Business
Transport Topics business coverage focuses on the financial, economic, and commercial aspects of the modern freight business. Looking at both the microeconomic and macroeconomic forces shaping bottom lines, the news in this category includes labor news, jobs reports, tonnage and sales indicators, operations analysis, money and banking, mergers, acquisitions, e-commerce, bankruptcy, insurance issues, and more.
Editorial: Section 611 Makes Good Sense
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is debating aviation policy in the form of the Aviation Innovation, Reform and Reauthorization Act, or AIRR Act, and a sliver of the 273-page bill concerns trucking.
February 15, 2016Fleets, Shippers Battle on Rates While US Economy Downshifts
MIAMI — The softening U.S. economy is putting pressure on cost-conscious shippers to hold the line on freight rates this year, setting the stage for a tough battle with carriers seeking further rate increases to cover their own rising costs, such as driver pay.
Former Pilot Flying J President Charged in Fuel-Rebate Scam
Former Pilot Flying J President Mark Hazelwood and seven other former company sales executives were indicted last week on federal charges related to an illegal multimillion-dollar diesel fuel-rebate conspiracy.
TMC Prepares for Annual Meeting
The latest trends in maintaining heavy-duty vehicles and best practices for overcoming the growing shortage of diesel technicians will be key topics during the Technology & Maintenance Council’s annual meeting later this month.
February 15, 2016Obama Budget Would Boost Transport
New infrastructure projects would be funded through a significant new tax on oil companies, according to President Obama’s fiscal 2017 budget request.
Carriers Cautious on Freight Market
MIAMI — Privately held trucking companies are approaching today’s freight market with a healthy dose of caution, prompted by factors such as high inventories and weaker exports, according to top carrier officials addressing an investor conference.
Training Crucial for ELDs, FMCSA Official Says
DALLAS — Driver training on electronic logging devices will play an essential role in helping to smooth the trucking industry’s transition to the federally mandated technology, an official with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration told an audience of carriers and technology providers.
R.I. Gov. Signs Truck-Toll Plan; Industry Threatens Legal Action
The Rhode Island Senate took less than three hours Feb. 11 to approve Gov. Gina Raimondo’s RhodeWorks proposal, which includes truck-only tolls, one day after the House of Representatives debated the issue seven hours before signing off on the measure.
4Q, Full-Year 2015 Earnings Show Shift in Global Marketplace Trends for OEMs
Heavy-duty truck and engine makers reported earnings for the fourth quarter and the year that show the North American market starting to ease, Europe on the rise and the rest of the world showing difficulties.
House Panel Keeps Provision Blocking States on Pay, Breaks
The U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted last week to keep a trucking provision, tucked in an aviation reform bill, that would prevent states from enacting laws requiring companies to schedule meal-and-rest breaks for drivers or to pay drivers by the hour.