trucks world news: September 2007

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* Sweden - Market body says VW can up Scania stake

Stockholm,Sweden - Reuters -Sep 28, 2007: -- Sweden's securities council said on Friday it has given German auto giant Volkswagen permission to raise its stake in truck maker Scania without needing to make a bid for the whole firm... The council said a law firm had submitted a request on behalf of Volkswagen, the biggest owner of both Scania and German rival MAN, to be allowed to buy more shares in the Swedish truck maker without triggering a compulsory bid... Volkswagen, which owns 36.4 percent of Scania's voting rights and 20 percent of its capital, already has permission to own as much as 49.99 percent of the voting rights without making a bid, the council added in a statement...

* Sweden - Volvo Trucks suffers sales fall, especially in the US

Stockholm,Sweden -New Europe/The Local -29 September 2007: -- Not all businesses are prospering. Volvo Trucks saw deliveries fall in the first eight months of the year, with a downturn in North American sales cancelling out improvements in almost every other market... The company sold 135,781 trucks between January and August, four percent down...

* USA - Cummins to build engines in Vietnam
Columbus,Ind,USA -AP/wlfi/News Channel 18 -September 29, 2007: -- Cummins Incorporated and a Vietnamese partner have agreed to collaborate on a joint venture to make diesel engines for highway use in the Southeast Asian nation... Cummins Chairman Tim Solso and a representative of the state-owned Vietnam Motors Industry Corporation signed the agreement Friday in New York... The company did say the venture first will assemble imported engine kits and later include locally made components as supplies become available... About half of Cummins' sales occur outside the U.S...

* Canada - Truck maker Paccar of Canada Ltd. to lay off 250 at Quebec plant

Montreal,QUE,CAN -The Canadian Press, by Andy Blatchford -September 26, 2007: -- Truck manufacturer Paccar of Canada Ltd. will lay off 250 workers at its Quebec plant on Oct. 12, a union representative said Wednesday... Richard Walker of the Canadian Auto Workers. which represents Paccar’s Quebec employees, said workers at the Sainte-Therese facility, north of Montreal, were advised of the cuts in August... But he added the truck manufacturing industry projects sales to rise next year...

Labels: truckmakers' news

TRUCKS PURCHASE * USA - Oshkosh Truck gets $16.8M order from U.S. Army

Milwaukee,WIS,USA -The Business Journal of Milwaukee -September 27, 2007: -- Oshkosh Truck Corp. has been awarded a $16.8 million contract to provide heavy equipment tractors and trailers to the U.S. Army, which made the order on behalf of a foreign military or international organization, the U.S Department of Defense said Wednesday... Most of the work on the M1070 heavy equipment transporter systems will be performed in Oshkosh, with additional work performed in Princeton, Ky.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Indianapolis; and Egypt. The work is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2009...

Labels: trucks purchases

Hazards and Headaches * USA - On a Mountain Road in Connecticut

AVON, Conn.,USA -The New York Times, by KEN BELSON -September 30, 2007: -- This picturesque New England town is filled with white churches, lush lawns and high-end boutiques. It has also developed a reputation for thickening truck traffic and some of the deadliest accidents in the state... The stretch of Route 44 that rolls west from Hartford, over Avon Mountain and into this town of 17,000 is Connecticut’s version of Dead Man’s Curve. Since 1995, 14 people have died in accidents on the road... About 23,000 vehicles a day make the trek in both directions, including more than 1,100 trucks, which are a constant cause for concern because of their size and the 10 percent grade of the mountain. Truck traffic has grown because more stores keep just-in-time inventories that demand constant replenishing. Increasingly, the truckers delivering the goods are unfamiliar with the local roads... Trucking companies agree that banning their vehicles on a major road like Route 44 will not only clog other roads but also raise the cost of delivering goods. They also say that by not widening roads, Avon’s traffic will only worsen... (Photo by Christopher Capozziello/NYT - Marcia Goldberg in her family’s furniture store in Avon, Conn. This month, an out-of-control truck crashed into the shop)

Labels: infrastructures

* Pakistan - HTVs an added menace to traffic

Heavy transport vehicles (HTVs), trucks, oil tankers, dumpers and loaders, bring chaos to the already troubled traffic of the city...

Rawalpindi,Punjab,Pakistan -The Daily Times (Lahore,PAK), by Imran Asghar -30 Sept 23007: -- ... Nearly four years ago, the Punjab Government had declared the timing of the entry of HTVs to be limited to 8:00 pm to 8:00 am in the city... This decision did not apply to oil tankers and other loaders because it did not specify this category of vehicles as well... Moreover, there were some spots in Rawalpindi which were used to get into the city illegally during daytime by the drivers of the HTVs... The HTVs had been the major cause of traffic jams and accidents in the city. The illegal entrances increase air pollution, pressure horns confuse drivers of other vehicles and create noise pollution...

Labels: trucks menace

Truckers Complain * USA - They claim route won’t work

Some Enid truckers see too many problems arising from an established truck route that took effect Aug. 26.

Enid,OK,USA -The Enid News & Eagle, by Cass Rains -September 29, 2007: -- The ordinance passed during the July 17 Enid City Commission meeting establishing the route as U.S. 412, U.S. 81, 30th from U.S. 412 to Willow, Willow from 30th to Van Buren and 4th from Willow to U.S. 81... Among the problems truckers foresee are increased traffic and congestion, loss of time due to the route and a planned widening project at Garriott and Van Buren, the two most major thoroughfares of the established truck route... Enid trucker Will Meyer said the truck route is costing him money because of the time he loses by not being able to take Garland or Rupe...

Labels: truckers complaints

Red-light cameras * USA - Also snaring Police

More than 520 tickets have been issued to public agencies since operation began

Houston,TX,USA -The Houston Chronicle, by MATT STILES -Sept. 28, 20074: -- Houston police commanders say the city's red-light camera enforcement program should increase safety at intersections by prompting "behavior modifications" in motorists... Not all of their own employees are getting the message, however... More than 100 Houston police vehicles moving through intersections without emergency lights were cited in the first year of the cameras' operation, according to ticket data... (City of Houston - A red-light camera catches a sheriff's vehicle)

Labels: red light cameras

Pension Deal * USA - UPS and Teamsters, Near

NY,USA -The Wall Street Journal, by Corey Dade -29 Sept 2007: -- United Parcel Service Inc. and the Teamsters union are closing in on a labor agreement that would restructure and possibly lower the company's pension obligations... The two sides are trying this weekend to finish hammering out a deal in which the Atlanta package-delivery giant would pull out of the Central States Pension Fund, the largest multiemployer program in the trucking industry...

Labels: truckers pension

Fuel Pricing * USA - Michigan bill target predatory one

MI,USA -Land Line Magazine, by Keith Goble -September 28, 2007: -- A bill that could draw consideration would make it illegal for fuel stations to limit the amount of fuel sold to customers... Rep. Jeff Mayes, D-Bay City, said the bill is intended to prohibit fuel stations from discriminating against consumers and protect against predatory pricing... The protections in the bill wouldn’t apply during emergencies declared by the governor... (Images from: michigan.gov)

Labels: fuel prices

Speed Limits * USA - Wyoming to test variable

The state of Wyoming is hoping to introduce a first-of-its-kind speed limit system on its interstates

WYO,USA -Land Line Magazine, by Reed Black -September 28, 2007: -- ... It’s called a “variable speed limit,” with the speed limit changing in response to weather and road conditions... Wyoming currently has a uniform speed limit for trucks and cars – and that won’t change... But in heavy rain or snow, digital speed limit signs will slow all traffic down, and speed it back up when conditions permit... Wyoming Department of Transportation Spokesman Vince Garcia told there will be a pilot program this winter on a six-mile stretch of Interstate 80 between Rawlins and Laramie... If the program goes well, Garcia said state officials hope to gradually introduce the variable speed limit statewide... (Photo from mostlyanecdotal.org: Road to Evanston Wyoming)

* Wyoming DOT looking for road condition reporters
WYO,USA -Land Line Magazine -September 28, 2007: -- The state Department of Transportation in Wyoming is seeking volunteers to call in real-time road reports... After a pilot program last winter, DOT officials say regular motorists who volunteered to call in reports did a good job of reporting road conditions... Now the program is going state-wide...

Labels: trucks speeds

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - OOIDA doubts benefits of satellite tracking of cross-border trucks

Grain Valley,MP,USA -Land Line Magazine -September 28, 2007: -- Leaders of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association expressed skepticism in response to the FMCSA’s announcement to establish a satellite tracking system as part of the cross-border trucking pilot program with Mexico... In a press release, officials from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration claimed that the system will monitor whether drivers are complying with driving time limits... However, OOIDA Executive Vice President Todd Spencer, commented that the agency cannot even currently do this with U.S. drivers, not without checking paperwork or other records... FMCSA Administrator John Hill did not elaborate on how a satellite tracking system would ensure that trucks and drivers from Mexico are in compliance with U.S. safety regulations or any other U.S. laws...

Labels: mexican's trucks

CARB’s proposed mandates * USA - OOIDA concerned by

California officials want trucks and trailers to be equipped with aerodynamic fairings and automatic tire inflation systems. They also want every truck stop parking space to be electrified and they want to triple fines for violations of next year’s five-minute idling limit

CAL,USA -Land Line Magazin,By Charlie Morasche -30 Sept 2007: -- The California Air Resources Board is scheduled to consider those strategies and 41 others in the agency’s greenhouse gas reduction plan at next month’s board meeting... CARB staff presented the amendments at a workshop Monday and acknowledged the rapid adoption process of regulations that the agency has discussed little with trucking companies, trade associations and others who will be affected by the rules... CARB also plans to beef up anti-idling enforcement and triple the agency’s $100 fines to $300 for drivers caught violating the five-minute idling limit, which is set to take effect Jan. 1, 2008... CARB is fast-tracking requirements that trucks traveling in the state be retrofitted with cab fairings, gap fairings, trailer skirts and single-wide tires to improve fuel efficiency, and plans to require some type of tire inflation monitoring or automatic inflation system by 2010... The draft plan regulation said the agency could phase in the faring requirement until 100 percent of trucks would meet the requirement by 2013... CARB estimates that adding either shore power or IdleAire-like direct access of heat and air conditioning to California’s remaining 6,600 truck stop spaces and 1,300 Caltrans rest area spaces would cost between $49.5 million and $132 million... California ranked 47 out of 49 states in its ratio of commercial parking spaces in a 2002 study by the Federal Highway Administration... Other early action measures include requiring electric-powered reefers at distribution centers and grocery stores and requiring electric hybrid medium and heavy-duty trucks and cars and light duty trucks. Those measures are considered to be not ready for implementation until after 2010, though CARB can speed up those time frames... (Photo Gallery from liloazngurlspice: Island farm truck)

Labels: regulations

Oil fee * USA - Would hurt locally owned truck stops

Here's yet another unintended consequence for Wisconsin if the proposed oil assessment fee is passed as part of the state budget

Madison,WIS,USA -The Capital Times, by James J. Goetz, vice president, Goetz Cos. -27 Sept 2007: -- ... Wisconsin's locally owned and operated truck stops and travel plazas would be unable to compete with truck stops and travel plazas in surrounding states... And big oil? They won't feel a thing... Experts who understand the petroleum business will tell you the oil assessment fee, if approved by the Legislature, would ultimately be passed on to consumers... Currently, truckers pay taxes under the International Fuel Tax Agreement, meaning they pay the prevailing tax in the states in which they travel. This helps ensure truckers don't bypass fuel stops in high-tax states. Unfortunately, the oil assessment fee would not be "IFTA eligible"... Ironically, the biggest unintended consequence is that the state would never collect the oil assessment fee dollars that they are counting on from diesel fuel because interstate truck drivers would not purchase fuel in Wisconsin. Clearly, everyone loses in the proposal except big oil... (Photo by businessinsurancespecialists.com: Truck stop of Madison, Wisconsin.)

Labels: fees and taxes

AWARDS * USA - Ohio Trucker Picks Up Two State Safety Awards

Cleveland,OH,USA -BUSINESS WIRE -September 28, 2007: -- The Ohio Trucking Association presented Dedicated Transport, LLC with both the 2006 Fleet Safety Award and the prestigious 2006 President’s Award at the Association’s Allied Industry Banquet held in Mason, OH on September 11th... The awards recognize Dedicated Transport’s outstanding dedication and accomplishments in the area of highway safety, said Frank Wagner, Dedicated Transport’s President & CEO. In 2006 the Company’s truck drivers logged over 3.5 million miles in the State of Ohio without a single recordable accident...

Labels: awards

Engines of Change 2007 * USA

Engines dominated equipment news in 2007, but that’s only the start of improvements underway

USA -Logistics Today, by Walter Weart -September 2007: -- ... The trucking industry is being buffeted from many directions with problems ranging from soft demand with resultant price pressures, record fuel prices and intense environmental scrutiny at all levels. If that was not enough, a driver shortage has required that trucking companies look to creature comforts in their trucks as one way to retain these employees... In addition, improvements are being made in a number of areas—from aerodynamics to “creature comforts” to fuel efficiency. None of these areas are receiving more attention though than fuel economy and greenhouse gas minimization... According to a 2002 study by Argonne National Laboratory, Class 8 trucks use 18 billion gallons of fuel per year. This usage is much higher than any other class of commercial trucks so it is understandable why efforts are being directed towards this area... Through a combination of new and old technologies, truck efficiency and comfort are clearly on the road to major improvements that will provide benefits for drivers, fleet operators, and the environment... (Photo by truckaccessoryguide.com: A 540 HP Turbine Truck Engine Prototype )

Labels: engines 07

Trucks only! * USA - ... On I-70 ?

