Despite the positive numbers from FTR Associates about Class 8 truck sales, uncertainty in the industry still lingers, causing some fleets to weigh new engine technologies and even the early signs of a driver shortage affect their buying decisions, according to the most recent Fleet Sentiment Report from CK Commercial Vehicle Research. Orders are being driven by increases in freight volume, replacement of aging equipment, ordering units for evaluation of new engine technology. Some fleets are considering adding used equipment, even as a rising percentage, 50 percent up from 27.5 percent in the first Continue Reading

About 8 percent of the 650,000 carriers the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is tracking will receive warning letters in the next two months, according to agency. That makes for a total of about 50,000 letters warning carriers that their performance merited “alert” status by falling below acceptable levels on at least one of CSA’s Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. Those BASICs, such as unsafe or fatigued driving, form the statistical heart of CSA’s safety meas-urement system, which assigns a percentage ranking on each BASIC and Continue Reading

Truckers can expect to see more roadside inspections after the implementation of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA 2010) model later this year. The model is ultimately aimed at reducing crash risks, and according to the safety specialist at Penske Truck Leasing and former South Carolina state transportation police officer, fleets will be challenged to completely rethink their safety management practices. Under this new model, carriers will bear the most responsibility for all safety components because their drivers will be Continue Reading

Sharing what they learned from challenging economic times was the spirit of a panel discussion at the Commercial Vehicle Outlook Conference last week in Dallas. Various fleet executives shared their strategies, which ultimately helped them survive, as well as what they’re preparing for in the future. One of the biggest lessons–and maybe even silver linings–from the recession is that it forced carriers and other businesses to trim all the fat from their operations. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t more challenges ahead. The executives agreed that the driver shortage would continue to Continue Reading

A new report from FTR Associates on drivers suggests that just because there is no shortage of experienced drivers looking for work, many fleets will not be able to hire and train them. According to the Driver Supply Update for May, recent economic struggles have forced many a carrier to pare down their hiring and training departments. So despite the need for drivers and the availability Continue Reading

Wal-Mart continues its quest to become more eco-friendly, and its latest move is to assume control of its U.S. transportation services from suppliers. According to the mega discount store, by using its private fleet and contractors to transport goods from the manufacturer to Wal-Mart’s distribution centers and on to its stores, such action will help further Continue Reading

Feeling the pinch of a depressed economy, truckload fleets have cut driver pay in the last year, in some cases almost 3 cents per mile, according to the latest National Transportation Institute survey. But longevity is paying off as drivers who’ve been behind the wheel for three years or more aren’t often the ones Continue Reading