Trucks World News: May 2016

ANTITRUST: 4 Bn. E$U FINES * Europe / Germany: AGAINST TRUCKMAKERS

* Munich - VW's truck schizophrenia

-- The European Union could impose a €4 billion fine, its highest ever, on five truck manufacturers, including Volkswagen and Daimler. One VW truck maker, MAN, is cooperating with investigators while another, Scania, may be hit with a big penalty... Volkswagen’s acquisition of Scania last year, as part of its push to challenge commercial vehicle market leader Daimler, could prove to be a pricey and dicey move... But Scania is one of five companies, including Daimler, facing possible cartel fines of more than €4 billion ($4.53 billion), Handelsblatt has learned from sources familiar with the case... If that happened, the truck manufacturers would be paying the highest cartel fine ever imposed in Europe. All companies involved have declined to comment... The penalties would deal a serious blow to VW and the other truck makers whose sales in Europe have been slumping for months. Fierce competition for customers has led in many cases to massive discounts that are certain to impact the companies’ bottom lines... In November, the European Union sent charges to DAF, Iveco, Volvo and MAN, which is owned by Volkswagen, in addition to Daimler and Scania, accusing the European truck manufacturers of operating a long-running price-fixing cartel... The case puts VW in a difficult position – and has created a daunting challenge for the new head of its truck division, Andreas Renschler, who has been tasked with combining the company’s truck manufacturers MAN and Scania...
(Bloomberg Getty Images: MAN truck repairs source) -- Munich, Germany - The Handelsblatt, by MARKUS FASSE & MARTIN MURPHY - (originally published 24 Feb 2016)

* Meanwhile, MAN’s restructuring is far from complete...

--- The partnership with Scania is helping, with MAN taking over the Swedish company’s large gear business while Scania manufactures axles for the Germans... In the future, the two companies will also cooperate in the development of engines and systems for the after-treatment of exhaust gases. Filters for diesel engines are already almost as expensive as the engines themselves... The truck maker is also expected to survive a European truck cartel investigation (See above) without fines, because it alerted the European Commission of price fixes in 2011...
Munich, Germany - Handelsblatt Global Edition, by Markus Fasse - 30 May 2016

Labels: truckmakers fines, truckmakers news Europe

IVECO's news * Australia: Garbage trucks

* Victoria - Being a garbo is hard work...

--- Getting a first hand experience of the International Truck and Trailer Show test track at Melbourne recently, Iveco let journalists test drive one of their garbage trucks... The challenge was set, which trucking journalist would be the best at collecting rubbish in an Iveco dual control 6x4 24 cubic metre, 280hp compactor? ... Well it wasn't me... I can say I have a new appreciation of garbage truck drivers... It's not easy to get the hang of the mechanical arms that pick up the bins and empty them... Too far left or right and you'll have to move the truck forward or backwards, gotta get those arms as close to the bin as possible before you grab it and pull them up to empty, then getting them back down with the lids on and back where they were is harder still... Iveco brand ambassador Lloyd Reeman said garbage truck drivers were very skilled in what they do... Iveco have built their 80,000th Acco...
(Photo by Carly Morrissey - PRETEND GARBOS: Journos had a chance to find out what it’s like to be in control of a garbage truck during the Iveco drive challenge) -- Melbourne, VIC, Australia - Big Rigs, by Carly Morrissey - 30th May 2016

Labels: trucking industry news Australia

TRUCKING "SPOT MARKET" * USA - Reducing inefficiencies

* California - Logistics startup FR8 Revolution raises up to $8.5MM Series A funding

--- FR8 Revolution, Inc., a Silicon Valley-based startup that develops free cloud-based tools to improve efficiency in the $700B US freight trucking market, today announced that it has raised up to $8.5MM from German company MAN Truck & Bus AG, a Volkswagen Truck & Bus subsidiary and leading global supplier of commercial vehicles and transport solutions. The Series A round brings the total investment in FR8 Revolution to nearly $10MM and will help the company scale its operations and product development, allowing it to expand deeper into the networked transportation sector... Freight transportation in the United States is a major industry with every truck fleet or “carrier” seeking to optimize its routes to avoid backhauling empty trucks. Few carriers today have adequate tools to effectively manage their excess capacity. As a result, most available capacity is sold to shippers through a network of 12,000 freight brokers. This secondary market, known as the “Spot Market,” accounts for a seventh of the total freight trucking market or roughly $100B. Coordination between brokers and carriers typically occurs by phone, email and fax creating a fragmented, inefficient, and opaque marketplace, in which it is difficult for carriers to fully utilize their trucks and shippers to compare prices and get consistent fees... Founded in 2015, FR8 Revolution builds smart, data-driven, cloud-based tools aimed at reducing inefficiencies in the $700B US trucking market that result in lost revenue, more pollution and traffic, and poor working conditions for the millions of drivers it employs...
Sillicon Valley, CAL, USA - Broadway World - May 30. 2016

