Government

Ryder System’s board approved a 2-cent increase in its quarterly dividend, to 23 cents a share.

A high-ranking federal safety regulator said truck-involved fatalities have been stuck at a “relatively flat” level for years, and that trend leads officials at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to recommend using “Buck Rogers”-style technologies to lower accident rates.

Bulk transporter Trimac Transportation said it had promoted Tom Connard to president of Trimac’s U.S. operations.

Towne Air Freight said it acquired Synergy Cargo Logistics, which will give Towne a greater presence in the southwestern United States. Terms were not disclosed.

President Bush’s proposed Transportation Department budget for next year would increase DOT’s spending slightly but cut highway spending more than $2 billion from last year, and it proposes to borrow funds from mass transit to cover a shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund.

If there is a silver lining in the current freight recession, it might be that the challenging economic environment is forcing carriers to focus more closely on business fundamentals to keep the bottom line healthy.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Uncertainty about the life cycle of key emission control components and higher maintenance costs have emerged as the top concerns fleets have with 2007 heavy-duty diesel engines, maintenance and equipment heads at several major carriers said here.

Wholesale inventories rose 1.1% in December, though sales fell 0.7%, the Commerce Department said Friday.

Truckload carrier P.A.M. Transportation Services said it lost $840,000, or 8 cents a share, in the fourth quarter, compared with net income of $4.3 million, or 41 cents, a year earlier.