Business

Truck technology vendors said they see no major flaws in the federal government’s new proposal to require electronic logging devices in commercial trucks, but they are seeking further clarification on some facets of the expected rule.

After much anticipation, on March 13 the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released its proposal that interstate truck drivers be required to use electronic logging devices.

The struggles of the nation’s trucking fleet to attract and retain qualified drivers have been well-documented in the pages of Transport Topics for many years now.

Truck tonnage rose 3.6% last month, achieving growth despite recurring winter storms and extremely cold weather that hampered fleets, American Trucking Associations reported last week.

Delays and inconsistencies with the way states test applicants for commercial driver licenses are undermining efforts to place truck driver training school graduates in jobs, according to officials who have asked Congress to act.

Hampered by what CEO Frederick Smith described as the worst winter weather in company history, FedEx Corp. last week reported quarterly profit growth of 5% to $378 million, or $1.23 a share.

The chief sustainability officer for the U.S. Postal Service said the agency needs $5 billion to replace its aging delivery fleet to have any chance of meeting 2020 fuel-efficiency goals set by President Obama several years ago.

Driver recruiting and trucking’s efforts to burnish its image are getting top billing at the annual Truckload Carriers Association meeting this week in Grapevine, Texas.

A survey of supply chain executives found that data analytics and multichannel fulfillment are the top priorities in the coming years among companies in a number of industry sectors, including transportation and warehousing.    

The retail diesel average slid 1.8 cents last week to $4.003 a gallon but stayed over $4 for the fourth consecutive week, the U.S. Department of Energy reported.