Government

The new federal hours-of-service rule for truck drivers took full effect Monday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced.

The speed limit on 570 miles of rural Ohio interstate highways increased to 70 mph from 65 mph on Monday under a new state law that allows the Ohio Department of Transportation to increase the speed on all nonurban interstates.

The diesel fuel tax will increase in a number of states across the nation  July 1, while Virginia and Maryland will begin charging new sales taxes that also will increase the cost of fuel.

President Obama last week announced that the administration will begin work on a new round of fuel-economy standards that will apply to heavy- and medium-duty trucks starting in 2019.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and Canadian officials announced an agreement to improve the American side of the Peace Bridge, which connects Buffalo to Fort Erie in Canada, the New York Times reported.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced this week that it had moved multiple Mexican carriers through various stages of registration in the cross-border trucking pilot program this week, including giving permanent authority to four fleets that allows them to operate throughout the United States.

Surface trade among the United States, Canada and Mexico rose 7.5% in April from the same month last year and increased 2.4% from March, the Department of Transportation said Wednesday.

WASHINGTON — Work will begin immediately to develop a second round of fuel-performance standards for heavy trucks starting in model year 2019, an Environmental Protection Agency official said Wednesday.

President Obama said the Keystone XL oil pipeline should be approved only if it won’t increase net greenhouse-gas emissions and that his administration is planning to partner with truck makers to set emissions standards “for the next generation of vehicles.”