January 2012 News Archive

If passed, the Safe and Efficient Transportation Act could bring a number of benefits for the trucking industry, including improving efficiency for truckers, allowing them to increase the size of their loads.

According to the Morton Times News, a newspaper serving Morton, Illinois, the Midwest Truckers Association's 50th annual Mid-West Convention and Truck Show will take place at the Peoria Civic Center and Four Points by Sheraton on February 3-4.

NavStar Technologies recently developed another fleet management tool for the trucking industry, which will allow companies to track and monitor their driver hours more effectively.

According to an article provided by Zurich Financial to the Atlantic, using fleet telematics - an onboard technology that utilizes wireless communication, GPS sensors, computers and digital video to find out information on how truckers drive their routes - can lead to safer and more efficient fleets.

The Truckload Carriers Association and CarriersEdge recently announced the 2012 winners of the Best Fleets to Drive For survey, which was voted on by drivers and truck company owners. A number of fleets based in the United States and Canada won this recognition.

President Barack Obama built upon his push for natural gas recently, which he highlighted during Tuesday's State of the Union address, speaking at the UPS Depot in Las Vegas to promote natural gas-fueled trucking.

Receiving more than $200,000 in donations from customers and employees of TA and Petro Stopping Centers, the TravelCenters of America was able to come away from its second annual "Band Together for SCF" campaign with a record amount of funds for the St. Christopher Truckers Development and Relief Fund.

With many highways across the United States needing repairs, Bill Graves, president and CEO for American Trucking Associations, believes that real funding is needed from the government for the necessary improvements on these roads.

Swift Transportation Company recently announced a new website, joinswift.com, which was created to recruit new drivers to the trucking industry, as well as to the company.

According to a recent survey conducted by Transport Capital Partners, many trucking companies expect to be affected by the healthcare law changes, with 80 percent of respondents to the survey saying the changes will adversely affect them.