 million in the current business year, the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association said in a release today. Truck sales may fall 11 percent, leading the decline...

Labels: market

* USA - Why trucks shouldn't pay more

Yorktown,VA,USA -The Daily Press (Newport News,VA), by John Thayer-Smith -March 14, 2007: -- ... Yes, trucks are on the roads, but there is not one item that we all own or use that is not carried by trucks - items for building homes, food for the stores, on and on is the list. It may even surprise some people that the roads were built by the use of trucks... So before we stick it to the trucking industry with increased fuel and registration costs, think about who is going to have to pay for these costs in the long run. You don't have to be too smart to work that one out. Now where will the money come from? It will come from everybody, not just the people who drive on the roads... The trucking industry is already struggling. Increasing its costs without a return will only put more trucks out of business - a sure way to increase the price of products we purchase...

Labels: comment

Abuse of Power * Saudi Arab - Security Officers Warned Against

Jeddah,Saudi Arab -The Arab News, by P.K. Abdul Ghafour -14 March 2007: -- Saudi Arabia’s security chief yesterday warned his officers that they would face tough punishment if they abuse people and misuse their power... “We won’t show any leniency toward such officers,” local newspapers quoted Lt. Gen. Saeed Al-Qahtani, director general of public security, as saying after opening the newly built traffic department headquarters in Riyadh on Monday. “If security officers are found mistreating individuals or misusing their power they will be given the toughest punishment...

Labels: abuse power

Report * Ireland - The Local Freight Trucking Industry Features 2007 Current And 2008 Forecast

Estimates On The Size Of The Industry
Dublin,Ireland -Business Wire -March 13, 2007: -- Research and Markets has announced the addition of "2007 Worldwide Local Freight Trucking Industry Report" to their offering... The Local Freight Trucking Industry report features 2007 current and 2008 forecast estimates on the size of the industry (sales, establishments, employment) for the 47 largest world countries. The report also includes industry definition, 5-year historical trends on industry sales, establishments and employment and estimates on up to 10 sub-industries, including moving services, furniture hauling, liquid transport, and animal transport... Countries Mentioned: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Rep, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Venezuela...

Labels: reports

COMPLAINS * USA - "Where are the cops?" I rarely see any on the road

Maine woman lobbies for full monitoring of driving time
Washington,D.C.,USA -Associated Press/MaineToday.com (Portland,ME), by BART JANSEN -March 13, 2007: -- A Maine woman is lobbying the federal government to require the installation of recording devices on all cargo trucks in an effort to fight driver fatigue, which she said killed her son in 1993... The Transportation Department issued a proposal this year requiring data boxes on 465 trucks to monitor the number of hours driven, but the founder of Parents Against Tired Truckers, Daphne Izer of Lisbon, Maine, contends that devices should be installed on all 700,000 trucks on the road...

Labels: complains

DEBATE * USA - Rep claims corruption, scheming in Mexican pilot program

Washington,DC,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 13, 2007: -- Rampant bribery of public officials is commonplace in Mexico, and that should call into question the authenticity of any official documents provided by Mexican truck drivers, according to U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-OR... As the hearing got underway, DeFazio made it clear where he stands on the issue of Mexican trucks on U.S. highways, and questioned why Mexico isn’t letting U.S. trucks go south at the same time that Mexican trucks will be allowed to come north... And, he charged that the Mexican truck companies being chosen to participate in the pilot program are being “cherry picked” to represent only the best trucks and drivers...

* Public Citizen Sues to Block Mexican Trucks
Washington,DC,USA -Consumer Affairs -March 13, 2007: -- Public Citizen sued the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today on behalf of a highway safety organization to compel the agency to release information about a controversial program to allow Mexico-domiciled trucks on all U.S. highways... The nonprofit group Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with FMCSA in October 2006 for information about activities surrounding any program to evaluate Mexico-domiciled motor carriers that would be permitted to operate beyond the Mexico-United States border zone... Highway safety groups maintain that the administration's proposed project fails to comply with congressionally mandated safety requirements, which must precede implementation of a 2001 NAFTA order requiring the border to be open to Mexico-domiciled trucks traveling throughout the United States, and fails to comply with rules governing the conduct of pilot projects...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Tax Rate* USA - Maryland bills seek to increase fuel ones

MA,USA -Land Line Magazine -March 12, 2007: -- A couple of noteworthy state lawmakers in Maryland are calling for a boost to the state’s fuel tax rate to help fill the void for needed transportation dollars... Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., D-Chesapeake Beach, has proposed tacking 12 cents onto the state’s per-gallon fuel tax rates. The tax for diesel would increase from 24.5 cents per gallon to 36.5 cents while the gas tax would increase from 23.5 cents to 35.5 cents. Gov. Martin O’Malley is said to be “receptive” to the idea... During his State of the State speech, O’Malley highlighted the need for more transportation funds...