USA -Fleet Owner -Sep 28, 2007: -- As a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) "Corridors Of The Future" program, developed to study innovative ways to reduce congestion and improve freight delivery, four states will study adding dedicated truck lanes to a portion of I-70... Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio will receive $5 million for the study, including $2 million specifically for Missouri to supplement its existing I-70 study to consider the truck lanes concept... (Maps from: www.i-70-hotels.com/maps/USA_I-70.gif)

Labels: infrastructures

S. Calif. Truck Plan * USA - Major industry groups ask FMC to investigate

Two major shipping and freight industry groups have asked the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission to take immediate action against a controversial port trucking re-regulation plan being proposed by Southern California port authorities

CAL,USA -American Shipper+ Shippers' NewsWire -27 Sept 2007: -- ... In what may be the first public salvo of industry action against the $1.8 billion truck plan, the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association and the National Industrial Transportation League have asked FMC officials to examine the ports’ plan for what the groups describe as “legal, logistical and anticompetitive impacts that will cause immediate economic harm”... In the 14-page letter to the federal agency requesting the review, the two groups also detail their assertions that the ports, during development of the truck plan, have violated portions of the federal Shipping Act... The ports’ Clean Truck Program, slated to start Jan. 1, would ban access to the ports’ terminals by truckers not obtaining a license from the ports... Port-licensed pre-2007 model year trucks would pay a “truck impact fee” for each gate entry at the terminals... The ports claim that the plan, if fully implemented, would eliminate up to 45 percent of port-generated truck emissions by 2012. Trucking firms must also agree to hire only employees, not independent owner-operators, to obtain a port license... In their letter, the PMSA and NIT League point out that the ports’ agreement with the FMC “is entirely silent on one of the most intrusive and anticompetitive portions of the Clean Truck Program -- the prohibition of independent owner-operators”... John Husing, a prominent Southern California economist, said that truck driver positions, support jobs and back office staff would all suffer under the ports’ truck plan. Husing’s analysis, which was presented to port officials several weeks ago, found that 376 trucking companies would vanish if the ports’ plan was implemented, along with just over 2,250 back office and support jobs. A calculation using numbers in the analysis suggests that at least 4,400 driver positions would be eliminated by the ports’ plan. An American Shipper analysis of the plan in July found that 6,150 driver positions would be lost because of the plan, along with close to 1,500 support positions... In addition, Husing told the audience that implementation of the program will likely result in more than a 50 percent short-term reduction in the port truck fleet, an 80 percent increase in shipping costs for surviving firms and “a slowly building crisis as lack of drivers and trucks means containers are not delivered on time"... (Picture from www.alwaysbeta.com - Los Angeles air pollution)

Labels: Clean Truck Program debate

* USA - Push to Keep 55 MPH Speed Limit for Trucks on Illinois Highways

From the Office of Governor Rod Blagojevich

Chicago,Ill,USA -illinoischannel.spaces.live.com -28 sept 2007: -- Governor Rod R. Blagojevich’s top transportation officials were joined today by traffic safety and law enforcement advocates in urging legislators to sustain the Governor’s veto of Senate Bill 540, which would have raised the speed limit for trucks in Illinois to 65 miles per hour... The Governor has fought to keep the 55 mph speed limit in place for trucks on Illinois highways for the safety of everyone who travels our roads... During Gov. Blagojevich's administration fatalities on state roads have dropped by 200 a year, the lowest levels since 1924... Other traffic safety measures signed into law by the Governor include:

* Chemical testing required for those arrested for hit-and-run;
* Harsher sentencing for causing a death while driving impaired; and
* Tougher penalties for driving on a DUI-revoked license.

(Pictures from www.islaiscreek.org: Truck Traffic on Illinois Street)

Labels: safety measures

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* Japan - Nissan adds diesel hybrid option to Atlas delivery trucks

Tokyo,Japan -Autobloggreen (USA), by Sam Abuelsamid -Sep 28, 2007: -- As part of it's Nissan Green Program 2010, the Japanese company is adding compressed natural gas and diesel hybrid variants to it's Japanese-market commercial delivery trucks... The CNG version is a pretty straightforward example, running on natural gas and getting low emission vehicle certification. It also gets an automatic start/stop to eliminate idle emissions. The diesel hybrid is a little more complex. It uses two separate drive mechanisms for the diesel and electric motor with a power take off. This allows the vehicle to continue running even if the electric drive has a problem...

Labels: truckmakers' news

Aluminium Bodies * UK - Thompson tips its hat at the aluminium tipper body market

Lancashire,England,UK -Biglorryblog -27 Sept 2007: -- Not content with cornering the steel tipping body market, Thompsons is now making a concerted drive into the market for aluminium bodies. And to support this thrust its upping its current production capacity to handle a new range of ally bodywork for 18, 26 and 32-tonne trucks... Thompsons' number one product for the aluminium market will be its Sandmaster, a body with one-piece pressed sides and top rail design that closely follows its steel Loadmaster body. However it says: "Improved features for aluminium bodywork are already being designed"...

Labels: trucks' bodies

AWARD * USA - Con-way Freight Wins Industry's Top Safety Award from ATA

Irvine, CA,USA -Trucking Info -28 Sept 2007: -- Con-way Freight, a leading less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation company and a subsidiary of Con-way Inc., is the recipient of the 2007 President's Trophy award for the Large Fleet category from the Safety & Loss Prevention Management Council of American Trucking Associations (ATA)... Officials honored the company at its Safety & Human Resources National Conference in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Sept. 21... Winners of the President's Trophy award have achieved superior safety records and demonstrated outstanding commitment to safety industry-wide and among all highway users... Con-way Freight previously won the President's Trophy in 1997, 2002, 2005 and 2006...

Labels: awards

Enhanced Security * USA - Most Trucks To Be Tagged At Port For

Starting Dec. 1, nearly every truck moving through the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles will have a “TruckTag”

Long Beach,CA,USA -Gazette Newspapers, by Kurt Helin -27 Sept 2007: -- The 25,000 trucks that usually move through the ports each day will be tagged soon... That tag is scanned and instantly can check a vehicle’s security clearance and time of arrival and departure. The program will be run by PierPass, the company that set up and oversees the nights/weekends port hours that began two years ago... The United States Department of Homeland Security has pushed for this program for some time... (Photo from defenseindustrydaily.com: American Science and Engineering's Z-Backscatter Vans)

Labels: border security

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - Qualcomm System to Monitor Trucks

Washington,DC,USA -AP/The Houston Chronicle (Houston,TX), by DAN CATERINICCHIA -Sept. 27, 2007: -- Chip maker Qualcomm Inc. will provide a satellite-based tracking system for all trucks participating in a U.S.-Mexico pilot project that for the first time allows the vehicles unlimited access to the other nation's roads... But critics of the trade agreement on Thursday questioned how the Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will pay for the technology since both houses of Congress separately voted to cut off funding for it... FMCSA said the tracking plan is being developed in conjunction with Mexican officials after both countries agreed to explore satellite technology as an enforcement tool... The systems will be installed at no cost to the trucking companies and will be used to enforce safety requirements, including hours of service and direct shipping standards, said FMCSA Administrator John Hill... (Picture by bbc (UK): Mexican trucks are currently tightly restricted north of the border)

Labels: mexican's trucks

Truck Insurance Claim * USA - What to Know When Making one

It is important to be aware of the process involved in making a truck insurance claim, as well as procedures to be followed on the scene of the accident

USA -Domains&Finance, Internet-and-Businesses-Online/fer-domain.blogspot.com, by Joe Trzepla -27 Sept 2007: -- While most truck drivers are very careful, various circumstances can lead to accidents and truck damage claims. This is, after all, the reason why truck insurance exists... In the end, the claims process is relatively simple. The driver files a claim and the truck insurance provider sends a claim adjuster to inspect damages, after which the truck insurance claim is processed and payments are made. In order for the claims process to go smoothly, it is important to have five pieces of information for your truck insurer: your story, the stories of other drivers involved in the accident, the police report, eyewitness accounts, and physical damage at the scene. To be sure to gather this information for your truck insurance company, follow these five steps... (Photo from: fer-domain.blogspot.com)

Labels: trucks insurances

Shocking Revelations * Canada - About Truck Driving Schools Leaving Many Concerned

They're sometimes called the knights of the road. But if you believe a new report, some of them may be more like nightmares.

Toronto,Canada -CityNews.ca -September 27, 2007: -- They're improperly trained truck drivers who pilot those big rigs that barrel past you on the highway. And according to the current rules, almost anyone can get a license to drive one without actually stepping behind the wheel of a full-sized tractor trailer to prove their competence... Licensing for big rigs is unregulated in Ontario, and many believe an influx of unskilled drivers is leading to tragic results on the roads... The driver has been charged in that case, although it's not clear where he learned his craft... But just days after the accident comes the revelation that there are a number of 'licensing mills' in the province and that getting a permit to drive one of the rigs can be as easy as taking a test using only a pickup truck hauling a horse trailer...

Labels: driving schools

Hit the Road * USA - Blog Tour Looking For Volunteers

Blog Tour USA will roll again in 2008

USA -blog-tour-usa, by joker -28 Sept 2007: -- Do you want to roll with it? Here’s your chance to get away, have some fun and create something... We are looking for 2 or more fools volunteers to hit the road and record their experiences on video and in blog posts. All expenses paid. Send us your ideas for your road trip. It can be on any topic or theme— it does not have to be real estate related... Let’s roll...

Labels: hit the roads

Complains * USA - Truckers Not Playing By the Rules

Trucking companies based in Beaumont are warning motorists about the dangers of trucks operated by out of state competitors

Beaumont,Texas,USA -KFDM/TV News, by Ashley Rodrigue -September 26, 2007: -- ... The locals say many out of state truckers are not playing by the rules, and they claim that puts you at risk on the roads... Rodger Allen says he and his workers travel the highways and byways in Beaumont several times a day. Every time, they do it legally, as opposed to some out-of-town companies that Allen claims are constantly breaking the law... (Photo from www.blogtourusa.com)

Labels: neighboring complains

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* UK - MAN unveils trucks for distribution and haulage

London,UK -Logistics Manager -27 Sept 2007: -- MAN has launched new ranges of trucks for distribution and long distance haulage. It has invested 100 million euros in the new trucks, designated TGS for distribution and TGX for long distance haulage. The models are equipped with D20 and D26 EGR common rail engines at ratings of 320 to 480hp... The trucks feature a lightweight design, including lightweight front axle suspension for the TGX. This contributes to an overall payload reduction of up to 120kg. Three cab options are available for both models..

* USA - Donaldson awarded Freightliner Masters of Quality Award
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Donaldson Co. received the Masters of Quality Award from Freightliner LLC... The award recognizes three Donaldson manufacturing facilities in the areas of accounting, marketing, purchasing, engineering and quality control. Freightliner has presented this award to the top two percent of its more than 1,800 supply base for the last 20 years. The Masters of Quality Award is the highest recognition that Freightliner gives to its suppliers, representing the best of the best among suppliers providing parts and components to Freightliner businesses...

* India - Piaggio zips ahead on four wheels

New Delhi,India -Daily News & Analysis (Mumbai,India), by Sindhu Bhattacharya -September 27, 2007: -- With the launch of a sub one-tonne truck and plans to establish a greenfield diesel engine facility, Piaggio Vehicles has kick-started its transformation from a three-wheeler maker to a complete light transportation vehicle (LTV) company... Piaggio, which set up shop independently in the country eight years ago, has also expanded its three-wheeler range by adding CNG cargo variant; LPG and CNG passenger variants are also being launched... (Photo: Piaggio 4 wheeler quadr

* USA - Freightliner considers moving jobs - The truck maker says it is looking into moving a "small fraction" of white-collar jobs out of Portland
Portland,ORE,USA -The Oregonian, by BRENT HUNSBERGER -September 20, 2007: -- Freightliner is considering moving portions of its white-collar work force out of Portland to the eastern United States, the company said Wednesday... The Portland-based commercial truck maker said it is studying moving several corporate functions to "an Eastern location," closer to Freightliner's branded truck manufacturing plants and its customers... It was not immediately clear what division or how many jobs might be affected, or when any move might occur...

* USA - Sterling Ranks Highest for Dealer Service in J.D. Power Study
Irvine,CAL,USA -Trucking Info -27 Sept 2007: -- Sterling Truck Corp. has received the highest overall ranking for Heavy-Duty Truck Dealer Service in the J.D. Power and Associates Heavy Duty Truck Customer Satisfaction Study... Sterling was the highest scoring brand for both the dealer facility and service price factors...

* Venezuela - To Build Plant for Russian Trucks Production

Caracas,Venezuela -Russia Info Centre (Moscow,Russia) -19 Sept 2007: -- Venezuela intends to build a joint plant for manufacturing Russian KAMAZ trucks, according to Venezuelan vice-president Jorge Rodriguez... This became known yesterday, September 18, at a press-conference within the framework of Russia-Venezuela business forum...

Labels: truckmakers' news

DRIVERS' AWARDS * USA

* UPS Freight driver earns national honor
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- UPS Freight driver William Gray Jr. of Cumberland, Md., has been named the American Trucking Associations' 2007 National Truck Driver of the Year.. The announcement came Sept. 21 at the ATA Safety and Loss Prevention Management Council's Fall Conference in Pittsburgh... Gray has driven more than 2.7 million accident-free miles in his 28-year career... ATA's National Truck Driver of the Year is selected from professionals nominated by state trucking associations... (Photo: William Gray Jr. also has coached youth softball and basketball)

* CFI honors drivers for reaching 3 million miles
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Contract Freighters has honoed three of its drivers -- Charles Beaty, Jon Smith and Larry Trexler -- for traveling 3 million miles. With these three honorees, only eight drivers in CFI's history have reached this career milestone... Beaty, who resides in Seneca, Mo., has been a CFI driver since 1981 and has been driving professionally for 36 years. Smith, a Joplin, Mo., resident, began his career with CFI in 1984. Trexler, a professional truck driver for 38 years, has been with CFI since 1979 and lives in Rockwell, N.C...

* Roadway driver reaches 3 million safe miles
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Roadway professional driver Al Adams has achieved the elite status of driving 3 million miles without a preventable accident. The 59-year-old has been with Roadway for 35 years. He is a long-haul driver working out of the Roadway service center in Copley, Ohio, and a member of Local 24 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters... Adams is a 2007-08 America’s Road Team Captain, is a member of the Roadway Road Team, and was the 2003 Driver of the Year for the Ohio Trucking Association...

Labels: drivers' awards

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA

* Nerman receives truck Blue Book’s 2007 Achievement Award
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Jerome Nerman, co-founder of Arrow Truck Sales Inc., received Truck Blue Book’s inaugural Industry Achievement Award during ceremonies at Truck Blue Book’s 2007 Workshop, held in San Antonio... Nerman started Arrow in 1950 from a small used truck lot in downtown Kansas City, Mo. Today, Arrow operates 18 retail locations across North America... Due to the significance of this award, it will only be given periodically to truly outstanding candidates within the industry...

* Bay & Bay Transportation acquires D&T Trucking
Rosemount,Minn,USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Bay & Bay Transportation, a national transportation and logistics company has purchased D&T Trucking Co. of Little Canada, a northern suburb of St. Paul, Minn... The family-owned business has specialized in reefer and dry freight transportation since 1959. The acquisition, terms of which were not disclosed, includes D&T’s brokerage company, Virtual Transportation...

* Schneider Logistics honored for 3PL performance
USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Schneider Logistics Inc. has been recognized as a Top 100 3PL Provider for 2007 by Inbound Logistics magazine. This is the 10th consecutive year the Schneider National unit has received the award and marks the sixth year in a row the company has placed among the top 10 providers...

