News Briefs - Dec. 20
- Senate Passes Port Security Bill
- Con-Way’s Fuel Surcharge to Go to Zero
- GM Pushes for Daytime Headlights
- Florida Recalls More CDLs
- International Truck May Lay Off More Workers
- Daschle Says Stimulus Is Dead
- Bush Blocks Airline Mechanic’s Strike
- Patriot Transportation Reports 4Q Loss
- FHWA Names Rowland Chief Counsel
- U.S., Canada to Crack Down on Hazmat Drivers
- Michigan May Raise Diesel Tax
- AutoZone Announces Sale of Truck Parts Subsidiary
- Hino to Develop Trucks for U.S., China
- Court Blocks Timber Sale
- Oil Prices Fall on OPEC Inaction
- Con-Way’s Fuel Surcharge to Go to Zero
Senate Passes Port Security Bill
The Senate on Thursday passed the Port and Maritime Security Act of 2001 by unanimous consent. The measure authorizes for the first time federal funds for security infrastructure at U.S. ports. It includes almost $1 billion in grants to seaports and another $3.3 billion in loan guarantees for security technology.The act also calls for the U.S. Department of Transportation to establish a port security task force that includes trucking company representatives. Transportation workers will participate in local port security committees that conduct vulnerability assessments and review contingency plans.
Each port authority will be required to include restrictions on vehicular access to seaport areas and facilities.
The bill, sponsored by Sen. Earnest Hollings (D-S.C.), makes $68 million in direct funding available to the Customs Service over four years for X-ray screening equipment, and requires federal and state law enforcement to develop better systems for capturing and sharing data on cargo theft.
Con-Way’s Fuel Surcharge to Go to Zero
Less-than-truckload firm Con-Way Transportation Services Inc., a subsidiary of CNF Inc. (CNF) said Thursday that its fuel surcharge will go to zero on Monday, Dec. 24.
Provided that the average price of diesel fuel stays below $1.15 per gallon, the surcharge will remain at zero, the company said. This affects Con-Way Western Express, Con-Way Central Express, Con-Way Southern Express and Con-Way Canada Express.
Earlier this month, several companies including United Parcel Service and FedEx Corp. reduced their surcharges as well.
Based in Palo Alto, Calif., CNF is ranked No. 3 in the 2000-2001 Transport Topics 100 list. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
GM Pushes for Daytime Headlights
General Motors Corp. (GM) said Thursday that it has petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require daytime headlights on all new cars and trucks sold in the United States, Reuters reported.
The company said studies show that lights reduce the number of daytime, multi-vehicle, front-end collisions by at least 5%. In addition, it said a NHTSA study found a 28% decline in fatal collisions with pedestrians.
Reuters noted that some automakers oppose daytime lights, saying they cause a distracting glare.
A NHTSA spokeswoman said it would respond to GM's request within 120 days. Transport Topics
Florida Recalls More CDLs
The state of Florida has recalled more than 1,600 additional commercial driver licenses because of suspicions about their validity, the Miami Herald reported.It is the third time that the validity of licenses granted in the state has been called into question by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, the paper said. The 1,633 holders of these CDLs have been notified that they must take the tests again.
The retesting is necessary because of the November indictments of seven former state examiners in a license-for-cash scam. The state is also considering extending the license recall to regular driver licenses, the paper said. Transport Topics
International Truck May Lay Off More Workers
International Truck and Engine Corp. may lay off between 100 and 500 more employees in March at a truck plant in Springfield, Ohio, the Associated Press reported.
Citing a spokesperson for Navistar International Corp., parent to International Truck, the AP said that the new layoffs are the result of slow truck sales. The company has laid off 1,130 workers at the plant in 2001.
The exact number of layoffs won’t been known until January, the company said. It told union members about the possibility of job cuts to comply with federal law requiring 60 days advance notice, the AP said.
International Truck currently employs a total of 3,100 people, compared with 4,600 people in October 2000. Transport Topics
Daschle Says Stimulus Is Dead
Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) said Thursday that the current form of the economic stimulus package is dead, news services reported.The plan, passed by the Republican-controlled House early Thursday, contained too many tax breaks for business and not enough aid for the unemployed to pass the Senate in this session, Daschle said and the Associated Press reported.
President Bush said he is in favor of the House’s bill, which passed by a 224-193 vote in the House, Reuters said. He was confident it would pass if it ever reached the Senate floor and he said it was unfortunate it never got the chance, the AP reported.
Daschle said the Senate would revive the issue when it meets again in 2002.
The package would have cost the federal government $90 billion in 2002 and $214 billion over the next five years, Reuters reported. Transport Topics
Bush Blocks Airline Mechanic’s Strike
President Bush signed an executive order on Thursday to block a strike by United Airlines (UAL) mechanics, saying that it could take a large toll on the entire economy, Bloomberg reported.
United’s mechanics will not be allowed to strike for 60 days, and an emergency board has been set up to try to help reach an agreement between the union, who is seeking wage increases and pensions issues, and the airline.
