Safety

Two prominent groups called on Congress to support the nation’s priority highway safety grant program when it considers federal funding legislation, saying that failure to do so would result in increased highway deaths and injuries.

Göran Nyberg has been appointed president of Volvo Trucks, North American sales and marketing, effective Oct. 1.

The ongoing pilot program that allows approved Mexican fleets into the interior of the United States suffers from lax oversight that does not sufficiently ensure compliance with the program’s requirements, a federal auditor said in a report released last week.

The Department of Transportation Tuesday helped launch a road test of new technology system designed to help avoid crashes.

An analysis of crash data by the American Transportation Research Institute found that trucks equipped with roll stability control systems had fewer rollovers and less crash-related costs than trucks with more expensive electronic stability control systems.

North American intermodal shipping volumes rose 5.2% during the second quarter, with the domestic segment growing more quickly than import-export business, the Intermodal Association of North America reported.

Drivers of large trucks made up the smallest percentage of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2010, according to recently released data by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Christopher Smithen, a certified North American Standard inspector from the Nevada Highway Patrol, was awarded the Jimmy K. Ammons Grand Champion Award for his combined performances in six competition areas in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s North American Inspectors Championship last week in Minneapolis.

Managers of the nation’s largest shipper-owned truck fleets are taking steps to counter the rising cost of fuel and equipment by more closely monitoring drivers and using new data collection techniques to make better routing decisions and improve compliance with safety and environmental regulations.