Labels: taxes policy

Fuel savings * USA - The green way to keep on trucking

London,England,UK -Financial Times (Subscr.), by Sarah Murray -March 12 2007: -- Last summer, a family in Oregon recently embarked on an unusual experiment. Using the package-flow technology developed by UPS, the global transportation company, the family saved $3.69 a day on fuel – almost $1,000 over the course of the year... When such savings are translated to UPS’s fleet of almost 94,500 cars, vans, tractors and motorcycles, the results satisfy not only finance executives but also those trying to cut the company’s carbon footprint...

Labels: fuel savings

Election * USA - Springfield man elected chairman of national trucking association

Springfield,MO,USA -The Springfield News-Leader /The Trucker -12 Mar 2007: -- A Springfield man has been elected 2007-2008 Truckload Carriers Association chairman, reported today... A swearing-in ceremony for Jim O’Neal, O & S Transportation president, occurred yesterday at the group’s annual meeting in Las Vegas... O’Neal said it was up to the industry to take back the issues of highway safety and driver wellness from safety advocates...

Labels: election

Roadshow * USA - Troubled by trucks?: Tell it to the feds

San Jose,CA,USA - The San Jose Mercury News, by Gary Richards -12 Mar 2007: --
* Question: Before we leave the subject of speeding, I want to introduce another aspect of the problem - big rigs. These guys race around like they're driving sports cars. Although I recognize that time is money to them, they should be made to adhere to the speed limit tailored to them. Hardly a day goes by that I don't hear on the traffic reports that one has jack-knifed or is lying on its side somewhere in the Bay Area, holding up traffic or worse. It can be argued that there are a variety of reasons for these mishaps, but I cannot help but feel that speed is a primary cause.
* Answer: The rules of the road may be changing. There is an effort under way to use speed-control devices in big rigs to limit them to 68 mph or less nationwide. And the federal government wants your opinion, accepting comments from the public through March27. To weigh in online, go to http://dmses.dot.gov/ submit or mail comments to Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh St. SW, Nassif Building, Room PL-401, Washington, D.C. 20590-0001. You can also click on www.roadsafeamerica.org, which is run by a group pushing for the restriction.

Labels: complains

DEBATE * USA - President Opens Border to Mexican Trucks and Drivers

Washington,DC,USA -Human Events, by Phyllis Schlafly -12 Mar 2007: -- ... Our federal and state highways and bridges are among America's great assets; they enable us to drive freely and safely all over the country, and they belong to all of us, paid for by our taxes. But they are expensive assets; they require maintenance, repair and expansion due to rising population and traffic... To find out why the Bush administration ignores the comfort and safety of ordinary U.S. drivers, just follow the money. Big corporations are eager to have their made-in-Mexico-by-cheap-labor products delivered in the United States by Mexican drivers, who are paid 33 to 40 percent less than U.S. truckers... Over the last several years, there have been many fatal accidents caused by cars and trucks driven by Mexicans, legal and illegal. The most tragic and costly truck accident in Midwest history, resulting in the incineration of Rev. Scott Willis' six children in 1994, was caused by a Mexican truck driver's inability to comprehend warnings in the English language... Secretary Peters claims Mexican drivers will be able to understand English, but we are entitled to doubt Bush's enforcement of the English-language regulation. Mexican drivers unfamiliar with our roads and signage, plus language incompatibility, are a danger to all driving Americans...

* Time to let Mexican trucks hit the road in U.S.
Austin,TX,USA -Austin American-Statesman (subscription) -March 12, 2007: -- Long ago, the United States made a commitment that it has not yet kept, and the failure to follow through on that commitment is yet another irritant in our relations with Mexico. Mexican trucks were supposed to have been able to travel to U.S. destinations by 2000 under terms of the North American Free Trade Agreement. That hasn't happened yet because powerful interest groups have stalled that portion of the agreement for seven years.
Trucking regulation is the most arcane of topics, but the history of this unkept agreement speaks volumes about U.S. willingness to honor agreements it makes while insisting that other countries honor commitments they make to us... And while we're at it, let's compare the safety records of U.S. and Mexican trucks. John Hill, administrator of the federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said that in 2006 about 23 percent of U.S. trucks were taken out of service because they failed inspections compared with 21 percent of Mexican trucks that were sidelined... "Our data show that Mexican trucks are no less safe than U.S. trucks," Hill said... Bear in mind, however, that the inspectors are stretched thin, so the statistics can be a little shaky. But they're all we have at the moment... The pilot program deserves a fair shot, if for no other reason than to generate real data about the road worthiness of Mexican trucks. More important than statistics, however, is the worth of an American commitment...