Labels: trucking industry news USA

Safety changes * USA - On Avon Mountain

Hartford,CT,USA -WTNH, by Mark Davis -27 Sept 2007: -- The Department of Transportation revealed its plan for Avon Mountain today and officials say it will be completed by the end of the year... The DOT told truckers that they have rejected the idea of a traditional runaway truck ramp of gravel, similar to one on the Mass Pike in western Massachusetts. Instead, the plan calls for a narrow runaway truck lane with extra high barriers and a series of heavy-duty nets connected to cables on pulleys...

Labels: infrastructures

PRODUCTS & SERVICES * USA - Automated Software for Drivers License Background Reports

Corra Group recognizes the increased need for trucking and transport companies to source out their drivers’ DMV/MVR reports

Los Angeles, CA,USA -PRMinds (press release -Palaiseau,France) -27 Sept 2007: -- Corra is now providing an automated software system to trucking companies in need of DMV/MVR and CDL background checks. The California based company has recognized the increased demand in the trucking and transport industry... "As their insurance companies are no longer willing to provide for their policy holders Department of Motor Vehicle Records the trucking and transport industry is turning to background checking companies like Corra,” said Nick Gustavson, Co-Founder of Corra... "As trucking companies turn to us, we found it best to train them on our state-of-the-art automated system so that they can access driving records 24/7. With the software, they will have a permanent database of every driving record. The records are usually retrieved within minutes in most states,” he continued... Gustavson pointed out that many of Corra’s trucking clients elect to also run other background checks, including social security traces and criminal records... (Picture: Biglorryblog -UK-)

* Idle Free Systems Jordan's, not a finalist in Forbes.com's Boost Your Business contest

USA -eTrucker -27 Sept 2007: -- Robert Jordan, Overdrive magazine’s 2006 Trucker of the Year, was one of 20 entrepreneurs in the semifinals of Forbes.com’s first Boost Your Business contest... Jordan has built his business, Idle Free Systems, around a patent he owns. Jordan’s invention is an aftermarket device that makes a Class 8 tractor run somewhat like a hybrid. Energy generated by normal engine use is stored in five sealed, absorbed glass mat batteries, housed beneath the sleeper’s bunk. That reserve power then runs heating and air conditioning when the truck is stopped. The reserve batteries also can be charged by shore power and by reefer engines... Mack Trucks offers Jordan’s system as an option... Jordan says Chiquita Brands Inc. is testing his product, and he now offers a new hybrid system...

Labels: products and services

TRUCKS' MARKETS

* Nigeria - Russia worries Western "propaganda" scares Africa off from trade opportunities

Nigeria -African News Services/Trade Africa, by Chido Makunike -September 26, 2007: -- Russia's truck manufacturers say they're ready to do more business in Africa but their country's image problem may be getting in the way... "I am not sure that Africa pays enough attention to Russia," says Professor Vladimir Shubin, deputy director of the Moscow-based Russian Academy of Sciences' Institute for African Studies. "I think a good reason for that is the influence of Western propaganda based on events in Russia linked to Chechnya and the mafia, doing its best to portray Moscow as the backyard of Europe... From Angola to Tunisia, KAMAZ has been exporting trucks to more than a dozen African countries since the 1980s with growing potential in other regional markets...

Labels: trucks markets

Reducing Truck Traffic * USA - Morris planners offer ways to

New Jersey,USA -NJ Blog, by Al Frank -September 25, 2007: -- Morris County transportation planners today proposed a number of options to reduce truck traffic, including redeveloping environmentally tainted land near highway interchanges into new warehouse and distribution centers and extending rail freight lines... The county employs more than 63,000 people in industries that depend on the delivery of freight. Those job sectors, which include warehousing, retail and wholesale industries, are expected to grown an average of 12 percent during the next decade, the planners said in a report... To handle the load, the report recommends developing "freight villages" to concentrate the business in convenient and secure locations close to major highways and rail lines... The report notes one box car can hold three to four times as much as a single tractor trailer can carry... (Photo, from geocities.com: A Freight Car)

Labels: transport policies

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

Disc-Lock tests its Safety Wheel Locking Nut at Mid-America Trucking & Commercial Vehicle Show

+Los Angeles,Cal,USA -Ferret (Australia) -25 Sept 2007: -- Disc-Lock has tested its patented Safety Wheel Nut and improved Locking Lug Nut for Trucks live in front of all attendees at the mid America Trucking show earlier this year... Demonstrations on the Disc-Lock stand using a Junker Vibration machine shows how a standard two-piece wheel nut (Lug Nut) can be shaken loose in less than one minute by means of a Junker vibration test machine, while the DISC-LOCK Safety Wheel Nut remains secure...

Labels: products and services

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA

* Hub to buy intermodal trucking company
USA -Fleet Owner -Sep 24, 2007: -- Comtrak Logistics, a subsidiary of the third party logistics company Hub Group, is buying DNJ Transportation for $12.1 million... Founded in 1975, Cicero, IL-based DNJ is a privately held intermodal trucking carrier – primarily focused on international drayage for the intermodal sector – that employs 116 drivers, 60% of whom are owner-operators. Hub said DNJ’s revenue in 2006 reached some $14 million and should add 3 cents a share to Hub’s earnings...

* West Motor Freight Acquires Sanger Trucking
Boyertown,Pa,USA -Trucking Info -25 Sept 2007: -- West Motor Freight, has acquired the assets of Sanger Trucking, headquartered in Fredericksburg, Pa. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed... The acquisition adds drivers and equipment and extends the reach of West's flatbed business. Forty tractors will be added to West's fleet, bringing the total number of tractors operated by West to 275... Since 2003, West has doubled the size of its fleet and currently offers services from five locations...

Labels: trucking industry news USA

More fuel taxes * USA - For less congestion

Several groups are calling for higher fuel taxes to generate funds for repairing and expanding U.S. roadways to help alleviate rising levels of traffic congestion

USA -Fleet Owner -Sep 25, 2007: -- W. F. Marcuson, III, president of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) said, “The recently released Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) report shows that Americans are now forced to waste more than 4 billion hours each year sitting in traffic, at an enormous $78 billion cost to our economy – $710 per peak traveler – and an immeasurable cost to our way of life. As a nation, we are failing to maintain even our current substandard conditions”... Marcuson said a fuel tax increase must be part of the answer, with a 10-cent per gallon increase projected to raise more than $17 billion a year, while costing the average motorist less than $10 a month...

Labels: tax policys

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLWIDE

* Sweden - Volvo reports weak total truck deliveries for H1

Stockholm,Sweden -Automotive Business Review (USA) -24 September 2007: -- Sweden-based Volvo's total deliveries of trucks from its four truck companies through August this year amounted to 135,781, which is a decrease of 4%, compared with the year-earlier period... Excluding Nissan Diesel, deliveries amounted to 119,109, a decrease by 16%, compared with the year-earlier period...

* USA - Universal Technical Institute and Freightliner LLC Announce a Technician Training Elective Program

Phoenix,AR,USA -PRNewswire/FirstCall -September 25, 2007: -- Universal Technical Institute, Inc. , a provider of technical education training, and Freightliner LLC, a manufacturer of commercial vehicles, announced today that they have agreed to launch a Freightliner-specific elective course targeted toward training top graduates of UTI's diesel program. As part of the agreement, Freightliner LLC will provide UTI with trucks, specialized learning aids and tools to conduct the elective course to support Freightliner's unique training needs...

* USA - Kenworth adds aluminum hubs
USA -Fleet Owner -Sep 26, 2007: -- Kenworth Truck Co. has introduced a new line of aluminum hubs for front and rear axles on its Class 8 trucks and tractors equipped with Bendix ADB22X air disc brakes. The new hubs will reduce nearly 80 lbs per axle from iron hubs and lower operating costs, the company said... For front applications the aluminum hubs are available with Bendix ADB22X air disc brakes on Dana Spicer rear axles rated up to 14,600 lbs., and for rear applications up to 23,000 lbs. (single), 46,000 lbs. (dual), and 69,000 lbs. (tridem)...

* Japan - Isuzu to launch global van in 2010
Tokyo,Japan -Automotive World (UK), by Andrew Mollet -26 September, 2007: -- Isuzu reportedly plans to release its first global commercial van in or around 2010 in a bid to boost worldwide sales as domestic sales stagnate... The Japanese truck manufacturer aims to develop a commercial van with a 1- to 2-ton loading capacity...

Labels: truckmakers' news USA

POLLUTION * Pakistan - Trucks on Kashmir Highway polluting capital’s environment

Islamabad,Pakistan -The Daily Times (Lahore,Pakistan), by Atif Khan -27 Sept 2007: -- Heavy traffic on Kashmir Highway is causing ‘irreparable’ loss to Islamabad and Rawalpindi’s environment besides causing fatal lung diseases to residents, reveals a recent study by the Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA)... Coming from Karachi and bound for Northern Areas and NWFP, around 2,000 trucks and six-wheelers use the 15 kilometres long Kashmir Highway as transit passageway through Islamabad every day. As these vehicles, by and large, are diesel run, they billow thick black clouds of smoke, polluting environment... (Picture from www.dkimages.com: Trucks in Sost, Pakistan.)

Labels: polluting trucks

BORDER TROUBLES WORLDWIDE

* Finland/Russia - Backlog of trucks causes congestion at Nuijamaa and Imatra border-crossing points as well as Vaalimaa

Helsinki,Finland -Helsingin Sanomat,Intl Edition -27 Sept 2007: -- The backlog of heavy goods traffic has once again created record-long queues at the crossing points from Finland to Russia... On Thursday night last week, trucks heading for the Imatra frontier station were stopped for the first time already on the four-lane portion of Highway 6 in Joutseno. The aim of the move was to avoid the trucks from blocking the highway in Imatra... (Photo by JUHA METSO/Helsingin Sanomat - On Saturday afternoon, the line of trucks at Vaalimaa reached a staggering 54 kilometres. At the same time, the lines in Imatra and Nuijamaa were also both over 10 km long)

* Iran Closes Border With Northern Iraq
Sulaimaniyah,Iraq -AP/The Guardian (UK), by YAHYA BARZANJI -September 24, 2007: -- Iran closed major border crossings with northeastern Iraq on Monday to protest the U.S. detention of an Iranian official the military accused of weapons smuggling, a Kurdish official said... Five border gates were closed starting Sunday night and continuing Monday morning, leaving travelers and cargo stranded, according to officials and witnesses... The move threatens the economy of Iraq's northern region - one of the country's few success stories - and also appears aimed at driving a wedge between Iraq and the Americans at a time of friction over a deadly shooting in Baghdad involving the security firm Blackwater USA...

Labels: border troubles

Truckers health * USA - Included in study on depression

Firms should help unhappy workers

CHICAGO,Ill,USA -The Associated Press/The Trucker, by LINDSEY TANNER -26 Sept 2007: -- Investing in depressed employees — quickly getting them treatment and even offering telephone psychotherapy — can cut absenteeism while improving workers' health, a study suggests... The study involved 604 white-collar and blue-collar workers at 16 large U.S. companies. Employees included pilots, lawyers, bankers, truckers and janitors... Many employers view mental health coverage as a financial black hole, but the study shows that spending money on depression is a smart business move, said researcher Dr. Philip Wang. Wang works for the National Institute of Mental Health, which funded the study... Two other co-authors are employees of United Behavioral Health, the large managed-care company involved in the study, and own stock in UBH's parent company. The research compared UBH's usual mental health coverage with the experimental telephone-based outreach program devised for the research... Because of the study's results, UBH began offering a similar program after the study ended more than a year ago...

Labels: truckers health

TRUCKING STATISTICS * USA

* Truck Tonnage Index falls 0.8 percent in August

USA -eTrucker -25 Sept 2007: -- The American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index fell 0.8 percent in August, after increasing 0.3 percent in July... The not-seasonally adjusted index jumped 8.2 percent from July to 120.1...

Labels: trucking statistics

HOS * USA - Few Kansas rest sites

This state and others need more parking places for big rigs so truck drivers can rest when mandated by law, the drivers say

Salina,KS,USA -Associated Press/Kansas.com -25 Sept 2007: -- Truckers who are required by federal law to take rest breaks say they often have a hard time finding places to pull over in Kansas... Truck stop parking lots and roadside rest areas are often filled with idling 18-wheelers, especially in the evenings. That's a problem for truckers, who are required to pull over after 11 hours of driving and rest for 10 hours... Efforts are under way to address the parking problem. Congress has authorized increased funding to help states and communities to build more truck parking, and some states are testing technology to guide drivers to available parking places... (Photo by JoeinVegas/joeinvegas.blogspot)

Labels: HOS

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS * USA

* Cummins' 2010 heavy-duty engines won't use SCR

USA -eTrucker, by Avery Vise -24 Sept 2007: -- In 2010, the Cummins ISX will meet EPA requirements without using selective catalytic reduction... Cummins said its heavy-duty diesel engines that comply with the EPA’s 2010 standards will not require NOx aftertreat- ment, although its medium-duty engines will use selective catalytic reduction (SCR) technology...

Labels: truckmakers' news USA

Truckers respond * USA - Vast majority don't want to drive truck into Mexico

91.1 percent of truckers who responded to latest poll would not want to drive a truck into Mexico

Little Rock,Ten,USA -The Trucker News Services -24 Sept 2007: -- The vote is in and truckers have spoken decisively: given the choice, they would not want to drive a truck into Mexico... Responding to the question, “Given an option, would you drive a truck into Mexico?” As of today, 91.1 percent of the 485 who answered said “no.” Only 43 respondents (8.9 percent) said they would drive a truck into Mexico... The vote corresponds to a previous poll that asked the question: “Do you think allowing Mexican trucks to transport goods to America will hurt your income?”... To that question, 336 respondents (88 percent) answered “yes,” while 46 answered “no.” ... This week’s poll asks the question: “As fuel prices increase, fuel surcharges become increasing important. Does the fuel surcharge you receive adequately cover your actual fuel costs?”... (Photo from newsmax.com: Truckers Protest Mexican Trucks Program)

Labels: truckers' polls

INFRASTRUCTURES' FUNDS DEBATE * USA - NATSO, truckers and politico speak out against I-80 tolls

USA -eTrucker, by Kristie Busam -25 Sept 2007: -- ... According to the PennDOT, in a November 2006 report, the bipartisan Transportation Funding and Reform Commission recommended an annual investment of $1.7 billion a year to meet transportation needs for the Keystone State. Even at that level, the commission projected it would take 17 years to cut the percentage of structurally deficient bridges in Pennsylvania from 24 percent to the national average of approximately 11 percent... Pennsylvania has more than 6,000 structurally deficient bridges, the most of any state in the nation, and nearly 9,000 miles of highways in poor condition. PennDOT estimates the cost of repairing all of the structurally deficient bridges on the state system at approximately $11 billion... (Photo from city-data.com - The Truck on the Emlenton, Pennsylvania I-80 Bridge)

* FHWA must improve bridge oversight
USA -eTrucker -25 Sept 2007: -- The Federal Highway Administration can do more in the short term to improve oversight of structurally deficient bridges, the Department of Transportation's Inspector General told a Senate committee Sept. 20... Calvin Scovel, in testimony before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, highlighted bridge inspections and funding for bridge rehabilitation and replacement as significant challenges for DOT. Scovel made observations on FHWA's actions to address prior OIG recommendations regarding improving its oversight of structurally deficient bridges, and outlined actions that can be taken immediately to strengthen FHWA's oversight...

