News

Plans to raise the minimum insurance coverage on trucks were issued a roadblock in the U.S. House of Representatives recently when the House voted 214-212 in favor of an amendment to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bill that would place a cap on insurance coverage. The amendment, sponsored by Rep. Steve Daines…

In the wake of the truck-car crash in early June that killed comedian James McNair and seriously injured 30 Rock star Tracy Morgan, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is urging the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to accelerate the rulemaking process for Electronic Logging Devices (ELD). ELDs track how many hours a trucker has…

The next traffic report you hear may come courtesy of an unmanned aircraft – or drone – flying in the skies near you. A study by Georgia Tech University, commissioned by Georgia DOT, took a high-level look at how drones could be used in traffic management applications. Researchers found more than 40 applications for the…

An advertisement in the June issue of Maxim magazine for a Texas law firm has created a firestorm in the trucking industry. The ad, titled “Serial Killer,” shows a red trucking rig and includes the copy, “3,561 people died on America’s highways last year. Another 2.36 million were injured. You need a law firm you…

A report recently released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that motor vehicle crashes cost the U.S. economy a staggering $277 billion in one calendar year. When combined with societal impacts (loss of life, decreased quality of life due to injuries) the price tag for crashes jumps to $871 billion, according to…

In April, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) submitted its’ required quadrennial report to Congress on the appropriateness of the current minimum financial responsibility requirements for motor carriers, brokers and freight forwarders. FMCSA concluded that current minimum financial responsibility limits for the commercial motor vehicle industry — including the $750,000 limit for general freight…

The U.S. is modernizing its food safety regulations, introducing sweeping changes that will include new requirements for trucking companies. The Food Safety Modernization Act (FMSA) includes seven major proposed rules and the most recent rule introduced, covering the sanitary transportation of human an animal food, will have the greatest impact on carriers. FMSA represents the…

With a national transportation infrastructure funding crisis looming, American Transportation Associations (ATA) leadership recently endorsed a menu of revenue alternatives. “Several months ago, ATA’s leaders convened a task force with the purpose of evaluating alternatives in addition to the federal fuel tax for financing the nation’s roads and bridges,” ATA Chairman Phil Byrd, president and…

In a trend that signals a continued economic recovery, U.S. trucking companies are ordering big rigs at an eight-year high, boosting trucking stocks and raising pay for drivers who are in short supply. “Freight is up, availability of trucking assets is tight,” said Sandy Cutler, chief executive officer of Eaton Corp., whose products include truck transmissions….

The driver shortage facing the trucking industry will not go away soon, according to results from a survey conducted by HireRight. HireRight’s survey showed that 79 percent of fleets are looking to add to the workforce but drivers are leaving the industry for more money or a better quality of life. The industry currently faces…