* Con-way Freight Executive Testifies Before Senate Subcommittee - James P. (Phil) Worthington Supports Cross-Border Trucking Program with Mexico
Detroit,MI,USA -BusinessNews Detroit (press release) -12 Mar 2007: -- An executive from Con-way Freight, the nation’s leading regional less-than-truckload (LTL) freight carrier, appeared yesterday before a subcommittee of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. Con-way Freight-Southern president James P. (Phil) Worthington appeared on behalf of the American Trucking Associations, Inc. (ATA) at a hearing on “Long-Haul Cross-Border Trucking Operations with Mexico.”... Worthington spoke in support of an initiative announced last month aimed at expanding cross-border trucking operations with Mexico. The year-long pilot program will simplify freight delivery across the border by allowing U.S. trucks to transport freight directly into Mexico. Certain Mexican trucking companies will be granted rights to make freight deliveries beyond the roughly 20-mile commercial zones currently in place along the border... During his testimony, Worthington noted that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has increased U.S.-Mexico trade by more than 400 percent, while strict cross-border trucking regulations have meant delays and inefficiencies for motor carriers forced to transfer loads from one country to a neutral loading point before they can enter the destination country...

* U.S. Representatives seek audit of cross-border pilot program
Washington,DC,USA -Land Line Magazine (Grain Valley,MO) -March 12, 2007: -- Two influential members of Congress are asking the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General to make a thorough study of the planned cross-border pilot program involving Mexican trucks... Reps. James Oberstar, D-MN, and Peter DeFazio, D-OR, want the DOT to zero in on four areas:
* Hours-of-service compliance by Mexican drivers;
* Drug and alcohol testing standards in Mexico;
* How Mexican truckers will get U.S. insurance coverage; and
* Problems with incomplete or inaccurate data on Mexican trucks and drivers.
Oberstar chairs the House Transportation Committee, and DeFazio chairs the Transportation Subcommittee...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Hazardous material haulers * USA - May be monitored

Beaver County,PA,USA -The Beaver County Times, by Tom Fontaine -10 March 2007: -- Joe Johns, a truck driver from Lake Milton, Ohio, appeared calm for a guy about to drive five hours with a few thousand gallons of toxic liquid hooked up to his rig... Johns didn't appear concerned about terrorists targeting his shipment of ethylene glycol, an ingredient in antifreeze, though the federal government has stepped up efforts since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to safeguard all industries that ship hazardous materials against potential threats, largely by increasing regulations on companies and their employees... (Photo: The Times, by7 KEVIN LORENZI -- Joe Johns, of Lake Milton, OH, a truck driver for Interstate Chemical, of Hermitage, PA, leaves a refueling station at the Flying J Travel Plaza truck stop)

Labels: monitoring

Residents complain * UAE - Trucks use our lots...

Dubai,United Arab Emirates -The Gulf News -10 Mar 2007: -- Residents complain pick-ups use their parking space leaving them to search for parking for long hours near British Embassy in Bur Dubai... Brigadier Mohammad Saif Al Zafein, Director of Dubai Police’s Traffic Department, said trucks found parked in residential areas, as well as deserted areas will be confiscated for one month, the offender fined Dh500 and slapped four black points...

* Parkway signs you could drive a truck through

Boston,MA,USA -The Boston Globe, by Christina Pazzanese - March 11, 2007: -- Make up your mind! That's all tipster Joseph Drago wants the state to do about what he says is a confusing and maddening situation on the VFW Parkway in West Roxbury. Despite signs at key intersections stating that buses and trucks are not allowed, the parkway is often jammed with them, especially during the work week, he says... (Photo right by ARAM BOGHOSIAN/THE BOSTON GLOBE - Neighbors say trucks and buses simply ignore the signs barring them from the VFW Parkway in West Roxbury. "Fifty, sixty percent of traffic on the parkway are commercial vehicles," says one resident)

Labels: complains

STORY * USA - AAUW branch celebrates 62nd anniversary

Hagerstown,MD,USA -The Hagerstown Morning Herald, by MARIE GILBERT -March 12, 2007: -- Mary Jane Koontz was an Avon lady when she fell into an unexpected career opportunity. She became a truck driver... While selling beauty products, the Hagerstown resident said she became aware of a need for a local delivery service. Doing some research, she convinced herself that she could make such a business work... So with a mix of ingenuity, dedication and courage, she founded Hub City Express Inc., she also made history, becoming the first Washington County woman to own a trucking company...

Labels: drivers' stories

RECALLS * Japan - Mitsubishi Fuso Recalls Buses, Trucks

Tokyo,Japan -The Associated Press/Houston Chronicle (Houston,TX,USA) -March 9, 2007 — Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. is recalling more than 100,000 buses and trucks sold in Japan for faulty engine parts and alarms, the Transport Ministry said Friday... The ministry said 88,648 vehicles: Canter and Fighter trucks as well as Rosa and Aero Midi buses, produced between April 2003 and January 2007 are subject to the recall because of faulty engine parts, said in a statement...

