Technology

The Federal Highway Administration has issued a final rule that it said will provide greater flexibility for states to use proprietary or patented materials in federal-aid highway projects.

WASHINGTON — The transportation committee in the U.S. House of Representatives is likely to consider a long-awaited highway bill early next year, Rep. Peter DeFazio, the chamber’s top transportation policymaker, said in an exclusive interview with Transport Topics.

China’s top maker of electric-vehicle batteries plans to spend $1.4 billion (10 billion yuan) building its first factory in the southwest of the country, adding to ambitious plans for the next decade even as the short-term EV outlook gets buffeted by subsidy cuts and demand uncertainties.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed into law a bill that directs the California Air Resources Board and other state agencies to develop and implement a new smog inspection program for heavy-duty diesel on-road trucks.

Self-driving trucking startup Embark Trucks announced it will open two transfer hubs to switch freight to its automated trucks.

Significant upgrades of freight and commuter corridors would vastly improve motorists’ quality of life and regional commerce, a panel of infrastructure experts told a congressional panel Sept. 25.

Former Uber Technologies Inc. engineer Anthony Levandowski broke his long silence about allegations that he stole driverless vehicle technology from Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo unit to say that he didn’t do it.

Wing Aviation, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., said it is collaborating with FedEx Corp.’s Express division and pharmacy retailer Walgreens to launch a drone-delivery service in Christiansburg, Va.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has released a report that provides recommendations for reducing greenhouse gas emissions across modes of surface transportation, including heavy trucks.