Securities analysts said that Federal Express Corp. made a mistake in implementing a fuel surcharge and would have been better off to increase list prices, as United Parcel Service did.

A blast of bitter cold throughout the Northeast is being blamed for a 6.7-cents-a-gallon leap in the retail price of diesel fuel in New England, to $1.441 on Jan. 17. But the average national price, as reported by the Energy Information Administration the same day, remained at $1.307 a gallon for the second week.

Diesel fuel prices at Northeastern pumps continued to soar, prompting letters of protest from several trucking associations hit hard by the increase.

As 1999 drew to a close, shipments of truck trailers continued to run well behind the record pace of 1998, according to the Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association.

“18 Wheels of Justice,” a new television series heavily promoted to trucking audiences, made its Jan. 12 debut on The Nashville Network. Maybe it’ll get better, but right now this is a cable television show made to order for a smart-alecky reviewer.

The chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and its ranking Democratic member are urging the Surface Transportation Board to “proceed cautiously” in reviewing a proposal to merge Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. and Canadian National Railway Co.

As 1999 drew to a close, shipments of truck trailers continued to run well behind the record pace of 1998, according to the Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association.

A blast of bitter cold throughout the Northeast is being blamed for a 6.7-cents-a-gallon leap in the retail price of diesel fuel in New England, but the average national price, remained steady.

Sales of Class 8 trucks in December pushed 1999’s retail total to 262,316 units, shattering the record of 1998 by nearly 53,000 vehicles.

The Northeast may never again have the levels of rail freight service achieved by Conrail. That assessment comes not from what Norfolk Southern and CSX representatives said during a meeting with shippers Jan. 11, but from what they refused to say.