Labels: infrastructures

DRIVER'S STORIES WORLD WIDE

* Iraq - He says, "there is no other job" - For local truckers, job brings rewards, risks

Forward Operating Base Q-West,Iran -The Baltimore Sun (Baltimore,MAR,USA) , by Matthew Dolan -September 23, 2007: -- Compared with the American military, Khalid Nooh Karoomi looks like the most underdressed man at the war... The 52-year-old truck driver from a village outside the city of Mosul wears no helmet, no Kevlar vest, no protective goggles... His cab is not outfitted with armor, the latest bomb-sensing gadgetry or even a radio connecting him to his own military escort, who resort to beeping at him to get his attention in a supply convoy. His wife and six children live far away, and a visit to them every six weeks is a rare gift... Like many independent drivers of military goods across Iraq, Karoomi is alone... On a recent blazing afternoon, Karoomi waited, as he often does, for permission to leave the convoy storage yard at this base north of Baghdad. It is a fenced, prison-like yard within an armed camp of a military base. Truckers from various countries, but mostly Turkey and Iraq, must wait here to join one of the convoys... If they're hauling fuel or potable water, the wait might be a few days. Carrying an empty flatbed or nonessential goods means the stay here could last more than a week... Only when the drivers complete their routes are they paid, at least $250 per load, according to American military officials. Waiting here earns them nothing. On this day, 500 to 600 trucks stand idle, but at times their numbers have swelled to 900... Drivers sleep in their cabs or just outside them on cots. They shower in the open, on the gravel yard lined with rows of tractor-trailers... The conditions - long waits, limited food, no working showers - can lead to scuffles and fights among the drivers, so be careful. Smuggling of alcohol, drugs and other contraband, they add, is fairly common... Like many war veterans, Karoomi has the battle scars to prove his service. His truck was hit by a roadside bomb Oct. 4, 2005. He had no insurance, so the $4,000 to repair his cab came out of his own pocket, he says. His driver's seat still has puncture wounds where the shrapnel tore into the cushion... (Photos by ELIZABETH MALBY/Baltimore Sun -September 6, 2007: * 1 (above)- In the cab of his truck, independent trucker Khalid Karoomi recounts the time in 2005 when he was wounded by an Improvised Explosive Device that also caused major damage to his vehicle. When asked what he does to protect himself Karoomi answered, "I pray" - * 2 (below)- Truck drivers sleep in the shadows of their vehicles, the only shade available.)

* Nepal - Big adventure, wild ride for truck driver

Knoxville,TEN,USA -The Knoxville News Sentinel, by Linda Lange -September 23, 2007: -- Every aspect of life in Nepal interests Ed Main of Knoxville. With equal curiosity, he investigated truck stops. Main, a truck driver by profession, made his second trip to Nepal this spring... To strike up a conversation with local truck drivers, Main said, “They offered to let me drive their trucks"... But the poor condition of equipment and roads caused him to decline. “The last thing I wanted to do was have a clutch go out”... He complimented them on the highly decorated truck interiors and enjoyed convivial conversations. “I truly have deep respect for these men. They have to be good just to drive on their roads.”

Traffic is fast and chaotic. “They make turns across traffic by just turning, forcing oncoming vehicles to either stop or hit them. Traffic lines are ignored. Passing on any side of a vehicle is the norm. They honk to announce their presence as they pass. I asked people, ‘If your horn and brakes are busted, which one do you fix first?’ They all said, ‘Fix the horn. You can’t drive here without a horn.’ ”...

* USA - Hello from JB Hunt Driver

So after 9 months what do I think about trucking driving and JB Hunt? I'll tell ya...

USA -The Truckers Report,by Papadave -22 Sept 2007: -- ... Next I signed on with JB Hunt to do OTR with my wife. Our goal was to be and work together as a team although JB really doesn't have team loads... If you never want to be home then truck driving is the job for you. We no longer have a home. We've put everything in storage and the truck is our home. My wife has made it her "little apartment". We have a refrigerator, oven, coffee pot, and a port-a-potty "chair"... Perhaps the greatest difficulty of being on the road is to eat healthy meals and get enough exercise. This is a area that we are getting very serious about changing. We even have a small stair stepper machine on the truck. Recently we witnessed a driver who had a heart attack and died in his truck at a truck stop and it was very sad watching the county coroner take his body out his truck... Perhaps the greatest BS in our industry is the "Driver Shortage" scam. Basic ecomomics would tell you that if there was a shortage of drivers then driver pay would go up! Driver pay hasn't gone up in years! Why? Because there are plenty of new drivers starting every single day. The great injustice of this industry is that the companies prefer new drivers because they make more money with a low paid company driver... However, truck driving is just like many other industries - companies make their money off of entry level inexperienced employees. There is no shortage of new drivers! The companies love driver turn over!...

Labels: drivers stories

MEXICANS' TRUCKS COMMENTS * USA

* U.S. needs to honor its trucking deal

San Antonio,TX,USA -The San Antonio Express-News/mysanantonio, by Kyle Burns -22 Sept 2007: -- Is the United States still a nation in which a person's word is his bond and to not follow through on an agreement would be considered dishonorable?... In the past few months, a handful of Americans decided to show the world that some Americans would prefer to not honor our agreements... In December 1992, the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, was signed by Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Mexican President Carlos Salinas de Gortari. The agreement was then ratified by each country... In the U.S., NAFTA passed through the House and Senate in 1993 and was signed by President Clinton, who made the passage of NAFTA one of his major initiatives... A cornerstone of NAFTA is to allow Mexican and U.S. commercial vehicles equal access to each other's transportation systems for the delivery of goods and services... I believe the United States should move forward with this valuable pilot of the U.S.-Mexico cross-border trucking program. To not work with our neighbors, to not search for solutions and to not honor our agreements seems very un-American... (Photo: Trucks from Making Global Highway, Inc the 2nd Fastest Growing Company in San Antonio, TX)

Labels: mexican's trucks

Truck Security * USA - Preventing a Truck Hijacking

Simple set of guidelines can greatly increase the safety of both you and your truck

USA -Ebony Amateur Blogspot.com -23 Sept 2007: --
1. Be aware of your surroundings after picking up a cargo load. Most hijackings occur within a few miles of the loading location.
2. Be wary of people trying to stop your truck for accidents. If no accident is immediately visible, contact local law enforcement.
3. If you believe an attempt is being made to hijack your truck, do not stop the truck.
4. If you believe that you are being followed, contact local law enforcement.
5. Makes sure that windows and doors remain locked.
6. Do not allow the truck to be boxed in. Always maintain a wide space in front of and behind the truck.
7. When stopped in traffic, be aware of anyone approaching the truck.
8. Always carry information that identifies your truck, equipment, and cargo.
9. If a hijacking takes place, memorize as many details as you can and write them down at the first available chance for law enforcement.

Labels: trucks security

AWARD - * Polish Victory in Scania Young European Truck Driver 2007

Polish -Die Welt (Germany) -23 Sept 2007: -- Young European Truck Driver is a part of the global initiative set up by Scania in 2003 to promote responsible driving, highlight road safety and attract more young drivers into the profession. Marek Szerenos will now become an ambassador for the truck driver profession and a role model for other drivers.... Tom Sharkey from Ireland was runner up in the competition and Milan Jakubek from Slovakia came third... The road to the final wasn't easy for Marek Szerenos - not only did he have to come through an initial qualifying round and then regional heat in his own country, he also had to battle it out with ten other truck drivers in the Polish national final. In total over 16,000 young truck drivers under the age of 35 entered the competition from 27 European countries...

Labels: awards

DRIVERS' SHORTAGE * USA - Trucking industry always on the lookout for drivers

Lori Rand and her husband Mike Merriwether, both with college degrees plan, to start their new career soon as truck drivers

Las Cruces,NM,USA -Las Cruces Sun News, by Brook Stockberger -21 Sept 2007: -- ... "We're going to be a team," she said. "We think this is a great way to make a living and see the country"... Each day here in southern New Mexico, trucks roll past on one of the two interstates. Whether carrying produce, car parts, fuel or any number of a myriad of products, the big rigs head all directions, any time of day or night... The trucking industry is looking for drivers... "A truck driver will have a job tomorrow, for life," said Luis Garcia who is president of Mesilla Valley Training Institute, where Rand learned how to be a trucker... Larger companies such as Swift, which has 31 terminals across the country, are constantly hungry for drivers... "Swift has 15,000 trucks and they have training schools and they still recruit from us," he said. "You look in the paper and there're jobs galore for drivers"... (Photo: Swift Transportation Drivers)

Labels: drivers' stories

Peak-hour Ban * Dubai - Motorists stick to slow track as trucks defy

Heavy trucks continue to ply Sharjah roads during peak hours despite a ban, causing a major setback to motorists

Sharjah,Dubai,United Arab Emirates -Gulf News, by Mariam M. Al Serkal -September 22, 2007: -- ... Drivers of heavy vehicles weighing 2.5 tonnes or more were ordered to stay off Sharjah roads during peak hours or face stiff penalties.... Not every truck needs to pass through the city streets, as a few among them have had no choice but to go on the city streets because they have to pick up or offload their goods either from the Sharjah ports or the industrial areas... (Photo by Regi Varghese/Gulf News - Trucks and heavy vehicles during the morning rush hour)

Labels: streets' congestions

Clean Air Strategy * USA - Would further tighten restrictions

Aging truck fleets, wood-burning fireplaces and char broilers face changes if plan passes

Los Angeles,CA,USA -Los Angeles Times, by Janet Wilson -September 22, 2007: -- Air quality officials from Southern California and the state jointly announced a sweeping set of measures Friday aimed at improving Los Angeles' badly polluted air in time to meet a 2014 federal deadline... Targeted for possible ban, retrofit or replacement are aging heavy-duty truck fleets, wood-burning fireplaces in homes and char broilers in restaurants... Regulators are also seeking millions of dollars to retrofit Metrolink trains with anti-pollution devices, will ask the federal government to move more quickly on reducing emissions from locomotives, and will ask local governments in the four-county metropolitan area to use vehicle registration fees to replace municipal dump trucks and other diesel equipment... (Photo from LA, On the Street, by Frank: S 14 Fwy)

Labels: green news

The World's Biggest Pick-up Truck! * USA: "International CXT"

Ever found yourself wondering who makes the world’s biggest pick-up truck? It’s the mighty International CXT pictured above

USA -Biglorryblog (UK) -22 Sept 2007: -- Typical Japanese pick-up carries a one-tonne payload and isn't much bigger than a decent-sized saloon car. Well this baby’s air-ride cab stands nine foot off the ground and in the load bed of the massive 4x4 you can carry a cool six tonnes... Not that it will be a chore to drive either, having a five speed Allison automatic gearbox and the choice of all sorts of fancy interior trim options including individual leather trimmed bucket seats and DVD and satellite radio to complete this premiere performance vehicle. Of course you’ll need to have just under £60,000 to afford one but what the heck, you WILL have the biggest, toughest most extreme pick-up truck in the world. The only problem is then to find somewhere to park it...but with this off-road capability you can probably leave it anywhere you like...

Labels: biggest pick up truck

Hauling a big CAT dump truck? * UK - Then two trucks are better than one

UK -Biglorryblog/Bybo.net -22 Sept 2007: -- ... I'd simply mention that when it comes to moving a big CAT dumper (even one without the body) two low-loader trucks are better than one... only what happens when they come to a set of traffic lights in the middle of the road?...

Labels: big lorries

INSPECTIONS * USA - Colo. May Charge Overweight Trucks More

Denver,COL,USA -Associated Press/Forbes, by COLLEEN SLEVIN -21 Sept 2007: -- With the Western Slope oil and gas boom increasing heavy truck traffic, a government advisory panel looking for ways to maintain Colorado's highways is considering raising fees and fines for overweight trucks... Federal law allows trucks up to 80,000 pounds on all interstates and federal bridges, while Colorado permits trucks up to 85,000 pounds on state roads. Truckers hauling greater weights need permits that help pay for the extra damage done to the state's roads... According to the Department of Revenue, 1,756 trucks violated the overweight or oversized rules at the state's fixed ports of entry, a little less than 2 percent of the 92,680 overweight and oversized trucks checked in the last fiscal year. The state's mobile units, usually stationed along smaller highways, found 18,381 violators... (Picture from indymedia.ie: Dramatic Scenes At a Blockade)

Labels: trucks inspections

Road Safety ? * China - This trucking company leads the way

Jinhua,China -Moobol/CSR-asia, by Stephen Frost -22 Sept 2007: -- This and other pictures were uploaded by someone who followed the leaning truck of Jinhua for a while and thought it deserved wider publicity. It’s good for a chuckle (unless you’re the driver), but the more serious point is that people are watching. It’s also a good thing it wasn’t an international trucking company… Personally, I’m surprised the whole thing stayed upright...

Labels: road safety debate

HOS DEBATE * USA - Feds ask for delay of trucker hours rule

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration requested a 12-month stay from a mandate of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The court has ordered the daily driving limit be cut to 10 hours for long-haul truckers

Washington,DC,USA -CNN Money -Sep. 21, 2007: -- Government trucking regulators on Friday asked a federal court to delay a requirement that would reduce by one hour the time truckers can drive continuously... The agency backed the trade group's assertions that reducing the limit this month would be expensive and require it to retrain drivers and operating personnel, reprint logs, reengineer routes and make other changes... But safety advocates, including Washington-based watchdog group Public Citizen, have applauded the court's ruling because they say the industry is putting the public at risk by allowing truckers to drive too many hours... Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, said it filed a memorandum Friday opposing any stays of the new rule because federal regulators used the same tactic two years ago to maintain the old requirements... (Photo from tti.tamu.edu - Texas' trucks)

Labels: HOS debate

Mural-covered Truck * Canada - Keep on trucking in Afghanistan

Cobourg hauler and Whitby sign shop join forces to raise Canadian soldier morale

Whitby,Canada -News Durham Region (Durham,Canada), by Lesley Bovie -Sep 21, 2007: -- When Larry Josie makes his regular run from Montreal to Cobourg, his set of wheels will be telling the story of people like Juno Beach vet Albert Malo... The Cobourg truck driver is hauling a new trailer, dedicated to Canadians who have fought in past wars and who currently serve in Afghanistan... (WHITBY -- Larry Josie, right, owner operator of the tractor trailer in the background has a great deal of respect for Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan and our veterans, so much so that he had Chris McGregor, right, of Oshawa do the art work for the truck. Once the art was done, Whitby’s Sign Design installed it)...

