Trucking News

The future for the overall trucking industry continues to look bright, with overall freight volumes expected to increase in the very near future.

Eric Starks, president of FTA Associates predicts total trucking freight volume to grow 5% this year.  As previously reported, the ATA predicts freight to grow at a strong rate until 2022.  Both of these signs demonstrate the strong recovery of the trucking industry over both the short and long terms.

The American Trucking Associations' U.S. Freight Transportation Forecast predicts significant growth in the trucking industry through 2022.

Trucking is currently the leading mode of transportation in the US, and this study predicts the increase dependence on trucks in the future.  Total tonnage for freight shipped by truck in the US is expected to grow steadily each year through 2022.  The overall total growth is predicted at 24%.  The report also predicted trucking’s share of freight transportation to increase by 4% over this time frame.

OOIDA (Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association submitted their official comments challenging the US-Mexico cross border trucking pilot program.

The ATA (American Trucking Associations) has announced they will not support detention time regulation by the federal government.  Instead, they have taken the stance that this is an issue to be negotiated between trucking companies and shippers.

A new version of the bill dubbed “Jason’s Law” was introduced Wednesday in the US House of representatives.  The bill is centered around providing safe places for truckers to park for their overnight breaks by adding more parking spaces and improving security at existing truck parking locations.

A new group consisting of both Democrats and Republicans has called for the dismissal of the cross border trucking agreement recently reached with Mexico.

The recently released numbers from the ATA (American Trucking Associations) show a growth in overall goods shipped by 1.7% in March.  This follows a decline in February. 

This increase is even more impressive given the recent rises in fuel prices around the country.  The ATA does predict a slowing of growth in the amount of goods ship as the nation continues to feel the effects if increased overall fuel prices over the long term.

Many states are now targeting non-commercial vehicles for distracted driving legislation.

Thirty states now currently outlaw texting while driving in an effort to improve safety for all drivers.  Most recently, Alabama, Texas, Maryland, and Nevada have passed or are considering increased anti-texting legislation.  This is in addition to the bans already in place for truck drivers.

Alabama:  A bill is currently under consideration to ban sending any text messages while driving. Fines are $25 per occurrence.

Diesel fuel prices continue to climb throughout the country.

The national average price per gallon increased $.027 per gallon.  California continues to lead the nation in average price per gallon at $4.44, which is 8.2% above the national average of $4.10 per gallon for diesel fuel.

In contrast to these increases, crude oil is experiencing a recent decrease in price per barrel, falling to just over $107 a barrel.

The most recent data from the ATA concludes the trucking industry is safer than ever.

• Fatalities involving a truck fell to 1.17 per 100 million miles in 2009
• This is a decrease of 14.1% over the fatality rate involving trucks in 2008
• 3380 fatalities involving a truck occurred in 2009, down from 4245 in 2008

“These improvements are a testament to the commitment to safety made by the trucking industry, the federal government, and trucking’s law enforcement partners” ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said.