A.M. Executive Briefing - Aug. 26
This Morning's Headlines:
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Border Upgrades Are En Route
Trucks will eventually be able to use electronic data interchange (EDI) pre-clearing at a new border-crossing site at Coutts, Alberta. Building of the site is scheduled to commence in 2001, with completion set for 2003.Alberta Trucking Association regulatory-affairs director Al Smythe is pleased with the plan but thinks it might not be able to handle the truck volume "If we get the same growth in the next five years as we did in the last five years."
Belt Railway of Chicago Offers Cross-Town Traffic Alternative
Drayage trucking through Chicago streets could diminish if Belt Railway of Chicago follows through on a proposal to build a central terminal that will use lifts to move containers between trains on different tracks. Each year, container movement across Chicago by truck numbers up to 1.3 million hauls costing about $100 each.Funding has not been attained and site selection has not taken place for the proposed central terminal. Belt Railway President C.T. "Tom" Shurstad says he expects local and state governments to back the project if it will cut down truck volume, and says a $100 million terminal would more than pay for itself in a year based on the figures above.
But Cushing Trucking Vice President Anthony Pacella says taking drayage trucks off Chicago streets would not help traffic much. However, Central States Trucking Co. Vice President George Baima says the proposal is a good idea, calling crosstown drayage "a fill-in ... I make money on [local] pickups and deliveries." He adds that cutting down drayage will free up more truckers for long hauls.
Chicago handles more freight than any other intermodal gateway in the country. Journal of Commerce (08/26/99) P. 6; Watson, Rip
Vancouver Port Authority Announces First Meeting of Newly-Established Advisory Board
During the recent suspension of trucking services at the Port of Vancouver, the Vancouver Port Authority agreed to create an industry advisory board and hire a consultant with trucking expertise.In an open letter, Captain J.G. Houston, the Port Authority's vice president of operations, announced the hiring of Bob Hayter and the first meeting, which took place Tuesday. Hayter also serves as an advisory board member along with Gary LeClare, Bill McDonald, Dave Burton, and John Russchen. Houston is chairman of the advisory board, which was to discuss interim licensing and permitting, how to arrange appointments, and final licensing procedures. Canada NewsWire (08/25/99) ; Houston, J.G.
New Website Allows Carriers to Report Dock Conditions
The Truckload Carriers Association and Compunet Credit Services have created Dock Report, a new Web site at www.dockreport.com that allows trucking companies can trade information about dock operations. Truckers News Online Magazine (08/25/99)'Konvoy' Friday Launches Show to Aid Kidney Group
The "Konvoy for Kids" truck parade will wind through Salt Lake City streets Friday evening in preparation for the Great Salt Lake Truck Show on Saturday and Sunday. The show will benefit the Truck Show Kidney Kamp, to be held next month by the National Kidney Foundation of Utah. Deseret News Online (08/25/99)CHP Says Truck Chases Endanger Public
Following the third truck chase in California in the span of a week, the California Highway Patrol and California Trucking Association are collaborating to decide whether to suggest statutory changes to Gov. Gray Davis.Police say the latest truck chase spanned about 50 miles and began when the trucker, 41-year-old Charles Peter Macinauskas, was signaled to pull over for speeding. "When you're talking about the driver of an 80,000-pound vehicle refusing to pull over on a crowded freeway, the potential for death and injury is extremely high," says Commissioner D.O. Helmick of the highway patrol. "I'm disappointed that the traditional professionalism of the trucking profession seems to be breaking down," he adds. Business Wire (08/25/99)
$500,000 Worth of Macintosh Computers Stolen
One of the largest-ever cargo thefts in Colorado occurred July 31 when more than 440 Apple computers, mostly intended for schools in California, Colorado, and Wyoming, were taken from a C.R. England trailer. The trailer was later found in Golden, Colo., and Denver Police announced Friday that a portion of the stolen shipment might have been recovered.Officials from two Colorado school districts say Apple will be sending replacement computers to their districts. Denver Police Sgt. Stephen Tanberg faults poor motor-carrier security, saying that trailer had been left unattended on a street, as are many others parked in the industrial park. Denver Rocky Mountain News Online (08/23/99); Gutierrez, Hector
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