News

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is moving closer to wireless vehicle and driver inspections. FMCSA and partners Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Innovative Software Engineering (ISE) will kick off a field operation test of wireless roadside inspection (WRI) next year in five Southeastern states involving as many as 1,000 commercial trucks and…

ITR Concession Company (ITR), the Spanish-Austrian consortium that paid the state of Indiana $3.8 billion in 2006 to lease the 157-mile toll road across northern Indiana between Ohio and Illinois, has declared bankruptcy. ITR Concession Co. LLC filed for Chapter 11 protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Chicago with a prepackaged plan backed by a…

As Canada’s economy grows, its less-than-truckload (LTR) roster is shrinking. The largest LTR carriers in Canada are gobbling up smaller competitors to gain territory and build market density. For example, Manitoulin Transport recently made its second acquisition in three months, purchasing the LTL and truckload operations of Westcan Freight Systems in Edmonton, Alberta. The acquisition…

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is considering granting exemptions to moving truck drivers and some drivers with health issues. FMCSA is considering exempting moving truck drivers from Hours-of-Service (HOS) rules designed to limit drivers from being on the road for extended periods. “Drivers typically spend a great part of their 14-hour driving window…

A pilot project to test electric-powered trucks at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach is slated to go live in 2015, according to the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), the agency tasked with air pollution control in the urban areas of Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernadino and Orange counties. The agency…

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has been defending the science and methodologies used in developing Hours of Service (HOS) rules that some in Congress would like to repeal. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) and Highways and Transit Subcommittee Chairman Tom Petri (R-WI) said they had requested the U.S. Government…

At least 33 truck drivers who filed wage claims against a Compton, California trucking company have been fired, according to the drivers. The drivers allege the firings by Total Transportation Services Inc. (TTSI) were prompted by their participation in a series of strikes and wage claims filed with California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE)….

A coalition of U.S. trucking associations are petitioning U.S. DOT to remove Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration safety scores from public view, claiming the scores do not reflect actual safety performance. Recently, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and a number of other national groups asked U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx to remove the carrier’s…

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is laying the groundwork for Vehicle-to-Vehicle technology in future light vehicles and trucks. NHTSA recently released an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) as well as a research report on V2V communications technology that indicates which direction the agency is moving. The report includes analysis of the agency’s…

According to Forecast, a collaboration between the American Trucking Associations (ATA) and IHS Global Insight, overall freight tonnage will grow 23.5 percent and freight revenues will increase 72 percent from 2013 to 2025. “We continue to see growth for the entire freight economy – but we also see that trucking will maintain its position as…