Labels: recalls

TRUCKS PURCHASING * USA - Marines Order 400 Bomb-Resistant Trucks

If Vehicles Show Continued Success, Commanders in Iraq Want 6,700 More

Denver,CO,USA -Associated Content, by Eric Fleming -March 08, 2007: -- The U.S. military is getting a new ride, it was announced on Wednesday. Prototypes of the new combat truck, which has showed a great deal of success in withstanding roadside bombs, have been used in Iraq since 2004... The Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected (MRAP) vehicles were built by Force Protections Industries of South Carolina. During the last month, 400 more vehicles have been contracted for from that company, as well as Oshkosh Truck Corporation and three other firms...

Labels: purchases

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31.3.07

... Old Truck Cabs ??? ... A special Ford Transcontinental interior

DEBATE * USA - Spending bill passes; second bill to block Mexican truck pilot program surfaces

RESEARCH * USA - ATRI measures impact of ACE truck e-manifest system

AWARD * Canada - Local trucking company honoured

Reclamations * USA - California ports exploit truckers

PRODUCTS * USA - Trucking Along for Maximum Profits

Truck Tonnage Index * USA - Increased in February

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

TRUCKS' MARKETS WORLDWIDE

* USA - Woman Chases Stolen Trucks

DEBATE * USA - Head of agency says U.S. may have to pay $2 billion if Mexican vehicles are kept out

30.3.07

DANGEROUS DRIVER

Fighting * Poland - Railway and car transport companies to dispute for the market

Trucking tax * New Zealand - 'To be passed on to public'

PRODUCTS

Analysis * USA - Headwinds for truck engine makers getting stronger

Rig thieves * Canada - Hit the road

* USA - Are longer, heavier trucks the solution to freight capacity crisis?

DEBATE * USA - America shouldn't fear Mexican trucks

AUTOMAKERS ' NEWS

Put the brakes * USA - On bigger trucks for roads

Trucks banned * Australia - On city streets

28.3.07

‘Racism’ * USA - "Seen in Liberals" Opposition to Mexican Truckers

Hazards * USA - Cheap aftermarket brake actuators flooding market could present they

Trucking Shipments * USA - Drop by 1.7 percent

Report * USA - Fine diesel trucks that don't meet emission rules, then buy cleaner ones

Research * UK - Firm to collaborate with German company to build carbon fibre commercial vehicles

Highway Hero 2006 * USA - FedEx Freight driver it's

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

27.3.07

What will be the hottest trucking issues over the next decade?

PRODUCTS * Thailand - RFID-Based, Electronically-Sealed Cargo Information

DRIVERS' SHORTAGE * USA - Trucking companies don't have enough drivers for the long haul

97 feets long * USA - That string of trucks just got a little longer

DEBATE* USA - Mexican's Trucks

Lawsuit * USA - Ford worker took millions in kickbacks, officials say

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

Tax Incentive * USA - Missouri lawmakers proposes for trucking firms

Trucks in fast lane * Australia - Heighten hazards

Fury mounts * UK - After trucks block A14

24.3.07

Teamsters Protest * USA - Against Cummins, Inc. at Mid-America Trucking Show

Book * USA - The Truth About Trucking

BORDER NEWS

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

DEBATE * USA - Mexican's Trucks

23.3.07

Intrastate Truck Rules * USA - Washington state bill would change

Toll Road * USA -

Idling Reduction Devices * USA - Minnesota bill offers incentive to install they

22.3.07

"Vibrating Seatbelt" * UK ... OK ??? ...

Mid-America Truck Show * USA - Lots of axles...

Mid-America Truck Show * USA - ... a great big truck sandcastle...

DANGEROUS ROADS * Guinea - 70 reported killed in a truck crash

* USA - Ford recalls Super Duty trucks after tailpipe fires

Litigation * Jamaica - Government has brought against Daimler Chrysler/Mercedes Benz

* Greece - Old buses, trucks hike crash rate

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS

DEBATE * USA - Trial Run for Mexican Trucks Hits Roadblocks

DANGEROUS DRIVERS * South Africa - Nine-vehicle crash on highway injures 13

Opposes new state regulations * USA - That allow big rigs to use Route 27

RESEARCH * USA - Keep on Trucking -- Safely

Biodiesel * USA - Fleet testing reports success

TRUCKS

Lane Safety Systems * USA - FMCSA has eye on

Bill * USA - Proposed one, would increase truck GVW by 17,000 lbs

* Europe - Whether EU roads will be open for Turkish trucks depends on the Bulgarian/Turkish agreement

"GREEN" NEWS

Invents * Canada - to see what really happens inside a van trailer

TRUCK MARKET * China - Large-power trucks favored

20.3.07