Labels: freight markets, trucking industry news USA

INDEFINITE STRIKE * India: By tankers trucks owners

* Telangana - VAT on transportation brings trucks and tankers to a halt in

--- As many as 3,000 trucks carrying petroleum products were off the roads on Monday following an indefinite strike in protest against the imposition of 14.5 percent Value Added Tax (VAT) on transportation charges... Telangana State Petroleum Tank Trucks Owners Association president, K Rajashekhar Reddy, rued that no state in the country has imposed such tax on petroleum goods transportation ... "All 3,000 tankers and trucks are participating in the indefinite strike until the tax is rolled back," Reddy said... Commercial Taxes department officials have held talks with oil marketing company officials in the last two days... On Sunday the officials held futile discussions with truck/tanker owners... Many petrol bunks here witnessed panic buying from consumers as they feared shortage of petrol and diesel following the strike...
(Photo from Reuters - Trucks carrying petroleum products were in strike in protest against the imposition of VAT on transportation charges) -- Hyderabad, Terangana, India - First Post - 30 May 2016

Labels: truckers strike, trucking industry news India

CRUEL LONG-HAUL TRANSPORT * Europe: Horses through the countries

* EU tardy in tackling the cruel long-haul transport of slaughter horses

... The campaign to end the long-haul transportation of horses to slaughter across Europe is symptomatic of precisely this kind of frustration... The cruelty of the long-haul transport of horses has been methodically documented in Europe for years, with the British-based charity World Horse Welfare leading the charge. Its evidence is compelling... There is widespread acceptance within the EU that these long trips are awful for horses... According to official figures, the number of horses transported over long distances is still 54,000 horses forced to endure huge journeys, only to end up at an abattoir... Today, World Horse Welfare sent out an email that highlighted yet again the plight of horses being hauled these ridiculous distances... They were being unloaded for a “rest” of 24 hours at the control post before being transported for a further 12 hours to their final destination... The horses, he said, were not only exhausted and stressed, but were extremely dehydrated and eager to drink as soon as they could... “The lorry and its load of exhausted, stressed and frightened horses had just arrived after a 24-hour journey from Poland, through the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia and on into Italy” ... World Horse Welfare one of its field officers, Tony Evans said, it was vital to stop such long-haul journeys...
(Photo: World Horse Welfare - The charity World Horse Welfare has again highlight concerns around the long haul transportation of horses to slaughter across Europe) -- Horsetalk (New Zealand), by Neil Clarkson - 30 May 2016

Labels: cruel trucking transport, trucking industry news Europe

"ROAD SAFETY WEEK" * New Zealand: TRUCKS' INSPECTION

* Auckland - Police order 35 unsafe trucks off road

--- A focus on heavy vehicle safety across the South Island has seen over 1000 heavy vehicles stopped and 104 infringement notices issued... The operation over four days during Road Safety Week (16-22 May 2016) has been a success says Inspector Bruce O'Brien, Commercial Vehicle Investigation Unit manager... During the operation drivers were reminded of the need to be alert at the wheel as fatigue is a serious risk factor for all drivers... Some of the heavy vehicles stopped were showing signs of poor maintenance with 35 vehicles classed as being unsafe and ordered off the road while for a further 13 vehicles defects were identified that required immediate attention... The operation was undertaken with other road policing partners and over the four days checkpoints were held in Blenheim, Ashburton, Christchurch City and North Canterbury... Across the four sites 33 infringement notices were issued in Christchurch City, 31 in Blenheim, 21 in North Canterbury and 19 in Ashburton...
(Photo: Brake inspections a bigger deal) -- Auckland, NZ - News Hub - 30 May 2016

Labels: roads safety, trucking industry news New Zealand

TRUCKING news * Australia: * DHL's - ** Simon National Carriers'

* ACT - DHL Express opens new Canberra site

-- DHL has officially opened its new $1.8 million Canberra depot, which will cater to local businesses importing and exporting from Australia... The new facility includes a new automated belting system that enables direct loading by couriers, considerably speeding up the processing time... As part of DHL’s GoGreen program, the company also installed environmentally friendly technologies such as sensor LED lighting, reducing carbon emissions by almost 50 per cent...
Canberra, ACT, Australia - Prime Mover - 30th, May 2016

** Queensland - Simon invests in Scania R560

--- Specialised long haul transport company, Simon National Carriers has invested in six new V8-powered Scania R560 prime movers... According to Scania, four of the new R 560s will be used as B-doubles on a Melbourne-Sydney-Brisbane route, rated for 64-tonnes GCM. The remaining two will run from Brisbane to Darwin and North Queensland, configured as triple road trains, pulling up to 96-tonnes... Toowoomba, QLD, Australia - Prime Mover - 27th, May 2016

* New Chair and CEO at Simon National Carriers

-- Simon National Carriers has announced several changes to its senior management team including Chief Executive, David Simon, who has been named Executive Chairman; while Clive Barrett will takeover as CEO...
Toowoomba, QLD, Australia - Prime Mover - 30th, May 2016