Labels: trucks

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* Belgium - Fuel, not technology, limits green trucks

Brussels, Belgium -eTrucker, by By Avery Vise -20 Sept 2007: -- The adoption of climate- friendly trucks is limited only by biofuels, which are in short supply and uneven in quality, Volvo's CEO said Sept. 19... “The technology exists, but we need the fuels,” Leif Johansson, chief executive officer of the Volvo Group, told journalists and public policy experts... (Volvo's renewable-fuel trucks in front of Brussels' Arc de Triomphe)

* China - Oshkosh to supply trucks to Beijing airport

Beijing,China -China Central Television -18 Sept 2007: -- Oshkosh Truck has won a bid to supply firefighter trucks to Beijing Capital International Airport, as the facility continues its expansion plans for the upcoming Olympic Games... The agreement was signed Monday evening during a trade mission to China by the governor of the US state of Wisconsin, Jim Doyle... (Photo: Oshkosh® Striker® ignites confidence l)

* India - Truck makers gearing up for price increase
Mumbai,India -Moneycontrol.com -20 Sept 2007: -- Commercial vehicles are moving towards higher prices. That’s because from the first of October new safety features will become mandatory for certain trucks and buses produced from that date... Key among them is anti-lock braking system or abs, a feature that lets a driver brake and steer simultaneously. Abs, which is mainly seen in premium passenger cars, will be mandatory for multi-axle tractor trailers, double decker transport vehicles, buses with all-India tourist permits and buses plying in hilly areas...

Labels: truckmakers' news

TRANSPORTATION * Australia - Trucking group aims to adopt European system

Darwin,NT,Australia -ABC Online - 21 Sept 2007: -- The Australian Trucking Association (ATA) is keen to adopt European technology which involves putting more trucks on trains to reduce pressure on the transport system... It is called intermodal transport and is one of the concepts being discussed at the 23rd World Road Congress in France... The ATA's Northern Territory representative Peter Goed says it is a logistical challenge but worth considering... (Photo from wikipedia: An intermodal train carrying both shipping containers and highway semi-trailers in "piggyback" service, on flatcars, passes through the Cajon Pass)

Labels: transport systems

INFRASTRUCTURES * USA - Kentucky county considers rush hour ban on bridge truck traffic

Cincinnati,OH,USA -The Cincinnati Post -September 18, 2007: -- A group of mayors in Kentucky is currently deciding whether to support a proposal that would ban trucks from using the Brent Spence Bridge during rush hour... The Kenton County Mayors Group is considering backing the proposal, which comes from Covington, KY, Mayor Butch Callery... A study is currently under way to come up with a plan to replace the bridge, but that may not happen until 2020. In the meantime, Callery is suggesting the ban on rush hour trucks to supposedly help ease wear and tear on the bridge... (Photo from cincinnati-transit.net: I-71/75 BRENT SPENCE BRIDGE )

Labels: infrastructures

Skilled manpower shortage * India - In logistics sector

The Indian logistics sector of Rs 4 trillion, though it is growing at a very fast pace, is facing shortage in skilled manpower, a report said

New Delhi,India -The Economic Times -19 Sep, 2007: -- The rapid evolution of this industry in India both in terms of scale and scope of services is creating the need for a whole new set of skills along with an ever increasing requirement of skilled and trained manpower. While the cross section of industry players recognizes the critical need for manpower development in this sector, precious little has been done to investigate the core issues and identify initiatives to address this situation... To highlight this gap, KPMG in association with CII released a whitepaper titled ‘Skills Gaps in the Indian Logistics Sector’. The whitepaper was released at the CII organized Logistics Summit 2007 seminar held in Chennai today... (Photo from wikipedia: Adyar estuary, Chennai,India)

Labels: manpower shortage

MEXICANS' TRUCKS COMMENTS * USA

* Offensive Attacks on Trucks

Dallas,TX,USA -The Dallas Morning News -September 19, 2007: -- ... For them to label Mexico's trucking industry as too unsafe for U.S. highways is hypocritical at best and statistically dubious... But that hasn't stopped the Teamsters president, James Hoffa, from amping up the hysteria about the "dangerous" Mexican trucks heading our way under a NAFTA pilot program. Others warn that Mexican truckers will help smuggle illegal immigrants. Environmental groups are piling on as well... On Web sites and blogs, they paint an image of tequila-swilling Mexicans swerving their overloaded, smoke-belching 18-wheelers across our interstate highways, taking aim at soccer moms in minivans full of children... This is not a migration issue, nor is it about dangerous Mexican truckers on U.S. highways. It's about organized labor invoking Americans' worst fears to protect jobs and undermine the North American Free Trade Agreement... The time for this debate was during negotiations before NAFTA became law in 1994. Negotiators long ago concurred that it wasted time and money to transfer cargo from one truck to another at the border when a properly certified truck and driver from the originating country were capable of door-to-door delivery...

* How low can company driver pay go? Pretty low in Mexico

Grain Valley,MO,USA -San Antonio Express-News/ Land Line Magazine -September 18, 2007: -- The driver of the very first Mexico-based truck to come into the United States in the controversial cross-border program earns a mere 13 cents per mile and $20 per day for expenses... Luis González drove the first truck from Monterrey, Mexico, to North Carolina. He has more than 10 years’ experience and is among the company’s best, according to an article in the detailing the first delivery under the cross-border program... With more than 10 years of experience and an impeccable driving record like González reportedly has, company drivers in the U.S. can easily earn three times as much as González... An informal survey of company driver pay offerings with 10 or more years experience had many U.S. companies paying 40 cents per mile and up, with some companies reporting driver pay at 50 cents per mile with that kind of experience... As far as expenses go, the $20 a day González was paid is far below the $52 per diem allowed by the IRS for U.S. truckers...

* Another Mexican trucking company cleared to operate in U.S.
San Diego,CAL,USA -The San Diego Union Tribune -20 Sepy 2007: -- Two additional trucking companies – one from the U.S. and one from Mexico – are cleared to participate in the FMCSA’s controversial cross-border trucking pilot program... That brings the total number of officially approved trucking companies to four – two from each side of the border... The latest Mexican company is Transportes Rafa, based in Mexicali, Baja. The American company is IBC Inc., which is based in San Diego...

Labels: mexican's trucks

TRUCKING INDUSTRY COMMENTS * USA

* Trade with China is boon to industry of logistics

Los Angeles,CAL,USA -The International Herald Tribune, by James Flanigan -September 19, 2007: -- The huge wave of trade with China and other countries that has washed over ports in Southern California has been a boon to companies that once saw themselves simply as small warehouse and distribution businesses... Processing and distributing millions of freight-laden containers through the region and to the rest of the United States has become the largest source of jobs on the West Coast. But the overall growth in the industry is raising new challenges, as California regulators demand reductions in air pollution in the port areas and larger companies raise the pressure on smaller businesses... Small to medium companies exemplify the logistics industry, a fast-growing business of warehousing, trucking and freight forwarding on the cutting edge of technological and social trends, from Internet commerce to evolving Latino markets. Their businesses have grown along with the ports in Southern California, which now handle 44 percent of the merchandise imported to the United States, according to the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp.... (Rush hours at Los Angeles. Photo from: jrwoodward.net)

Labels: trucking industry comments

"GREEN" NEWS * USA

* "Green" logistics it's not an economic sector; it's a gang

Los Angeles,CAL,USA -The International Herald Tribune, By James Flanigan -19 Sept 2007: -- ... The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, California, the largest port complex in the United States, are also being required by state and local regulators to reduce air pollution from their operations or face a halt to needed expansion... In response, the ports have developed a plan that would sharply reduce air pollution during the next five years even as trade expands. As part of that plan, all trucks coming to take cargo from the ports will have to be replaced or retrofitted with new engines within five years... Husing, the economist who wrote the official analysis of the anti-pollution program, said a more expensive operation would result. But the reduction of vehicle emissions will allow expansion at the port... That will create, Husing estimated during an interview, "well over half a million jobs" in logistics. And logistics, he added, "is everything from wholesale trade, to truck, rail, air and water transportation, to general warehousing. It's not an economic sector; it's a gang"... (Photo from, ladpw.org - Aerial view Port of Los Angeles)

* Providing Fleet Management Technology to reduce Carbon Emissions and cut Fleet Costs - Donlen Corp. partnering with Sierra Club

Northbrook, Ill.,USA -Donlen Press Release -September 18, 2007: -- As more Hybrid vehicles and fuel management systems are making a positive impact on the fleet industry, both environmentally and economically, the Donlen Corporation is leveraging that progress in a new endeavor, aimed at reducing carbon emissions and unnecessary fuel costs for fleets across America. Partnering with the Sierra Club, America's oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization, the Donlen Corporation has tailored its Carbon Calculator technology for an environmental campaign now underway in more than 600 U.S. cities... (Photo: Donlen's headquarters in Illinois)

* USA - Automakers Suffer Defeat in Attempt to Stop State-Mandated MPG Standards
Detroit,Mich,USA -The Detroit Free Press -Sept 13, 2007: -- Automakers fighting CA and other states' requirements to combat global warming... Some states calling for cars to average 43 mpg by 2016 in order to reduce CO2 emissions... Federal judge in VT rejected attempt to block state-imposed fuel economy standards... Judge said industry had not proved the regulations were illegal, unsafe or unattainable
Environmental groups hailed ruling as historic victory... US EPA has yet to rule on whether CA can proceed w/ its standards, pledged to do so by end 2007... EPA has never declined similar requests by CA... CA set to sue if the waiver isn't granted...

Labels: green news

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* Hungary - DAF to be first heavy machinery maker to set up plant in

Budapest,Hungary -broadsheet Népszabadság/ Portfolio -September 19, 2007: -- DAF Group plans to set up its first engine manufacturing and truck assembling unit in Hungary in a few years, reported on Wednesday... The construction of the engine manufacturing facility is to be completed in three years, with the truck assembling plant to be set up only afterwards... Heavy machinery producers have built only logistics centres in Hungary so far and DAF is pioneering in establishing a factory here... DAF Hungary will continue to have marketing as its sole task... (Photo from: dbk.com)

Labels: truckmakers news

MEXICANS' TRUCKS DEBATE * USA -

* Mexican trucks show better safety records than U.S. counterparts

Washington,DC,USA -The San Diego Union Tribune, by Paul M. Krawzak -September 18, 2007: -- Mexican commercial carriers that have enjoyed a little publicized right to send trucks beyond a restricted U.S. border zone in recent years have a better safety record than their U.S. counterparts, federal transportation officials said Tuesday... The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said the carriers, who number 859, had only 1.21 percent of their drivers removed from service after they failed roadside inspections between 2003 and 2006... By comparison, the share of all U.S. truck drivers placed out of service after failing inspections – such as, for not possessing a valid driver license – was 7.06 percent for the same period... The figures, which are part of a larger study, are significant because they provide backing for the Bush administration's contention that a controversial pilot program allowing pre-approved Mexican trucks to travel throughout the United States is safe... ( Photo from: regularjoenews.com)

Labels: mexican's trucks

Trucking Accidents * USA - Act Fast in Trucking Cases

A trucking company is only required to keep the bulk of its records for a very limited time

Nashville,TEN,USA -Nashville Personal Injury Lawyer, by James Robin McKinney -September 18, 2007: -- One mistake made in truck accident cases is failing to move forward on the case quickly... Driver logbooks are only required to be kept for a period of six months. The logbooks are important if you are claiming driver fatique... The destruction of these records are commonplace in the trucking industry. They are only maintained for a period of six months... The logbooks are the shortest time for record retention in a truck accident case... (Photo from: millerandzois.com)

Labels: trucking accidents

TRUCKERS & DRUGS * Australia - Truckies caught in crackdown on drugs

Thirty-one truckies have been arrested in a police crackdown on drivers trying to bring drugs into Queensland

Queensland,Australia -The Sunshine Coast Daily -19 September 2007: -- ... Drugs including cannabis and amphetamines have been seized, as well as stolen property, during 10 operations over the last six months targeting truck drivers in the state’s south... “The use of drugs in the trucking industry puts drivers and everyone else on the road in danger,” Queensland Police Minister Judy Spence said today... Since these operations commenced this year, drugs have been located in 31 vehicles across the region, with 16 drivers caught in the operations conducted within the Warwick district alone...... (Picture from: work4travel.co.uk: Australian'a Road train)

Labels: drugs

TRUCKING INDUSTRY COMMENTS * USA - Heavy trucks' impacts can't be ignored

Madison,WI,USA -The Capital Times, by Dave Zweifel -17 Sept 2007: -- Everything from bread and milk to big SUVs and heavy equipment has to be delivered to keep the economy moving, and the nation has provided a highway transportation system that makes it possible for bigger and heavier trucks to lead the way... As truck traffic increases -- and it is growing by leaps and bounds -- our highways and bridges are having to be rebuilt with alarming frequency. Do you suppose that 3,000-pound cars damaged that I-35W bridge in Minneapolis as much as did those 40-ton semis that crossed it each day for 40 years?... But while we're saving money on the cost of delivery, how much are we being forced to spend to repair the damage to our transportation infrastructure? And how much are we paying for the loss of safety?... Sometime soon this nation must face the problems brought on by the deadly mix of big trucks and cars... (Static Bob's Photo Art Gallery)

Labels: trucking industry comments

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS * USA

* PRIMAAX Air-Ride Rear Suspension Offered on International Vocational Trucks
Woodridge,Ill,USA -Layover -17 Sept 2007: -- Hendrickson Truck Systems Group officials announce availability of PRIMAAX heavy-duty air-ride rear suspension on International trucks... International offers PRIMAAX 46,000-pound capacity (PAX 460) and PRIMAAX 23,000-pound capacity (PAX 230) suspensions on all PayStar and WorkStar series trucks...

