Government
Transport Topics government and regulatory coverage keeps managers of a highly-regulated industry aware of the policy decisions that can shape their businesses. Covering both the legislative and regulatory aspects of policy-making, at both the state and national levels, the news in this category includes looks at infrastructure, hours of service, emissions rules, funding measures, leadership appointments, and more. Readers can follow what’s happening in Congress, at the Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Administration, and in state and local governments.
Brokers Seek Fleet Safety Data to Evaluate Carrier Suitability
The federal government’s evolving Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 program is creating headaches for freight brokers who are trying to protect themselves from potential legal liability by picking safe motor carriers, according to industry officials.
May 31, 2010ATA Asks Judges to Reconsider Decision Allowing California’s Reefer Rule to Stand
Lawyers for American Trucking Associations have filed a petition asking that all 13 federal appeals court judges with the District of Columbia Circuit reconsider a three-judge panel’s decision that let California’s “reefer retrofit” rule stand.
May 31, 2010Details of Plan to Raise Truck Fuel Economy Remain to Be Spelled Out, Observers Say
WASHINGTON — A week after President Obama announced that the federal government would be crafting the first-ever fuel economy standards for large trucks, observers said it was still unclear exactly what those standards would entail.
May 31, 2010TTNews To Close Monday for Memorial Day
Transport Topics Online will be closed Monday for the Memorial Day holiday. Please check back on Tuesday, June 1, for the latest trucking and freight transportation news.
May 28, 2010Expeditors Sees Air, Ocean Tonnage Increase
Logistics firm Expeditors International of Washington said airfreight tonnage has risen 40% in the first three months of 2010 compared to last year, the Associated Press reported.
May 28, 2010Consumer Confidence Rises in May
U.S. consumer confidence increased this month, according to the latest Reuters/University of Michigan monthly consumer sentiment index released Friday.
May 28, 2010First-Quarter GDP Revised Downward to 3%
First-quarter gross domestic product was revised downward to 3% from an originally reported 3.2%, the Commerce Department said Thursday.
May 27, 2010Opinion: Congress Should Tread Lightly With Brokers
As a former New York Department of Transportation regulator and a current player in the motor carrier transportation industry, I have followed the concerns voiced by members of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and the Transportation Intermediaries Association, which represents property brokers and other third-party intermediaries.
May 26, 2010China’s Dongfeng Motors to Build New Truck Plant
China’s Dongfeng Motor Group Co. will spend $146 million to build a heavy truck factory in that country’s Hubei province, Bloomberg reported.
May 26, 2010DOT Study Identifies Possible Fuel Efficiency Strategies
A new Department of Transportation study hints that the Obama administration’s ambitious plans to increase heavy truck fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse gases emissions will likely rely on a combination of existing aerodynamic design technologies and future diesel engine modifications that have barely left the laboratory or are still under development.