Labels: trucking industry news Australia

TRUCKERS' SHORTAGE * USA: Survey

* California - Survey finds 21% of truck drivers quit due to health issues

--- HireRight, the Irvine, Calif.-based provider of global background verifications and drug and health testing, said a survey of transportation professionals shows nearly a fifth of fleet drivers are leaving the industry due to health issues... HireRight announced findings from its 2016 Transportation Spotlight report on Wednesday, which includes results on employment screening, recruiting and retention practices within the transportation industry... With the driver shortage expected to worsen in 2016, 59 percent of respondents reported that finding, retaining and developing talent was their top business challenge. The survey found 41 percent of drivers are leaving to spend more time at home and 21 percent are leaving due to health issues. This is prompting these leaders to take a closer look at wellness and lifestyle programs to increase retention, recognizing the positive effects they can have on keeping drivers healthy and happy... Due to the talent shortage, the transportation industry is willing to spend money to attract and retain talent. According to the survey, 35 percent of respondents offer safety and accident prevention programs, 21 percent offer free immunization/flu shots and 18 percent offer smoking cessation programs. And while these kinds of wellness programs can also help decrease health care and worker’s compensation costs and improve safety records, 45 percent of respondents said they don’t offer a wellness program at all...
(Photo: A trucker's family) -- Irvine, CAL, USA - Trucking News - May 11, 2016

Labels: truckers health, truckers shortage, trucking industry news USA

TRAFFIC VOLUME TRENDS * USA: Report

* DC - Traffic moves further by noon than Space Station has ever flown

-- New information released by the Department of Transportation (DOT) shows that U.S. driving reached 746 billion miles in the first three months of 2016 — surpassing the previous record of 720.1 billion miles set last year... For a sense of scale, 746 billion miles is roughly 286.9 times as far as the International Space Station has traveled since it began orbiting in 1998. In fact, Americans drive twice as far on any given day before noon than the space station has ever flown... The new data, published in the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) latest Traffic Volume Trends report – a monthly estimate of U.S. road travel — show that more than 273.4 billion miles were driven in March 2016 alone, highlighting the growing demands facing the nation’s roads...
Washington, DC, USA - Trucking News - May 31, 2016

Labels: transport statistics

TRUCKERS' SLEEP APNEA * USA: STUDY

* Virginia - ATRI Survey: Sleep apnea studies costly to drivers

-- More than half of drivers who have been asked to participate in sleep apnea studies paid more than 150% of their median weekly pay to do so, a survey released by the American Transportation Research Institute on May 26 revealed... The survey of more than 800 drivers showed that 53% paid an average of $1,220 for some or all of the test costs. This compares with the median weekly paycheck of $805... More than 60% of drivers with no health care coverage for the sleep study incurred out-of-pocket costs exceeding $1,000, while less than one-third of drivers whose insurance covered some portion of the study had costs exceeding $1,000. What’s more, 41% of the drivers had to take a day to up to a month off to participate in sleep apnea screening... ATRI’s survey also reported that fewer than 2% of drivers who were diagnosed with moderate to severe sleep apnea didn’t adhere to their prescribed treatment. Use of a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine was the most commonly prescribed treatment regimen. Drivers diagnosed with severe sleep apnea who were treated with the machine reported increased sleep (84%), feeling better when they woke up (71%) and lower blood pressure (75%). Among those with a diagnosis of mild sleep apnea, only 32% reported improved sleep...
Arlington, VA, USA - Transport Topics - 26 May 2016

Labels: asleep at the wheel, truckmakers news USA

TRUCKER APPOINTMENTS * USA: Mandatory in Oakland Port

* California - Oakland container terminal to require mandatory truck appointments for imports

-- Oakland International Container Terminal on June 6 will launch a program of mandatory trucker appointments for most import loads as Oakland’s largest container terminal takes another step to accommodate increasing container volumes... Earlier this year Outer Harbor Terminal pulled out of Oakland and its facility is now vacant. Most of Outer Harbor’s container volume shifted over to OICT, which is operated by SSA Marine. OICT now handles 67 percent of the containerized cargo that is shipped through Oakland, the port said... OICT has been rolling out new programs that should help the terminal to better handle the additional business. Two months ago OICT began operating night and Saturday gates. The operator has added staff, purchased additional cargo-handling equipment and opened a new yard exclusively for empty containers...
(Photo credit: Sheila Fitzgerald / Shutterstock.com) -- Oakland, CAL, USA - JOC, by Bill Mongelluzzo - May 27, 2016

Labels: trucking industry news USA

"International Roadcheck" * USA - A pre-announced check of commercial vehicles in N.A.

