British Columbia and local safety officials are stepping up commercial vehicle inspections for the rest of the summer. In particular, Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement officers will be looking for critical defects, such as with steering, tires, brakes and rims, that should have been easily detected prior to making the trip and are indicative of poor maintenance. According to the province’s amendments to Continue Reading

Canada’s Ontario province is taking steps to increase the integrity and safety of live animal transport within its borders. Most of the recommendations from the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) Livestock Transporters’ Division’s policy paper pertain to training and inspections for both vehicle and animal safety. The OTA’s livestock transporters’ division members operate close to 600 tractors across Continue Reading

A new bill proposed by Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) seeks to develop a national freight policy to ensure the U.S. infrastructure can efficiently move goods in part to protect the economy, while also keeping the costs of moving those goods reasonable. If passed, the bill – called the “Focusing Resources, Economic Investment, and Guidance to Help Transportation Act of 2010 (FREIGHT Act) – would create Continue Reading

The more than $5 million in grants recently awarded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) won’t be funding the use of commonplace components to reduce emissions. Instead, the clean diesel grants will support emerging technologies not yet verified or certified by the EPA or the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The $5.6 million in awards will fund port, locomotive and bus projects for Continue Reading

The Meritor Tire Inflation System (MTIS) is good for the environment, according to its manufacturer, Pressure Systems International (PSI), and the product is going green to remind customers of that. The product is now being shipped with a green Thru-T and green striped delivery hoses. This color coding is indicative of the Continue Reading

The overall number of inspections completed in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) Roadcheck 2010 were lower, but officials are taking the almost unchanged levels of compliance rates among drivers and vehicles as a positive sign. Still, this latest round of inspections reveals there are some areas for Continue Reading

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) continues to challenge the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) supporting documents policy, saying that portions of it are at odds with existing or previously unaddressed policies. Specifically, the latest FMSCA directive calls for carriers to account for hours-of-service oversight activities using electronic communication and tracking systems, which Continue Reading

One of North America’s top for-hire carriers is helping its customers boost the freight it can haul. Con-way, which operates truckload and less-than-truckload divisions, has converted 100 standard 53-ft trailers to double stacks with plans to do more later this year. According to the company, the double stacks Continue Reading

Been stuck in traffic lately? If you think it’s bad now, a new report from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) says it’s only going to get worse in the next two decades. With 1.8 million more trucks expected to hit the highways in the next 10 years and for every Continue Reading

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration took one step closer to getting its new hours-of-service proposals enacted. The new HOS proposal was sent to the Transportation Secretary’s office late last month. New rules are typically sent there for review before being sent to White House Office of Management and Budget for a final assessment. According to the Department of Transportation (DOT), the proposal Continue Reading