Labels: truckmakers' news

TRUCKS' CONTROL * USA - DMV declares war on trucking greed

Roving state truck inspectors issued 514 violation notices to 110 trucks

Bridgeport,CT,USA -The Connecticut Post, by ROB VARNON -17 Sept 2007: -- ... pulled over Monday as part of a weeklong crackdown on truckers who officials say are putting profits before safety... Bill Seymour, a Department of Motor Vehicles spokesman, said there were 50 violations serious enough to prevent the cited trucks from continuing to travel... According to information office, 38 vehicles, and 13 drivers, were placed out of service. Inspectors issued fines of $23,730. Of the notices, Rell's office said, 375 were for mechanical violations and 139 were for drivers. More information on the safety violations will be available as the patrols continue this week... (Photo file townhall.com: The U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters, center, watches a truck inspection)

Labels: trucks inspections

Truckload Turnover * USA - ATA reports 11 percentage-point decline in large ones

The line-haul driver turnover rate among large for-hire truckload carriers (fleets with at least $30 million in annual revenue) experienced its first quarterly decrease in a year during the 2007 second quarter

Arlington,Va,USA -The Trucker News Services -18 Aug 2007: -- ... the American Trucking Associations reported... Driver turnover is for employee, over-the-road, line-haul drivers only, and does not include local drivers such as for port operations... ATA, which began collecting driver turnover statistics in 1995, reported that turnover for large truckload (TL) carriers was at a 116 percent annual rate during the quarter, down from a rate of 127 percent in the first quarter of the year...

Labels: trucking statistics

Safety Offenders * USA - Congressman says FMCSA too easy on repeat to

The federal government is not being tough enough on trucking companies that are violating safety laws

Washington,DC,USA -The Trucker, by Kevin Jones -17 Sept 2007: -- ... says Rep. Jim Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee... Oberstar, cited a recently released report by the General Accounting Office, compiled at the committee’s request, that concluded the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is identifying high risk carriers, but not following through with tough fines mandated by law... (From static bob photo gallery: A cantankerous cold blooded Peterbilt 359, on a cold blooded 30 degree morning)

Labels: complains

HOS DEBATE * USA - 40% of poll respondents favor 11-hour driving period

Almost 40 percent of the respondents to a recent poll on www.thetrucker.com indicated that they favored the current 11-hour driving period

Little Rock,ARK,USA -The Trucker -18 Sept 2007: -- ... Answering the question, “What do you think are the maximum number of hours a trucker should be allowed to drive within any given 24-hour period,” 365 or 39.5 percent, of the 926 respondents said 11 hours... Two hundred and sixty or 28 percent, responded that a trucker should be allowed to drive more than 11 hours in a 24-hour period; 213 or 23 percent, opted for 10 hours and 88 or 9.5 percent, said a trucker should be allowed to drive no more than eight hours in a 24-hour period... (Photo: The final trip for a good tool)

Labels: HOS debate

Study * USA - Drivers waste week of work sitting in traffic

U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters says congestion problem needs fresh approach

Washington.DC.USA-The Trucker/Associated Press, by STEPHEN OHLEMACHER -18 Sept 2007 -- Drivers waste nearly an entire work week each year sitting in traffic on the way to and from their jobs, according to a national study released Tuesday... The nation's drivers languished in traffic delays for a total of 4.2 billion hours in 2005, up from 4 billion the year before, according to the Texas Traffic Institute's urban mobility report. That's about 38 hours per driver...

Labels: studies

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA & Canada

* What will happen to transport stocks if the Federal Reserve cuts rates? May Move Trucking Sector
New York,NY,USA -Credit Suisse/barrons.com -17 Sept 2007: -- ... According to our analysis, it appears that truckload stocks are the clear outperformer as on average the Index appreciated over 20% 180 days after rate cuts during both the 1991-1992 period and the 2001-2003 timeframe. If the Fed begins to ease its monetary policy, investors may want to consider becoming more constructive on shares of truckload stocks. While we were surprised that less-than-truckload stocks did not show equivalent gains given natural leverage in the business, we note that the truckload typically recovers earlier in anticipation of an economic upswing...

* S&P: Swift Corp. ratings on ‘watch negative,’ trucking sector pressures cited
New York,NY,USA -The Trucker News Services -17 Sept 2007: -- Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services on Friday placed its ratings for Swift Corp., including the long-term ‘B’ corporate credit rating, on “CreditWatch” with negative implications. The CreditWatch placement reflects Swift’s somewhat worse-than-expected operating performance in recent months and concerns over its near-term operating performance given the slowing U.S. economy and the pressures currently being experienced by the trucking sector, according to the S&P report. Swift Corp. is the holding company for Swift Transportation Co. Inc., a Phoenix-based truckload carrier...

* Trucking trusts stuck for growth options
Canada -The Globe and Mail, by Boyd Erman -September 17, 2007: -- TransForce Income Fund used to run on a simple formula -- use debt to fund small acquisitions, watch needle on debt gauge climb to 1.5 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, head to capital markets touting 30 per cent annual revenue growth rate and sell units to lower debt... According to RBC Capital Markets analyst Walter Spracklin, TransForce is likely to keep buying, and privately owned companies such as Armour Transportation and XTL Group of Companies, could be targets if TransForce can find a way to get to the price... But, thanks to the changes in the trust world that limit the number of units TransForce can sell, debt is creeping up and the company must now look at alternative ways to keep funding growth...

Labels: trucking industry news USA and CAN

"GREEN" NEWS WORLDWIDE

* China - To hold first-ever 'no car day' on Saturday

Beijing,China -The China Daily/ AFP/gminsidenews.com (USA) -Sep 17, 2007: -- China will initiate its first-ever nationwide "no car day" this weekend in an effort to promote environmental health and alleviate increasingly gridlocked urban roads, state press said Monday... Residents in 108 cities will be urged to take public transport, ride bikes or walk on the nation's first "no car day" on Saturday... Government officials and state-run enterprise employees in some cities would be encouraged not to drive, while other urban centres would ban government-owned cars from taking to the roads altogether, it added... (AFP/File Photo: File photo shows motorists caught in a traffic jam in Beijing)

Labels: green news

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* India - Tata looks to enter world market - Indian maker of trucks, mass market cars would gain visibility by buying Jaguar and Land Rover

New Delhi,India -The Detroit News (Detroit,Mich,USA)/Associated Press, by Rajesh Mahapatra -September 18, 2007: -- For this former British colony, an Indian takeover of Jaguar and Land Rover would be a boost to local pride and a sign of India's economic rise... Many investors and industry analysts question whether a bid by India's Tata Motors -- maker of workhorse trucks and low-end mass market cars -- for the two luxury brands would make much business sense... (Photo by Aijaz Rahi / Associated Press - Ratan Tata's firm has only about a decade of experience selling cars, so buying Jaguar and Land Rover may not be a good fit)

Labels: truckmakers news

TRUCKING INDUSTRY WORLDWIDE

* Dubai - Swift Freight International Celebrates 18th Anniversary

Dubai,UAE -TNN -14 Sept 2007: -- Founded in 1989 by logistics veteran Issa Baluch, Swift is an international freight forwarder and logistics provider offering competitive options for sea freight, air freight, sea-air combined transport, overland transport, perishable transport, consolidation and multimodal transport solutions... From 12 employees in its inception, Swift now has over 500 employees, with 40 offices in 18 countries...

Labels: trucking industry

TRAILER-MAKERS * UK - M&S Cuts Carbon With Teardrop Trailers

Marks & Spencer is set to become the first company in the world to use a revolutionary, new articulated trailer, whose teardrop shape reduces CO2 emissions by 20%, when compared to a standard cab-trailer fleet operation

London,UK -TNN -14 Sept 2007: -- Following successful controlled testing of a prototype, M&S has ordered the first 140 trailers, which have been developed and manufactured by Don-Bur, the market champions for innovative and operationally efficient commercial vehicle bodywork... The lightweight trailer can carry up to 16% more load – equivalent to 10,560 extra pairs of knickers - than a standard trailer. Its aerodynamic shape also delivers a 10% fuel saving. This shatters the long-held belief in the trucking industry that you cannot improve fuel efficiency without compromising load capacity... M&S’ 141 Teardrop trailers will reduce its carbon footprint by 840 tonnes every year...

Labels: trucks' products

TRUCKS' REGULATIONS * Europe - VOSA Issues Low Emission Test Guidelines

* UK - VOSA's has published guidelines for vehicle operators on booking low emissions tests

London,UK -TNN -17 Sept 2007: -- Before applying for a first Low Emissions or Reduced Pollution Test, vehicle operators have to ensure that their vehicles are referenced on the Low Emissions Certificate (LEC) Eligible Engine or the LEC and RPC (Reduced Pollution Certificate) Approved devices list.VOSA will inspect and issue either an LEC or RPC for... The LEC/RPC test consists of a physical inspection and smoke opacity test...

Labels: regulations

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLWIDE

* Sweden - New Volvo Trucks investment in cab plant

Umeå,Sweden -Biglorryblog (UK) -14 Sept 2007: -- Volvo trucks it’s investing almost SEK 1.1 billion ( £74.3m) in its cab factory in Umeå... According to the official blurb the large dollop of dosh will be spent on: …"new production equipment as well as measures designed to increase capacity and flexibility in the production plant" ... Now it is the turn of the bodyshop to be modernised and redesigned to suit an entirely new level of technological advancement"... Previous investments have included the installation of a modern assembly line and a new paintshop – the world’s cleanest in terms of solvent emissions... The new adjusted permit to expand to 66,000 cabs per year was granted in April 2007...

* Navistar wins $71.5M contract to support MaxxPro parts in Marine MRAPs

USA -CCJ/eTrucker.com -17 Sept 2007: -- Navistar International Corp. announced Friday, Sept. 14, that its military affiliate, International Military and Government, has won a contract from the U.S. Marine Corps for $71.5 million to provide parts support for the Marine Corps’ International MaxxPro mine-resistant ambush-protected vehicles... The contract builds on the more than $1 billion in total contracts the Navistar unit previously has announced to deliver 1,971 MaxxPro units to the Marine Corps. The MaxxPro is designed to protect troops from roadside bombs, improvised explosive devices and other threats...

* USA - International cabs pass test

USA -Fleet Owner -Sep 14, 2007: -- International Truck and Engine Corp. has announced the cabs of its DuraStar and WorkStar trucks now officially meet the roof-strength requirements of both the European ECE R29 and SAE J2422 rollover crash tests... The OEM said these tests evaluate the overall structural and roof strength of truck cabs to ensure they can withstand forces from different directions as well as a 180-degree rollover to ensure firefighters are protected from injury. The cabs provide the required occupant survival space when tested with roof loads up to 25,000 lbs– exceeding the maximum requirement of 22,000 lbs by a comfortable margin...

Labels: truckmakers' news

INFRASTRUCTURE * USA/CANADA - Bridge must quantify truck emissions for twinning approval

Ambassador Bridge officials need to get a handle on the impact of truck diesel emissions from heavy trucks at the border if it hopes to win approval from Canadian authorities for a new six-lane twin span to Detroit

Windsor,Ont,Canada -The Windsor Star/Today's Trucking -17 Set 2007: -- The private bridge company is still in the process of preparing an environmental impact assessment that can pass muster with Michigan officials, and yesterday the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency handed down its own guidelines... Mark Butler of Transport Canada told the newspaper that the bridge must show that additional traffic flowing to the new cable-stayed span would not worsen air quality for nearby Windsor... The guidelines demand that the bridge company measure potential particulate matter and greenhouse gases. Noise and vibration impacts must also be addressed... The bridge company will conduct its own EA and present the findings to Ottawa for review... (Photo: Ambassador Bridge - Stamper is confident officials will see the merit of a twin span since it uses existing land and doesn't cost money to taxpayers)

Labels: infrastructures

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA -

* Schneider Logistics ranked among Top 100 3PL providers

Green Bay,Wis,USA -Truck News, by Adam Ledlow -17 Sept 2007: -- Schneider Logistics has once again been recognized as a Top 100 3PL Provider for 2007 by Inbound Logistics magazine. This is the tenth consecutive year Schneider Logistics has received the honour and marks the sixth year in a row the company has placed among the top 10 providers. The distinction is awarded to 3PL providers that have best demonstrated their ability to excel at meeting the changing needs and demands of their customers...

Labels: trucking industry USA

Is trucking for you? * USA - Only you can decide that.

Why Become A Truck Driver?

USA -Freida beeps/freidakluger.bwasupport.org, by By Joe Mullinax -16 Sept 2007: -- There are a great number of good reasons for someone to become a truck driver. First and foremost among those reasons would be the great pay. Did you realize that most truckers, their first year out on the road, earn an average of $35,000 a year? And finally, veteran drivers who own their own trucks make average salaries that are over $100,000 a year... BUT ... Trucking is not an easy job. I wont try to make it seem like it is. For one thing, youre away from home a lot... But even that, you do have some control over. For example, if youre the type who likes to be home quite a bit, there are truck driving jobs where the drivers are home every weekend, and in some cases, there are trucking jobs where the drivers are home every night. It must be noted though, that some of those jobs dont pay as well as the long haul jobs do... Is trucking for you? Only you can decide that... If you think that it is for you, the first step is to enter a truck driving school... (Truck America Training - Driver School & Training in Ky,USA)

Labels: trucking jobs

Truck Alert * USA - Mass. considers cowbells as

Massachusetts plans to revive an old-fashioned solution to the problem of truckers who ignore “low clearance” signs -- chains of cowbells

Boston,Mass,USA - The Boston Globe/UPI -16 Sept, 2007: -- ... The trucks are a major problem on Storrow Drive and Memorial Drive, parkways that flank the Charles River in Boston and Cambridge. In the 1980s, cowbells were hung across the highways to give truckers an audible warning in time to stop before hitting overpasses."Some folks are saying maybe we could put bells back on so that the truck drivers really notice the signs," Wendy Fox, a spokeswoman for the Department of Conservation and Recreation, told... Some critics suggest the cowbells could be dangerous if they become unattached and fly through windshields...

Labels: truck alerts

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - A valuable test

A pilot program to test the idea of allowing Mexican trucks full access to U.S. highways is a fine idea that should give U.S. commerce time to take some careful measurements

Monterey,CA,USA -The Monterey County Herald -16 Sept 2007: -- Dianne Feinstein notwithstanding... It's a one-year test that should answer the question of whether increased competition within the trucking industry will translate into savings for American consumers, manufacturers and producers... It should answer the loaded question of whether Mexican trucks are more dangerous as well as whether the Teamsters and others with truck-related labor contracts can co-exist with almost entirely nonunionized Mexican trucking... It also should tell us whether Mexican trucks, generally older than American trucks, can operate within our emissions standards... And, perhaps most important, it should give us a clue about the future balance of trade and an answer to what extent opening the truck lanes would help Mexican growers undercut their north-of-the-border competitors... It's probably best that it's only a test for now. If it were to be made permanent without study, it would be hard to support such a large shift in policy and practice. But it will take nearly a year for the federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to study the issues and just as long for the Environmental Protection Agency to assess the pollution issues... (Photo file: Seattle Times - Teamsters seek injunction against Mexican trucks in U.S.)