* Texas - Danger looms in annual road safety blitz. Some drivers take a “Roadcheck Vacation” to avoid getting caught

-- One of the most dangerous times of the year to be on the road is coming next week, although a majority of drivers will never realize the risks because they were never warned. International Roadcheck is a largely unnoticed annual three-day program in which law enforcement in the U.S. and throughout North America inspect as many commercial vehicles as possible, including tractor-trailers, buses and other heavy trucks, looking for safety violations. The 2016 initiative will be June 7-9. Although most of the public doesn’t even know Roadcheck exists, the trucking industry has been issuing related warnings to drivers and trucking companies for months. Unfortunately, a lot of improperly licensed drivers and those who operate unsafe trucks avoid work during Roadcheck in order to escape the scrutiny of safety regulators. The scenario of truckers deciding to stay away during this three-day stretch has become so common that it’s called a “Roadcheck Vacation” among trucking industry insiders...
(Photo Comstock Getty Images: Many unsafe truck drivers will schedule a vacation June 7-9 to avoid annual International Roadcheck) -- Fort Worth, TXS, USA - The Star-Telegram, by STEVE LAIRD - May 27, 2016

Labels: roadchecks, trucking industry news USA and CAN

TRUCKMAKERS news * Europe: Resisting to improve fuel consumption

Truckmakers accused of putting brakes on technological change

-- EU parliamentarians and environmental campaigners have long had suspicions about Europe’s truckmakers. For 20 years, lorries seemed strangely impervious to market forces that were supposed to make them more fuel efficient and reduce hazardous emissions... Some clues to the mystery emerged in November 2014, when Brussels levelled formal cartel charges against the continent’s biggest truck manufacturers: DAF, Daimler, Iveco, MAN, Volvo/Renault and Scania. Accused of widespread price-fixing between 1997 and 2011 and delaying the introduction of new emissions technologies, the companies are expected to receive the highest cartel fine in EU history in the coming months — running to several billion euros... But the cartel investigation is only one strand of a far broader pattern of alleged collusive behaviour by lorry makers and the governments that lobby for them... Environmental campaigners also allege that the truck industry has strongly resisted attempts to improve fuel consumption and slash emissions of carbon dioxide, the most significant greenhouse gas... Emissions from lorries are a subject of intense concern because they produce about 25 per cent of the CO2 from road transport, while representing fewer than 5 per cent of vehicles on the roads. Despite new, greener technologies being available, the European Commission reported in 2014 that heavy vehicles’ fuel efficiency had stagnated since the mid-1990s and estimated that their CO2 emissions increased 36 per cent between 1990 and 2010... The motor industry says that its performance in CO2 emissions should be rated over a longer timeframe, noting big improvements since the mid-1960s... ACEA, the European Motor Manufacturers’ Association, declined to comment specifically on the alleged cartel involving its members...
(Photo: A man walks past driver cabins in the truck production plant of German truck and bus-maker MAN AG in Munich, Germany July 30, 2015) -- Brussels, Belgium - FT, by Christian Oliver in Brussels and Peter Campbell in London (UK) - May 29, 2016

Labels: truckmakers news Europe

VOLVO's news * Sweden - New robot mining trucks get rolling

* Stockholm - Descent of the machines: Driverless lorries ... How long before they appear on roads?

(Video from Guardian Wires - May 25, 2016)

-- In a disused military aircraft hangar buried deep in a granite hillside, Johan Tofeldt flicks a switch on the future of mining... The cheerful Swede is sitting in a standard Volvo FMX heavy duty truck, a haulage industry workhorse. But where once there was a narrow bed behind the seat there is now a laptop and a tangle of wires. This is Volvo Group’s driverless truck, designed to work in underground mines far beyond the limits of GPS navigation... Hitting a button on the dashboard turns the vehicle into a robot. A controller in a remote location sends a digital “mission” to the truck, which sets off into the gloom, threading itself through narrow gaps in the deserted tunnels... Six lidar (light radar) laser sensors positioned around the vehicle generate a cloud of data points, creating a 3D map of the surroundings and enabling the truck to navigate precisely and, in principle, to respond to unexpected obstacles or people... Tofeldt has no illusions about the obstacles ahead. Volvo’s driverless trucks will be piloted in a real mine in northern Sweden in the autumn, which will bring a host of complications...
Gothenburg, Sweden - The Guardian (UK), by David Crouch - 26 May 2016

Labels: driverless trucks, truckmakers news Sweden

UD TRUCKS' * Malaysia: " Quester 8 L truck model "

* Selangor D.E. - Telematics-equipped UD Quester trucks hit our roads

-- Tan Chong Industrial Equipment (TCIE) has launched the new Quester 8L as an expansion of UD’s variants in meeting the needs of various industries at affordable prices... With more than 80 years of Japanese engineering, Volvo Group’s global technology and strong local presence, TCIE introduced Quester 8L as an addition to the existing Quester 11L which was launched in third quarter of 2013... The new Quester 8L comes in 4x2, 6x2 and 6x4 models as an addition to Quester 11L of 4x2, 6x2, 6x4 and 8x4. Both models are fitted with UD Telematics, on board electronic system that monitors driver’s performance and the health of the truck...
Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia - The Sun Daily - 22 May 2016

Labels: truckmakers news worldwide

TRUCKING: Really a lifestyle? * USA: ... Or a profession ?

* Ontario - ... Or is it both?