A strike could delay some shipments because airlines often transport cargo in the bellies of passenger planes. This could also affect trucks as they transport the air cargo to and from the airports. Transport Topics
Patriot Transportation Reports 4Q Loss
Patriot Transportation Holding Inc., the parent company of Florida Rock & Tank Lines Inc. and SunBelt Transport Inc., on Tuesday reported a net loss of $1,333,000 or 42 cents per share for its fiscal 2001 fourth quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with 4 cents per share last year.The Jacksonville, Fla.-based company said the loss was mainly due to its owner-operator subsidiary, Patriot Transportation Inc., which closed in September.
Transportation revenues for the quarter increased slightly to $23,962,000, the company said, and was credited to price increases for both the tankline and flatbed operations and an increase in miles hauled.
Net income for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30 was $2,703,000 or 86 cents per share, compared with 61 cents per share last year. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
FHWA Names Rowland Chief Counsel
James A. Rowland has been named chief counsel for the Federal Highway Administration, the agency announced Wednesday.“Jim’s legal experience and his years working with transportation issues in Congress will be of great value to the FHWA as we continue to address the transportation challenges that lie ahead,” Federal Highway Administrator Mary Peters said in a release.
Rowland was most recently the minority chief counsel on the Senate Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration. He has also served as legislative counsel to Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) and was on the staff of former Sen. Robert Kasten (R-Wis.). Transport Topics
U.S., Canada to Crack Down on Hazmat Drivers
After a scathing report by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, officials in the United States and Canada are looking for ways to better monitor and punish drivers who illegally carry hazardous materials across the border, the Associated Press reported.The report claimed that about 9,000 drivers are illegally carrying hazmats across the Ambassador Bridge each year.
Neither the U.S. nor Canada forbid hazmats on the bridge, but the Detroit International Bridge Co., the group that owns the bridge, does. The privately owned Detroit-Windsor tunnel also forbids trucks from carrying hazmats between the two cities.
The AP said there was no information in the report about hazmat trucks travelling through the tunnel.
Truckers can take a ferry that legally shuttles trucks carrying hazardous materials between the countries, but it is much more expensive than driving across the bridge, the Detroit Free Press reported. Transport Topics
Michigan May Raise Diesel Tax
The state of Michigan is looking to increase its tax on diesel fuel by 4 cents a gallon, the Detroit News reported.The tax hike is meant to provide additional funding for highway and bridge repairs. The increase would bring the tax on diesel fuel up to 19 cents per gallon, equal to the state’s tax on gasoline.
The extra tax would provide $46 million per year for Michigan, the paper reported, but it would mean that truckers would have to pay more to fill up with diesel in the state. Transport Topics
AutoZone Announces Sale of Truck Parts Subsidiary
Auto-parts retailer AutoZone Inc. on Thursday announced the sale of TruckPro, the subsidiary responsible for the sale of heavy-duty truck parts, to a group of private investors led by Paratus Capital Management.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The company revealed its intention to sell the division earlier in the year in order to concentrate on larger markets.
AutoZone sells auto and light-truck parts, as well as chemicals and accessories. Transport Topics
Click here for full press release.
Hino to Develop Trucks for U.S., China
Japanese truck maker Hino Motors Ltd. will develop a range of mid-sized trucks aimed at the United States and China, despite the economic slowdown, Bloomberg reported.
The trucks will range from Class 3 to Class 7, and some will be diesel-powered, Hino President Tadaaki Jagawa said. The company hopes to begin designs next year and to eventually increase U.S. sales 10-fold, to 20,000 units per year.
Hino is looking to increase sales in other countries as sales of mid-sized trucks in Japan falls to the lowest level in three decades. Jagawa said he has high expectations for the Chinese market, due to the approaching 2008 Olympic Games and developing economic acceleration, he said.
Hino Motors Ltd. is 50% owned by Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) Transport Topics
Court Blocks Timber Sale
A federal judge in Montana has temporarily blocked a White House plan to allow the sale of charred trees from the Bitterroot National Forest, the Washington Post reported.The plan would have allowed the government to sell the blackened timber on more than 46,000 acres of the preserve. The timber industry has lobbied hard to get the sale done before the wood rots.
Environmental groups had lodged legal protests to the deal, saying that the sale would interrupt the natural cycle of decomposition. The judge issued an order barring the sale until an appeal by the groups is heard, the Post said.
The sale would be a boost to the timber-hauling segment of the trucking industry, which would see an increase in business because of the size of the sale. Transport Topics
Oil Prices Fall on OPEC Inaction
The price of crude oil fell 3% in New York trading Thursday, after new pledges of oil cuts failed to bring immediate action from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Bloomberg reported.The cartel has received assurances from non-member states including Oman and Russia that they would cut production levels. Russia said it would cut by 5% in the first quarter of 2002, compared with the first quarter of 2001, an industry official told Bloomberg.
Oman is now expected to cut its output by 40,000 barrels a day. That figure was increased from its previous pledge of a 25,000 barrels per day. The cut will go into effect Jan. 1, Bloomberg said.
OPEC had asked non-member states to cut their aggregate production by 500,000 barrels; if they do so, OPEC said it would cut by 1.5 million barrels a day in an effort to boost the price of oil. The cartel is expected to make a final decision on a cut when it meets in Cairo on Dec. 28.
The price of oil is critical to the trucking industry because of its impact on the price of diesel fuel and gasoline. Transport Topics
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