* Mexico - Says Safety Myths Blocking Its Trucks from U.S.
Monterrey,Mexico -News Max (USA) -September 12, 2007: -- A U.S. Senate decision to block funding for a test program to let Mexico's long-haul trucks operate in the United States uses outdated safety fears to mask protectionism, Mexican truckers and the U.S. government say... A truck crash in the desert of northern Mexico killed dozens last weekend when a cargo of explosives blew up, creating a huge fireball and crater in the road... That helped influence the U.S. Senate when it voted on Tuesday to block funding for a test program to let Mexican long-haul trucks operate in the United States under 1994's North American Free Trade Agreement... But Mexican truckers and the Bush administration say that kind of accident would not happen to Mexican trucks in the United States under the program... The 600 rigs that were due to take part in the one-year plan were new vehicles and safety checks on the U.S-Mexico border were tougher than for U.S. truck drivers... Checks are so tight that only one truck, from Mexico's northern city of Monterrey made it deep into the United States in the five days the project lasted... Robert West, an Americas trade expert at Global Insight consultancy, said U.S. lawmakers' resistance to the Bush truckers plan was more about politics and double standards in Washington. "Congress' position is duplicitous and sets back the time when the border will be truly open, as it should be under NAFTA," he said...

* U.S. Trucker Delivers in Mexico
USA -Life on the Road, by Wayne Weisser -16 September 2007: -- I think my opinion lies somewhere between Porter’s and Renee’s. I’m not thrilled about it, but just like the Canadian trucks, it’s going to happen. Most arguments the opposition uses can be used to get rid of the Canadian trucks too. Everything from security to the lower paid drivers... US trucking, in my opinion has so many more pressing problems, from the legal importing of too many drivers using h2b visas that flood the market and drive down rates to US companies running around with unsafe trucks, no insurance and even no authority. Including the ATA, PATT and a host of other groups trying to keep us from working. We could use some more enforcement on our own industry instead of blaming old problems on the new participants... Some said American truckers weren’t going to be allowed (or want) to drive in Mexico. Well, here you go, someone thinks it’s not such a bad idea...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Truckers' Health * USA - Danger on the Highways

Truckers moreover are the salt of the earth. Truck drivers, men and women , across the country are a vital cog in the wheel of the economy

Mooresville,NC,USA -trucker weekly.blogspot.com, by Jack Krohn -September 15, 2007: -- ... Interstate and intrastate commerce largely depends on the trucking industry to get goods from point A to point B. But they are jeopardizing their own lives and the lives of all on the roads with them... Their profession and resultant way of life leads to some very unhealthy eating habits, sedentary lifestyles-sitting most of the day while driving, and long hours resulting in poor sleeping patterns. They tend to be overweight just like most of their brethren in the rest of the country maybe even more so... All of these factors lead to pre diabetes, Syndrome X and sleep apnea and eventually to diabetes... The threat they pose of "sleep driving" or just falling asleep at the wheel is every bit as serious as an intoxicated driver and maybe more so. A study showed that people with sleep apnea were seven times more likely to have multiple car accidents... (Photo from dcguide.com)

Labels: Truckers' Health

DRIVERS' SHORTAGE? * USA - No wonder so many drivers stress out and have heart attacks?

Truckers' Questions Revised

USA -victimofthieves, by ElevenBravo /newsgroups.derkeiler.com -16 Sep 2007: -- ...
- If you make $8.50 an hour, at 70 hrs, and 50 weeks a year, you will gross $36,125 a year with over time?
- If you make $11.00 an hour, at 70 hrs, and 50 weeks a year, you will gross $46,750 a year with over time?
- If you make $10.50 an hour, at 70 hrs, and 41 weeks a year (6 days off a month), you will gross $36,592 a year with over time?
- If you make $13.00 an hour, at 70 hrs, and 41 weeks a year (6 days off a month), you will gross $45,305 a year with over time?
- $150 a week covers additional expenses of living on the road, $150 a week covers not seeing your family that week, truckers should receive$300 a week incentive pay for the road?

* Compare to $13 an hour, entry level construction job, $1105 per week (70 hrs with overtime) plus $300 a week incentive pay would equal $16.50 per hour or $57,502 a year with 41 weeks, or 6 days off a month?

Furthermore: - "Incentive Pay" also covers getting up in the middle of the night when you hear noises and make sure someone is not jacking your fuel or cargo?

Labels: drivers shortage

INFRASTRUCTURES * USA - Heavy trucks escaping road limits

In 10 years, only two citations for I-35W overweight loads were issued in Hennepin County

Minneapolis,MN,USA -Minneapolis Star Tribune (subscription), by Dan Browning -September 15, 2007: -- Renegade truckers who pack illegally heavy loads and haulers who don't understand Minnesota's complex truck-weight laws inflict an estimated $30 million a year in damage to state roads, bridges and railroad crossings... Yet state officials who oversee commercial vehicles are ill-equipped to deal with the problem, consultants hired by the state have concluded... Tighter State Patrol budgets, along with legislation allowing heavier loads for some industries, have made it harder than ever to enforce truck size and weight laws. Despite steadily increasing truck traffic, State Patrol overweight citations have dropped 21 percent since 2002... (Photo by Jim Gehrz/Star Tribune - Structural fatigue is one possible cause being investigated in the Aug. 1 collapse of the I-35W bridge. It’s impossible to know how many overweight trucks had gone over the bridge during its lifetime, but only 2 citations for excessive weight were issued on I-35W in Hennepin County in the past 10 years)

Labels: infrastructures

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* USA - Mack Hybrid truck for the US Air Force: "hats off to the Green Bulldog!!!"

USA -Biglorryblog (UK) -16 Sept 2007: -- ... The Americans are a lot greener than we sometimes give them credit for—or they are when it comes to building hybrid trucks... And the US Air Force will display Mack Trucks' hybrid technology at the forthcoming Hybrid Truck User Forum (HTUF) later this month. And it’s not just a static display either. The Mack Granite dump truck, built for the Air Force's Advanced Power Technology Office (APTO) and currently stationed at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, will be at the HTUF exhibition and ride-and-drive event... (Picture: The Mack Granite Hybrid Diesel Electric TruckEngine: Type: Mack Model: MP7 11-litre turbocharged diesel)

* Germany - Scania-MAN trucking tie-up off

Berlin,Germany -AFP -16 Set 2007: -- Plans to merge Swedish truck-maker Scania with Germany's MAN and parts of Volkswagen have been called off, according to a report quoting an unidentified manager involved... The two groups have stopped talking "and there is no chance of reaching an agreement" to create Europe's largest heavy truck-maker ahead of Volvo-Renault Trucks, the source told the German weekly magazine Focus...(Photo: New trucks of German industrial group MAN are lined up in Hanover in 2006. Plans to merge Swedish truck-maker Scania with Germany's MAN and parts of Volkswagen have been called off, according to a report quoting an unidentified manager involved)

Labels: truckmakers news

* Mexico - U.S. Truck Goes deep into

Trip comes days after Senate votes to end program

Washington,DC,USA -AP/The Houston Chronicle (Houston,TX), by SUZANNE GAMBOA -Sept. 15, 2007: -- A U.S.-owned commercial truck became the first to drive deep into Mexico on Friday, days after the Senate voted to quit funding a program allowing Mexican trucks to do the same in the United States... The U.S. Department of Transportation said a truck owned by El Paso-based Stagecoach Cartage and Distribution entered at Nogales, Mexico, across the border from Nogales, Ariz., late Friday morning. U.S. trucks had been banned from operating on Mexican roads... The truck was delivering a load of plastic resin to Obregon, Mexico, about 270 miles from the Arizona border...

Labels: usa's trucks to mexico

Independent Truck Drivers * USA - Have It Tough

It has never been easy to be an independent truck driver and with the high fuel prices, high cost of insurance and over regulations and bureaucracy; including out of control taxes it is a wonder that there are any Independent truck drivers left at all.

USA -Truck Driver Jobs -September 15, 2007: -- And the ones who are left are upside down in truck payments and are not making very much money... Indeed, I am deeply troubled with the Trucking Industry in the US and the number of “Independent Truck Drivers” who have been forced into BK and trucks repo’ed... I remember once talking to an OK State Trooper and he said that he could flag 95% of the trucks from Mexico with Out of Service tickets... It is amazing... Anyway, I understand all these issues having been in the Trucking Industry. I see the same problems with Independent Truck Drivers and Owners as the American Farm Family in America. There are issues, and no it is not funny at all; the larger companies force undo restrictions on the small business person, who then cannot compete, even if they lower price... Then what do we get? Well, we get the larger companies cutting costs to bare bones, hiring mal-contents and newbies and increasing accident rates, although they try to hide them at the GAO reports and modify the statistics at the DOT and then we get more restrictions and regulations... (Photo from ensign.ftlcomm)

Labels: independent truck drivers

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - It's about jobs

Closing the U.S. border to Mexican trucks is about jobs

Youngstown,OH,USA -The Youngstown Vindicator -September 14, 2007: -- Opponents of free and open long-haul trucking between Mexico and the United States have been focusing most of the public's attention on their contention that thousands of Mexican trucks eventually tens of thousands crisscrossing the country would present a danger to American motorists. Although provides far too many opportunities for smuggling, especially at a time when the United States is trying to tighten its border... That would certainly be true... But to be honest, the biggest factor in the minds of many of the opponents is the potential that cross-border trucking presents for Mexican truckers to take the jobs of American truckers... And we don't see anything wrong with American working men and women and independent businessmen who own and run their own rigs trying to protect their jobs...(Union-Tribune file photo - Northbound annual truck crossings at Otay Mesa, the third-busiest commercial crossing along the U.S.-Mexico border, have risen from 487,000 in 1995 to 796,000 last year)

* Hoffa: Bush creating North American UnionTeamsters boss: Mexican trucks part of 'master plan' for 'super-government'
USA -World Net Daily, by Jerome R. Corsi -September 14, 2007: -- Saying he is convinced "the Bush administration has a master plan to erase all borders and to have a super-government in North America," James P. Hoffa, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, celebrated the Senate's 75-23 vote Tuesday night to block the Department of Transportation's Mexican truck demonstration project... Hoffa argued that the Bush administration push to allow Mexican trucks into the U.S. is symptomatic of a larger administration plan advanced by multi-national corporations to create a European Union-style regional 'super-government' in North America...

Labels: mexican's trucks

REGULATIONS * Canada - Truckers adjust to new ones

Truckers, drivers, and owners of commercial vehicles will need to complete certain safety inspections of their vehicles every 24 hours if the vehicle is on the road

Winnipeg,Manitoba,Canada -The Daily Graphic, by ANGELA BROWN -September 14, 2007: -- Winnipeg-based Manitoba Trucking Association represents 280 corporations in the industry. Its general manager, Bob Dolyniuk, said a labour shortage threatens the industry in all capacities, including drivers, technicians and other positions... Other issues of concern in the trucking industry include added security challenges at the border and working towards becoming more environmentally friendly by reducing fossil fuel emissions... New federal regulations came into effect in January requiring drivers to take 10 hours of rest for each 24-hour period. Drivers can work a 14-hour shift, but must only drive 13 hours during that time... Dolyniuk worries the new regulations will result in a reduction in productivity... Federal regulation on inspecting vehicles based on national safety code standards, is planned to take effect on Jan. 1... (Photo by Angela Brown - Brandon truck driver Leonard Mears was on the job yesterday while taking a quick break in Portage la Prairie’s west end. Mears, who is a long-time truck driver, recognizes the need for industry regulations, but finds they can be challenging)

Labels: regulations

TRUCKING INDUSTRY ANALYSIS * USA - Firms’ woes to persist, analysts say

AR,USA -Arkansas Democrat Gazette, by LAURIE WHALEN -September 15, 2007: -- Financial analysts predicted third-quarter-earnings doldrums for publicly traded truckload carriers and pointed to the unimpressive start of the peak shipping season, which runs between August and October... This week, analysts at Milwaukee-based investment bank Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. reduced earnings estimates for seven truckload and less-thantruckload carriers to reflect a freight recession that’s entered its seventh consecutive quarter. Baird performs investment services for the companies it reports on... Much like 2006, this year’s peak season has failed to materialize, Jon Langenfeld, Baird’s transportation equity analyst, wrote in a Sept. 13 report...

Labels: trucking industry analysis USA

Watchdog Agency * USA - Criticizes truck regulators

US. regulators don't always use the maximum fines to punish trucking companies with "serious violations" of safety laws, a government watchdog agency said

Houston,TX.USA -Bloomberg/The Houston Chronicle, by ANGELA GREILING KEANE -Sept. 15, 2007: -- ... The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is required by law to levy "maximum fines" against truckers with a second major violation, instead of waiting for a third as it does now, the Government Accountability Office said in a report Friday in Washington... Maximum fines range from $11,000 for violations such as drivers exceeding the maximum hours allowed at the wheel to $32,500 for infractions involving hazardous materials, an agency spokeswoman said... The GAO said that under U.S. law, companies that repeat "serious violations" even once should receive maximum fines. The GAO found the trucking regulator didn't levy top penalties until companies reached a third violation... (Photo from CDL Truck Driving Jobs)

Labels: regulations

ROLLING ON * USA ROADS - Drug trade drives fear of Mexico trucks

Gonzales made history Sunday by driving the first Mexican truck into the U.S. beyond the 25-mile border zone under the North American Free Trade Agreement

Tucson,AZ,USA-The Tucson Citizen, by ELIZABETH "BJAY" WOOLLEY -14 Sept 2007: -- Luis Gonzales seems like a nice guy. The 39-year-old truck driver, married for 13 years with two daughters, likes discovering new people and places, and he enjoys the adventure of the open road... In the wee hours, this adventure-seeking truck driver for Mexican-based Transportes Olympic crossed the border at Laredo, headed for North Carolina... Company owner Fernando Paez is reported to have said, "We're only taking one truck just in case the Teamsters burn one of them. Hopefully, we won't have any trouble"... I wonder if that caused Gonzales' trepidation gauge to register in the red zone... He shared the road with motorists who did not want him there. According to a poll on TheTrucker.com, 87.9 percent of truckers who responded thought he was a threat to their very livelihood... (Photo: First mexican's truck certification in USA

Labels: mexican's trucks

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - Congress hurts trucking treaty

With the support of Congress, American consumers are being beat out of billions of dollars annually

Waco,TX,USA -The Waco Tribune Herald -September 14, 2007: -- Our national lawmakers pretend that the higher prices are a small price to pay to protect motorists from unsafe Mexican trucks... Don’t be fooled. The continued efforts to ban Mexican trucks from U.S. highways have nothing to do with safety. That’s a smoke screen... The lawmakers are motivated by money and votes, not highway safety... By a vote of 75-23, the U.S. Senate recently voted to cut off funding for a small pilot program that would allow qualified Mexican commercial trucks access to U.S. highways so they can deliver cargo to American customers... The International Brotherhood of Teamsters and other unions and groups have used their lobbyists to successfully block efforts to honor treaty agreements that allow trucks from Canada, Mexico and the United States to travel freely and deliver goods within the three participating countries...