-- I’m tiring of truck driving being promoted as a “lifestyle.” Trucking is a field of specialized training (profession) not a set of attitudes (lifestyle), in my opinion... A huge problem that we face as professional drivers is that we don’t have a broad set of standards under one umbrella around which we can coalesce. Unlike the carriers we work for, we don’t have an organization that represents our profession. We are fragmented and spend far too much energy focusing on our differences surrounding lifestyle issues rather than focusing on the skills we all share and the social issues we all face... There are some great examples of drivers coming together on social media to address industry-wide issues. One of those issues is driver training and mentorship... Shelley Uvenile-Hesch is a long-haul driver for Sharp Transportation. Through her persistence and tenacity she has brought to life a non-profit named the Women’s Trucking Federation of Canada. It started a few years ago with a will to expand the employment of women across the Canadian trucking industry... Through Shelley’s membership in Facebook groups and her dogged determination, she built a following that led to the incorporation of WTFC in early March of this year... A group of six full-time drivers form the WTFC board. With a focus on co-operation, positive attitudes, and a desire to build relationships across all lines – drivers, carriers, government, training organizations, vocational schools, other social media groups, etc. – professional drivers are coming together to share their knowledge with new recruits and renew the camaraderie that so many seasoned drivers have been pining for over the past few decades... This is a great example of how drivers can come together to share our common skills and experiences. This organization is not designed to represent drivers but to empower them. WTFC challenges the authoritarian model that the trucking industry has developed over the years. In essence, it presents a new paradigm of problem solving from the bottom up rather than the top down...
(Photo: A female truck driver in a Canada's truck) -- Toronto, ONT, CAN - Trucks News (CAN), by Al Goodhall - May 25, 2016

Labels: news Canada, women in trucking

BENDIX's news * USA: 4-million brake shoe production

* Indiana - Bendix reman brake shoe production tops 4 millions units

- In less than four years, Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems’ remanufactured brake shoe operation has topped the 4-million-unit production milestone. Bendix’s rate of production has steadily increased to meet growing demand from owner-operators and fleets wishing to maintain the quality, performance, and compliance of their Reduced Stopping Distance (RSD) brakes when replacing shoes, while optimizing value, the company says... Bendix began serial production of reman brake shoes at its 74,000-square-foot Huntington, IN facility in the fall of 2012. The facility handles the complete salvage, coining, and assembly processes that make up start-to-finish brake shoe remanufacturing in Huntington...
(Photo from Bendix: Brake shoes cool down following the application of the advanced coating and the tightly controlled oven curing process that provide maximum protection against rust jacking) -- Huntington, IND, USA - American Trucker - May 24, 2016

Labels: trucks parts makers

TRUCKING & RETENTION * USA: Efforts still come up short—but why?

* Pennsylvania - Driver turnover remains above 100% at large fleets

- Pay is far more important to drivers than trucking likes to admit, and a major “generation gap” exists between older and younger truck drivers, especially in regards to technology—but both pools suffer from poor training and management tactics. Those are just a couple of the major issues touched on by a variety of panels and breakout sessions during the 2016 ALK Technology Summit in Philadelphia this week... A growing lack of truck parking may be too "the straw that breaks the camel's back" in terms of convincing drivers to leave the industry, says PGT Trucking's Mike Krohn... But pay is far more important to drivers than trucking likes to admit. Motor carriers may need to create new job titles and emphasize breadth of responsibility in order to attract and keep Millennials in administrative roles. A major “generation gap” exists between older and younger truck drivers, especially in regards to technology, but both pools suffer from poor training and management tactics...
(Photo by Sean Kilcarr/Fleet Owner) -- Philadelphia, PENN, USA - American Trucker, by Sean Kilcarr - May 26, 2016

Labels: drivers shortage, trucking industry news USA

RAISING TRUCKS's FET * USA: Congress' debates

* DC - Another resolution against raising excise tax on heavy truck inroduced

- The current 12 percent federal excise tax adds nearly $20,000 to the cost of a new tractor, as the pictured International ProStar... Sen. Cory Gardner, D-Colo., has introduced a concurrent resolution expressing the sense of Congress that the Federal excise tax on heavy-duty trucks should not be increased... No text of the resolution was available early Wednesday, but the resolution drew immediate praise from the American Truck Dealers... The current 12-percent FET on the sale of most new heavy-duty trucks is by percentage the highest levied tax by Congress on any product, according to Steve Parker, ATD chairman... All of the heavy-duty trucks sold in the U.S. in 2015 were manufactured in North America, so any increase in the federal excise tax would depress new heavy-duty truck sales to the direct detriment of the American trucking industry and their more than 8 million U.S. employees...
(Photo: NAVISTAR's Internatinal Prostar truck) -- Washington, DC, USA - The Trucker News Services - 25 May 2016

