Trucking News

The $15 million Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) pilot program has been completed, and the final report issued by the Transportation Security Administration. While the pilot was determined to be mostly successful, a number of problems were identified. The most glaring issues are that the Final Rule has yet to be written, and the readers have not been installed.

Iowa has passed a new law that makes it easy for military personnel to land commercial truck driving jobs. The new law facilitates the transition between military and civilian Commercial Driver's License (CDL).

Although NAFTA made it legal for Mexican trucks to operate inside the United States, a moratorium enacted by the U.S. Department of Transportation at the end of 1995 has prevented Mexican trucks from operating outside "border zones," areas extending just a few miles outside major border crossings.

When Walmart starts using a technology, it’s a sure sign of an emerging trend. Walmart has deployed eight Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) Class 8 trucks in Southern California to test the feasibility of converting to LNG company-wide. If the past is an accurate predictor, as Walmart goes, so goes the world.

Having a co-driver can help eliminate boredom while also increasing profits. This often means adapting your routine to help you avoid conflicts with that individual. Fortunately, there are some easy changes you can make to help you co-exist with another driver whether you are on a long haul or a short one.

Drive in shifts

The public doesn't typically associate clean air and trucking with one another, but the Sapp Brothers Travel Plaza in Omaha, Nebraska may have changed this.

Terms have been settled that pave the way for the construction of a second bridge connecting Detroit, Mich. and Windsor, Ontario, a $4 billion project. The plan is to relieve the pressure on the heavily traveled Ambassador Bridge on the U.S.-Canada border, built 83 years ago. Mich. Gov. Rick Snyder and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the plans recently.

Recent data suggest that the economy is trending upward, albeit slowly.

Recent reports indicate a stable to slightly improved outlook for the economy’s recovery. In their June, 2012 report, FTR Associates, a leading transportation forecasting company, reports a 2.7 point increase in their Trucking Condition Index for April. The Index analyzes various factors that affect trucking conditions. Any number above zero shows positive conditions for truckers, while numbers over 10 indicate very favorable conditions. The April increase brought the indicator up to 9.1.

Penske Logistics was proud to present figures that showed a 6.6 rise in the total amount spent on U.S. Business logistics during 2011. They reported this rise in trucking and transportation as sponsors at the annual “State Of Logistics” report presented at a press conference held by the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals. This was the 23rd year that the council collected and reported statistics on the health of the logistics industry. The announcement was made on June 13 and was hosted at the National Press Club.

If the presence of empty store fronts in shopping malls and downtown retail districts has been a bit alarming, so, too has the number of company failures in the United States trucking industry. The complete collapse of consumer spending has transformed numerous industries, and the shipping industry in 2012 finds itself much more compact and and restrained than it was just a half-decade ago before the recession.