Technology
Commercial freight transportation businesses rely on data, intelligence, and novel solutions for operational efficiency. Transport Topics technology coverage investigates available technologies, real-world applications of business solutions, and the strategies necessary for advancement. News topics focus on the latest applied science, and issues range from autonomous vehicle and robotics innovations to management software, tracking and transparency, data analytics, blockchain, and the internet of things.
Mitchell 1 Provides International Dealers With All-Makes Repair Software
Mitchell 1 announced that its TruckSeries truck repair information has been provided to select International truck dealers as the first step in an anticipated rollout of TruckSeries to all International dealers across North America.
April 25, 2017Platinum Equity to Buy American Traffic Solutions
Platinum Equity has agreed to buy American Traffic Solutions, a company that provides red-light and speed safety cameras along with automated toll-payment and violation-management systems in the United States and Canada.
April 24, 2017FMCSA Officials Get an Earful at Automated CMV Listening Session
Federal trucking regulators got a lot of questions at a public “listening session” on highly automated commercial vehicles, but they were quick to admit they have yet to come up with the answers to many of them.
Will Uber Replace Freight Brokers? ‘Absolutely Not,’ Tech Expert Insists
ORLANDO, Fla. — The emergence of Uber-style transactions in the freight industry will not replace brokers, experts in the segment said while acknowledging a surge in both the number of new motor carriers and mobile apps to locate freight.
Searching for an ELD? It’s Buyer Beware
Whether a fleet already has selected a system to comply with the electronic logging device mandate or still is waiting to do so until later this year, there is no guarantee that those products will be legal for use later on.
Trouble Codes + Telematics
Troubleshooting dysfunctional trucks from afar through the use of remote diagnostics can help carriers better manage their equipment, reduce vehicle downtime and cut maintenance costs, but sifting through all of that fault code data can be a challenge, several fleet maintenance managers said.
Cross-Border Fleets Use Software to Manage Data, Prevent Delays
Cross-border shipments involve many moving parts, and any delays or errors in providing key information to customs agencies can prove costly to shippers and carriers alike.
Cities Need to Incorporate Autonomous Technology in Infrastructure Plan, National League of Cities Recommends
As cities craft long-term visions for their transportation grids, planners should begin to incorporate ways to facilitate a reliance on autonomous vehicles, a report by the National League of Cities recommended.
FMCSA Holds Listening Session on Autonomous Vehicles
Federal trucking regulators held a listening session on autonomous commercial vehicles at the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance workshop in Atlanta April 24.
April 21, 2017ELDs Now or Later? Early Adopters Can Choose
Sometimes it pays to be early. Many carriers still using paper driver logs will need to hustle in the coming months to install electronic logging devices in their trucks by Dec. 18, the implementation deadline for the federal ELD mandate. Fleets that already have deployed e-logs, on the other hand, will be afforded much more flexibility.