Labels: taxes debate, truckmakers news USA

FORD's RECALL * USA: 271,000 F-150 pickups

* Michigan - Ford recalls 271,000 trucks because of a brake issue

- Ford is recalling some of its top-selling vehicles in the U.S. to fix a fluid leak that can reduce braking power... The recall covers about 271,000 F-150 pickups in North America from the 2013 and 2014 model years that have 3.5-liter V6 engines... Ford says brake fluid can leak from the master cylinder. That could reduce the ability of the front brakes to stop the trucks... The company reports nine alleged crashes with no injuries, but one person said they suffered a knee injury while applying the brakes... Dealers will replace the brake master cylinder for free. They'll also replace the brake booster if they find leaks from the master cylinder. Ford says it's working with suppliers to get parts to dealers and will begin notifying customers the week of July 11... Ford says the problem is not related to an investigation by federal safety regulators into power brake assist failures in F-150 pickups. That probe by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration into electric vacuum pump failures was closed earlier this month after Ford extended warranties and the agency determined that the trucks could still be stopped by drivers...
Dearborn, MICH, USA - 10 TV - May 26, 2016

Labels: trucks recall

PETERBILT's news * USA: New refuse truck model

* Texas - Peterbilt launches model 520 refuse truck

- Peterbilt has expanded its refuse truck lineup with the new Model 520 featuring new seating configurations for route-collection versatility and optional PACCAR MX-11 engines... The truck's dual-station cab has two nearly identical work environments so drivers can seamlessly and safely operate from the left- or right-hand side, including dual controls for the parking brakes, HVAC system, and stereo. The console sides are angled to give operators easy visibility and access to the same controls and displays from the right and left, the company says...
(Photo: New Peterbilt's Model 520 refuse truck) -- Denton, TXS, USA - Today's Trucking - May 27, 2016

Labels: truckmakers news USA

AUTONOMOUS TRUCKS in * Japan: By Hino & Isuzu

* Tokyo - Isuzu, Hino joining forces on autonomous truck driving

- Isuzu Motors and Hino Motors will team up to develop a system that supports convoys of self-driving trucks, an innovation that is expected to address Japan's chronic shortage of commercial drivers... The so-called intelligent transport system will incorporate data-sharing communication among all trucks in the caravan. Information from the lead vehicle's accelerator and brakes is among the data that will guide the rear vehicles. The lead truck will be controlled by a human driver and the other rigs will maintain a constant distance between each other. The technology aims for completely driverless trailing vehicles down the road... The Japanese government will begin a pilot program running truck convoys on the nation's highways as soon as fiscal 2018. Practical application is expected to start from fiscal 2021, with three or more commercial vehicles traveling long distances on highways at night. The practice is seen easing traffic congestion and lifting logistics efficiency... Isuzu and Hino are apparently developing the technology with those targets in mind. The pair will separately develop trucks that can operate in the system...
(Image) -- Tokyo, Japan - Nikkei - May 27, 2016

Labels: autonomous trucks, truckmakers news Japan

Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks * Germany

* Stuttgart - The "Drinking Water Unimog" - World Premiere at the RETTmobil 2016

--- Lack of water is a prevalent problem in crisis areas or after natural disasters. Providing individuals in such situations with fresh and clean drinking water is one of the most important tasks of humanitarian aid organizations. Cooperating with Kärcher Futuretech Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks introduced a new special truck at the RETTmobil 2016. In the future, it will produce drinking water in humanitarian emergency situations... The all-terrain "Drinking Water Unimog" ensures to transport highly efficient drinking water supply systems to regions difficult to access in situations of crisis and disaster when clean drinking water is not available. If, after, for instance, earthquakes or flood, the regular supply channels are destroyed, supplying water can present a very big challenge for rescue workers... The "Drinking Water Unimog" offers a solution: The off-road truck can transport up to three autonomous drinking water supply systems in difficult terrains. The heart piece of the system is a water filtration system made by Kärcher Futuretech: It can generate particle-free drinking water at the rate of up to 5000 liters per hour from almost all sources of natural water by means of ultra-filtration... The systems are unloaded at the respective sites with a hydraulic crane. After that, the loading area of the Unimog can be used for storage of a cushion tank with a capacity of 5,000 liters. The processed drinking water is pumped into this tank with a high-power pump integrated in the Unimog and can then be distributed to the population in need. The daily output of the three WTC 5000 UF taken together is 360,000 liters per day. According to the standards of the World Health Organization (WHO), this is sufficient to provide up to 50,000 people with water. It's a clean operation -- in the truest sense of the word...
(Photo from Daimler AG - The drinking water Unimog. Once unloaded, one can build up the system quickly) -- Stuttgart, Germany - Daimler AG (PR) - 20 May 2016

Labels: truckmakers news Germany

MAN Trucks' news * Germany

* Munich - Volkswagen’s MAN Trucks triples tech team as big rigs go online

-- Volkswagen AG’s truck unit MAN is nearly tripling the size of its digital division to add self-driving technology and make freight loading more efficient, seeking new sources of income as big rigs are increasingly linked via the Internet... The technology team will increase to about 120 people by the end of the year from 45 currently, MAN CEO Joachim Drees said in an interview. Volkswagen said last month its MAN and Scania commercial vehicle units will spend a combined mid-three-digit million-euro amount in the next five years on connectivity to keep pace with similar efforts at Daimler AG, the biggest truckmaker... Connecting trucks online to provide real-time data is essential for logistics... Truck makers say they need to offer brand-specific services such as monitoring engine performance alongside platforms open to all brands since fleet operators rarely use one type of truck only...
(Photo by Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg News) -- Munich, Germany - Bloomberg News/Transport Topics, by Elisabeth Behrmann - 25 May 2016