Labels: mexican's trucks

Heightened Security * India - Stalls cargo traffic

India’s busiest container port is now witnessing a container backlog of over 10,000 twenty- foot containers

New Delhi,India -Livemint, by P.R. Sanjai and P. Manoj -14 Sept 2007: -- Asharp step-up in security measures following a recent theft of containers has sharply slowed cargo clearances out of Jawaharlal Nehru (JN) Port, which handles at least 60% of all container traffic in India, and is raising concerns about a potential logjam just when Christmas and New Year orders are starting to pick up... The container backlog comes follows the tightening of procedures by customs authorities and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) for screening trailers carrying cargo-laden containers after four such containers were reported stolen on 17 August...

Labels: security

Enforcing English proficiency? * USA - What about Florida?

The English proficiency regulation clearly spelled out in federal regulations is not enforced on the roadside in Florida because of a 1999 settlement agreement between the Florida DOT and a CDL holder of Hispanic origin

Grain Valley,MO,USA -Land Line Magazine, by Jami Jones -Sept. 14, 2007: -- ... The 1998 case stemmed from enforcement of 391.11(b)2 by the West Palm Beach Police Department... In November 1997, Antonio Cuba was cited for a violation of the statute. After a year of wrangling in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, the state and Cuba reached a settlement agreement. In the agreement, signed in February 1999, the state agreed officers on the roadside would not enforce the federal English proficiency regulation... The IG’s recent audit to Congress on the demonstration project cites the guidance issued by FMCSA in July and reports that the inspector must conduct the interview of the driver in English, gives strategies for communicating with “non-native” speakers of English and instructs the inspector to place a driver out of service for failing the test... Despite guidance that may or may not be fully distributed, the Florida settlement signed in 1999 has and continues to prohibit any roadside enforcement of the English proficiency regulation...

Labels: drivers' english proficiency debate

COMMENTS * UK - Truckmakers circle the wagons

In a market with fewer players and a more predictable customer base than for cars, truck sales on the continent have been ticking over well.

London,UK -The Financial Times, by John Reed - September 11 2007: -- While carmakers worry about fickle markets and tightening regulation in Europe, most commercial vehicle producers are on a roll. Surging demand for commercial vehicles in central and eastern Europe in particular is buoying the sector... Manufacturers are investing heavily in new capacity in the east amid a boom in construction and shipping in the new EU member states and the former Soviet Union... PACCAR, the Seattle-based, New York-listed group that owns Europe’s DAF brand, is projecting record or near-record growth in demand from eastern Europe this year... Demand for new large trucks in the region is forecast to double over the next four years, according to a Standard & Poor’s report published last month. The ratings agency forecast that demand would double to 101,000 by 2010, driven by high investments in infrastructure in new EU members and trucks’ increasing use over other freight transportation... The growth in the east has coincided with a recent spike in demand for heavy trucks in the UK, France and Germany. Upgrading of emissions levels on trucks to meet Euro 4 standards led many buyers to bring forward their buying programmes... In North America, meanwhile, truck sales have been sagging, eating away some of the gains producers are making in Europe. Volvo AB’s deliveries in the US were down 60 per cent for the year to end-July... DaimlerChrysler’s truck group sold 20,300 fewer units in the second quarter than a year ago...

Labels: truckmakers' comments

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

* Sweden - Volvo Trucks Invests Billions in Its Umeå Cab Factory
Stockholm,Sweden -BUSINESS WIRE (USA) -September 14, 2007: -- Volvo Trucks is investing almost SEK 1.1 billion in its cab factory in Umeå. The investment covers new production equipment as well as measures designed to increase capacity and flexibility in the production plant... Volvo Trucks’ cab factory in Umeå has undergone a number of changes in recent years. Now it is the turn of the bodyshop to be modernised and redesigned to suit an entirely new level of technological advancement. This latest investment encompasses the replacement of production equipment that is almost 20 years old. Previous investments have included the installation of a modern assembly line and a new paintshop – the world’s cleanest in terms of solvent emissions. The Umeå factory has its sights set on becoming entirely carbon dioxide-free within a few years...

* USA - Kenworth To Showcase Four Medium Duty Conventional Hybrid Trucks

At National Conference in Seattle

Kirkland,Wash,USA -Layover -14 Sept 2007: -- Kenworth will showcase four medium duty diesel-electric hybrid trucks at the 7th annual Hybrid Truck Users Forum (HTUF) Sept. 20-21 in Seattle at the Qwest Field Event Center... The national forum brings together fleets, suppliers and manufacturers to examine the latest in hybrid technology for the trucking industry... Kenworth's featured medium duty conventional hybrids will include a pickup and delivery truck, utility service truck, municipal aerial truck, and straight chassis... All four vehicles are equipped with a PACCAR PX-6 engine rated at 240 hp and 560 ft-lb of torque. The primary components of Kenworth¹s medium duty hybrids include an automated transmission with an integral motor/generator unit; frame-mounted, 340-volt battery pack; and a dedicated power management system...

* USA - J&R Schugel orders trucks with Cummins engines, APUs

USA -eTrucker -14 Sept 2007: -- Cummins Inc. recently announced that J&R Schugel Trucking has ordered 300 trucks powered by Cummins ISX engines and equipped with Cummins ComfortGuard auxiliary power unit systems, which Cummins began producing for the marketplace eight months ago...

* Canada - Peterbilt names National Paccar PX Skills Challenge winner

USA -eTrucker -14 Sept 2007: -- Trevor Friesen of Pacific Peterbilt, Surrey, Canada was named as Peterbilt’s inaugural National PACCAR PX Skills Challenge winner at the company’s National Customer Service Conference in St. Louis on August 25...

Labels: truckmakers' news USA

Conference * USA - Improving Fleet Safety

New Technologies Aimed at Improving Driver Safety Tops American Society of Safety Engineers'

Atlanta,GA,USA -Layover -14 Sept 2007: -- As transportation accidents continue to be the number one cause of on-the-job deaths, occupational safety and health professionals, law enforcement and academia from 27 states, Canada and Switzerland met at UPS headquarters in Atlanta, GA, this week for a sold-out American Society of Safety Engineers' (ASSE) "Improving Fleet Safety" symposium to identify additional ways to prevent injuries and fatalities on the roads... The focus of the symposium was to offer safety, health and environmental professionals an opportunity to participate in sessions and panel discussions on new challenges faced within the transportation industry, management processes and best practices... Pilot programs involving new technology aimed at understanding driver behavior and the lone-worker environment were some of the many topics discussed at the two-day conference... In addition, the presentations went beyond addressing large trucks to include personal vehicles used for work, vans, utility vehicles and more... (Photo from mlive/The Chronicle, by Becky Walachovic, files: Norton Shores firefighters and members of Muskegon County's Hazardous Materials Team survey the scene of a double-tandem dump truck accident)

Labels: road safety campaign

INSFRASTRUCTURES * USA - Alliance for Improving America’s

USA -Americas Business Audioblog, by Mike Hambrick -September 13, 2007: -- Bill Graves, the president and CEO of the American Trucking Associations, is helping lead an NAM-founded coalition, the Alliance for Improving America’s Infrastructure. The former governor of Kansas, explain the impact of inadequate infrastructure on the trucking industry and the U.S. economy... “We are burning fuel while we are waiting in traffic. We are idling and adding to the already recognized environmental problems that we face as a nation. We are using up valuable hours of service that a driver is allowed by law to be behind the wheel. To squander those, if you will, sitting idle is not a good use of that human resource, the human capital. And of course, at the end of the day we’re also perhaps missing some delivery deadlines that are critically important to the business community”... (Photo: Bill Graves, American Trucking Associations)

Labels: infrastructures

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA - Melton Truck Lines Celebrates 1,000th Truck Milestone

Tulsa,OK,USA -Layover -12 Sept 2007: -- Melton Truck Lines, an air-ride flatbed carrier based in Tulsa, OK, is pleased to announce the increase of their fleet to 1,000 trucks. After beginning in 1989 with only 30 trucks and six employees, the company has grown to a current fleet of 1,000 trucks... The company is planning a celebration for office employees and drivers on September 13, 2007 at their headquarters in Tulsa. Melton terminals in Birmingham, Laredo, and El Paso will also be participating in the festivities... (Photo: New Kentworth T600, same than Melton-blue Nr 1000)

* West Motor Freight expands with acquisition of Sanger TruckingWest
USA -eTrucker -14 Sept 2007: -- Motor Freight has acquired the assets of Sanger Trucking LLC, headquartered in Fredericksburg, Pa. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.. .The acquisition adds drivers and equipment and extends the reach of West's flatbed business. Forty tractors will be added to West's fleet, bringing the total number of tractors West-operated to 275....

Labels: trucking industry news USA

DRIVERS SHORTAGE * Australia - Unions concerned over foreign truckies

Lismore, New South Wales,Australia -ABC Regional Online -September 14, 2007: -- The Motorist Trucking Industry Alliance (MTIA) and the Transport Workers Union say allowing foreign truck drivers to operate on Australia's roads is dangerous... The MTIA and the Transport Workers Union have held public meetings in Lismore and Tweed Heads, in northern New South Wales, to highlight concerns over plans by the Australian Trucking Association to let foreign truckies on temporary visas fill vacant driving posts... Lyndall Denny says the union and the alliance fear that foreign drivers will not be suitably qualified or experienced... (Picture by delsjourney -Australia's Road Train)

Labels: drivers shortage

AUTOMAKERS' RECALLS * USA -

* Chrysler recalls 369,000 vehicles for problems
Washington,DC,USA -Automotive News, by Harry Stoffer -September 14, 2007: -- Chrysler LLC said Friday it is recalling nearly 300,000 trucks because, under certain conditions, drivers may experience a momentary delay in braking when they step on the brake pedal... Dealers are to reprogram the control module for the antilock brake system on 2007 Jeep Wranglers and Dodge Nitros and on 2006-07 Jeep Grand Cherokees and Commanders... The company said it knows of one crash, with no injuries, that may be related to the problem. It tends to occur when a vehicle has been going up a grade

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30.9.07

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

TRUCKS PURCHASE * USA - Oshkosh Truck gets $16.8M order from U.S. Army

Hazards and Headaches * USA - On a Mountain Road in Connecticut

* Pakistan - HTVs an added menace to traffic

Truckers Complain * USA - They claim route won’t work

Red-light cameras * USA - Also snaring Police

Pension Deal * USA - UPS and Teamsters, Near

Fuel Pricing * USA - Michigan bill target predatory one

Speed Limits * USA - Wyoming to test variable

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - OOIDA doubts benefits of satellite tracking of cross-border trucks

CARB’s proposed mandates * USA - OOIDA concerned by

29.9.07

Oil fee * USA - Would hurt locally owned truck stops

AWARDS * USA - Ohio Trucker Picks Up Two State Safety Awards

Engines of Change 2007 * USA

Trucks only! * USA - ... On I-70 ?

S. Calif. Truck Plan * USA - Major industry groups ask FMC to investigate

* USA - Push to Keep 55 MPH Speed Limit for Trucks on Illinois Highways

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

28.9.07

Aluminium Bodies * UK - Thompson tips its hat at the aluminium tipper body market

AWARD * USA - Con-way Freight Wins Industry's Top Safety Award from ATA

Enhanced Security * USA - Most Trucks To Be Tagged At Port For

MEXICANS' TRUCKS * USA - Qualcomm System to Monitor Trucks

Truck Insurance Claim * USA - What to Know When Making one

Shocking Revelations * Canada - About Truck Driving Schools Leaving Many Concerned

Hit the Road * USA - Blog Tour Looking For Volunteers

Complains * USA - Truckers Not Playing By the Rules

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

DRIVERS' AWARDS * USA

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA

Safety changes * USA - On Avon Mountain

PRODUCTS & SERVICES * USA - Automated Software for Drivers License Background Reports

27.9.07

TRUCKS' MARKETS

Reducing Truck Traffic * USA - Morris planners offer ways to

PRODUCTS & SERVICES

TRUCKING INDUSTRY NEWS * USA

More fuel taxes * USA - For less congestion

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLWIDE

26.9.07

POLLUTION * Pakistan - Trucks on Kashmir Highway polluting capital’s environment

BORDER TROUBLES WORLDWIDE

Truckers health * USA - Included in study on depression

TRUCKING STATISTICS * USA

HOS * USA - Few Kansas rest sites

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS * USA

Truckers respond * USA - Vast majority don't want to drive truck into Mexico

INFRASTRUCTURES' FUNDS DEBATE * USA - NATSO, truckers and politico speak out against I-80 tolls

24.9.07

DRIVER'S STORIES WORLD WIDE

MEXICANS' TRUCKS COMMENTS * USA

23.9.07

Truck Security * USA - Preventing a Truck Hijacking

AWARD - * Polish Victory in Scania Young European Truck Driver 2007

DRIVERS' SHORTAGE * USA - Trucking industry always on the lookout for drivers

Peak-hour Ban * Dubai - Motorists stick to slow track as trucks defy

Clean Air Strategy * USA - Would further tighten restrictions

22.9.07

The World's Biggest Pick-up Truck! * USA: "International CXT"

Hauling a big CAT dump truck? * UK - Then two trucks are better than one

INSPECTIONS * USA - Colo. May Charge Overweight Trucks More

Road Safety ? * China - This trucking company leads the way

HOS DEBATE * USA - Feds ask for delay of trucker hours rule

Mural-covered Truck * Canada - Keep on trucking in Afghanistan

21.9.07

TRUCKMAKERS' NEWS WORLDWIDE

TRANSPORTATION * Australia - Trucking group aims to adopt European system

INFRASTRUCTURES * USA - Kentucky county considers rush hour ban on bridge truck traffic

Skilled manpower shortage * India - In logistics sector

MEXICANS' TRUCKS COMMENTS * USA

TRUCKING INDUSTRY COMMENTS * USA

"GREEN" NEWS * USA

19.9.07