Labels: truckmakers news Germany

TRUCKERS' * USA: Congress HOS debates

* DC - House panel advances transpo bill with trucking riders

... Rep. David Price (D-N.C.) amendment would have removed language placing additional requirements on the DOT before it can implement a regulation that tweaks the 34-hour “restart” period for commercial truck drivers — an amount of off-duty time that drivers must take in order to reset their driving limit after they reach their maximum... The proposed regulation would require every restart period to include two nights in that break, with no driving between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m., as well as only allow truckers to use one restart per week... But appropriators again included language in this year’s spending bill requiring DOT to prove that that regulation is beneficial to drivers’ health and safety before they can implement it... His amendment also would have removed provisions preempting state laws on commercial trucking meal and rest breaks and barring funds from being used in California on the construction of a high-speed rail system...
(Photo: Capitol Hill by night) -- Washington, DC, USA - The Hill, by Melanie Zanona - 24 May 2016

Labels: HOS debates

TRUCKING SOLUTIONS / BEAUROCRATICS AUTOMATION * USA: April 50 to 100 percent increase data via ACE

* DC - Slowdowns plague ACE ahead of next phase this weekend

-- Slowdowns continue to plague U.S. Customs and Border Protection's new electronic filing system, just days before the system is expected to onboard its next round of filers... Even after the federal agency said it was able to remedy the glitches that riddled the initial rollout of the Automated Commercial Environment, or ACE, in early April, “outages” and “network issues” have routinely been reported via the agency’s Cargo Systems Messaging Service... The ACE system was designed with the intention of streamlining cross-border trade and allowing shippers to easily share trade documents with government agencies, saving time and money... Fany Flores-Pastor, director for research development at global logistics software developer Descartes Systems, said there are concerns industry-wide that while Customs is attempting to be responsive to filers’ issues... Customs, after all, is under its own deadline for full ACE compliance by December of this year — a White House mandate for the federal agency... As of Saturday, foreign trade zone, or FTZ, filers will be required to file entry and entry summaries in ACE... Early april saw a roughly 50 to 100 percent increase in the number of filers transmitting data via ACE... May 28 was originally set to be the deadline for no less than a dozen PGAs. Those PGAs will now be required to file and have their corresponding shippers file in the ACE portal later this summer on an as-yet-unspecified date, according to Customs. They include the Agriculture Marketing Service; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives; Centers for Disease Control; Consumer Product Safety Commission; Defense Contract Management Agency; Directorate of Defense Trade Controls; Drug Enforcement Administration; Enforcement and Compliance Commission; Environmental Protection Agency; Fish and Wildlife Service; Food Safety and Inspection Service; Foreign Agriculture Service; National Marine Fisheries Service; Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Office of Marine Conservation; Office of Textiles and Apparel; Alcohol and Tobacco, Tax and Tariff Bureau; and United States Trade Representative...
Washington, DC, USA -- JOC, by Reynolds Hutchins - May 26, 2016

Labels: bureaucratic affairs, trucking industry news USA

TRUCKING INDUSTRY USA: "Pocket Guide 2016"

* DC - Six stats that reveal the state of the trucking industry

- With more large trucks on U.S. roads, traveling more miles and transporting more, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is working to measure the size of the industry... Last week, the agency issued its 2016 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics, which provides a snapshot on the state of the trucking and transport industries. The FMSCA believe the data can be used to devise policies that might help reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities involving large trucks and buses... Here are the highlights:

* Registered Large Trucks: Increased 3 percent in 2014 to nearly 11 million from the previous year.

* Millions of vehicle miles traveled: Large trucks (single-unit and tractor-trailers) traveled nearly 279,131 million miles in 2014 compared to 275,018 a year earlier.

* Commercial drivers operating in the U.S. in 2015: Half of all commercial truck drivers were interstate drivers, and 15 percent were intrastate CDL drivers.

* Weight of freight shipped in U.S. by mode (millions of tons): Trucks continue to be the main mode of transportation for freight in the U.S., responsible for moving 14,547 million tons worth of cargo in 2013 — equivalent to 73 percent of all cargo weight moved that year.

* Most frequent driver violations in roadside inspections: Truckers who failed to log, update, or provide accurate information regarding their record of duty status led to 326,818 driver violations during 2015 roadside inspections. There were also 136,585 hours-of-service violations, where drivers violated their time limits.

* Crashes: Of the 6 million vehicle crashes that occurred in the U.S. in 2014, 476,000 involved large trucks and buses — a 22% increase from the previous year. However, the number of fatal crashes involving larger trucks and buses decreased almost 5 percent to 3,649 in 2014. The estimated cost of large truck and bus crashes, including death, injury and property damage, in 2014 rose about 7% to $112 billion...
(Photo by Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images - Large semi trucks drive in a line on highway 40 outside of Nashville, Tennessee on December 2, 2015) -- Washington, DC, USA - Forbes, by Carina Ockedahl - MAY 23, 2016

Labels: trucking industry news USA, trucking statistics

TRUCKS FEES * Russia: HIGHER ONES TO NON RUSSIAN VEHICLES CROSSING THE COUNTRY

* Moscow - Rule change threatens to raise trucker, shipper costs

- Non-Russian trucking companies face steep border fees...
The cost of transshipping containers by truck in Russia using international motor carriers has doubled due to a decision of the government to levy extra charges on foreign motor carriers, increasing costs for shippers... The charges for foreign motor carriers previously existed but will increase from 385 rubles to 850 rubles ($5.88 to $12.99) per day, and from 60,000 rubles to 120,000 rubles per year... They will apply to trucks with capacities ranging from 3.5 tonnes to 12 tonnes (3.8 tons to 13.2 tons)... Foreign motor carriers had anticipated the charges, so shipments through the country should not decline too much, according to Constantine Sharshakov, deputy director of the Association of International Road Carriers — a public association that includes Russian and foreign motor carriers... Motor carriers from the following countries are likely to be impacted by the new regulation: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Germany, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Turkmenistan, Czech Republic, Switzerland and Sweden...
Moscow, Russia - JOC, by Eugene Gerden - May 24, 2016

Labels: trucking industry news Russia, trucks fees

MACK TRUCKS's news * USA: Now a drayage truck - * And a new automated manual transmission

* NC - Mack Trucks to demonstrate zero-emission capable drayage trucks

--- Mack Trucks will demonstrate two zero-emission capable Class 8 drayage trucks as part of a California-based heavy-duty truck development project designed to help reduce air pollution at freight-intensive locations throughout the state... SCAQMD will partner with four separate air quality districts in California to work toward the first large-scale demonstration of zero-emission heavy-duty trucks. As one of the truck manufacturers selected to receive funding, the Mack trucks will focus on ultra-low NOx technologies, while advancing plug-in hybrid and geo-fencing capabilities explored in previous and on-going projects... The goals of the zero-emission capable drayage truck project include reducing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions at locations with heavy freight volumes, including ports, rail yards and the freight corridors connecting them... Mack's efforts will build upon its experiences in designing and demonstrating a plug-in hybrid electric drayage truck based on a Mack® Pinnacle™ daycab model...
(Photo from Mack Trucks: A zero-emission drayage trucks) -- Greensboro, NC, USA - Volvo Group Global, by Christopher Heffner - May 19, 2016

* NC - Mack Granite gets mDrive HD

-- Mack Trucks says increasing customer demand has led it to make its mDrive HD 13-speed automated manual transmission (AMT), introduced in March, standard on Mack Granite models. Featuring a low-ratio creeper gear, the transmission is said to help boost customer productivity thanks to improved performance and reduced weight... Mack also says it's the first truck maker in North America to offer low-reduction creeper-gear ratios in a proprietary AMT. Mack will make the 13-speed AMT standard on the Granite model starting with production of the 2017 MP8 engine. The gearbox is also available on Mack Pinnacle and Titan models... Available in direct or overdrive configurations, the mDrive HD 13-speed's creeper-gear ratio is designed for easier startability on steep grades or when the truck is carrying a heavy load...
(Photo: The Mack® mDRIVE™ HD 13-speed automated manual transmission (AMT) is standard on Mack Granite® models) -- Greensboro, NC, USA - Today's Trucking (CAN) - May 25, 2016

Labels: truckmakers news USA

The Autonomous Report * Canada - A glue against pedestrian injury

* Ontario - Self-driving trucks, increased congestion and preventing pedestrian injury with glue

-- The hype around autonomous vehicles continues, with a number of stories hitting the streets in the last week. A new company is working on a self-driving transport truck, some transportation experts believe self-driving cars will actually increase traffic congestion and Google has filed a patent for an adhesive to help prevent pedestrian injuries. A study last year by the International Transport Forum seemed to indicate that total vehicle miles tranveled would increase anywhere from 30 to 90 percent after the introduction of AVs, assuming that half of travel is still carried out by conventional cars.

* Google has apparently filed a patent for an adhesive device to use on cars to “protect pedestrians from self-driving cars,” according to a report in the tech media this week. “In its patent, Google acknowledged that robot cars will hit pedestrians -- until the technology gets to the point that the vehicles can 'avoid all accidents'” ...

Google has come up with an adhesive that would be applied over cars that would keep humans hit by a braking car from bouncing off on to the pavement, which is when injuries often occur. According to the story an, “eggshell-like layer covering the adhesive would protect the sticky surface during everyday driving, but shatter in an accident to reveal the glue” ... The patent application also includes “an option to use a 'releasable adhesive' that would allow the person to be unstuck 'after a period of time'" ...
(Image: Part of Google's new patent for an adhesive that could be applied to the company's robot cars. The adhesive would be protected by a thin shell that would shatter on impact and allow the adhesive to hold the pedestrian in place to prevent further injury) -- Toronto, ONT, CAN - Collision Repair Mag, by Jeff Sanford - May 20, 2016

Labels: autonomous trucks, cars technonews

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May 31, 2016