Safety

About Safety News...

Transportation businesses face a host of dynamic risk issues that can significantly impact their financial and operational health. The news in this category focuses on the latest safety and security initiatives, resources and regulations and addresses topics that include fleet safety, claims administration, driver hiring and retention, risk management and compliance.

Government, Business, Safety

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Legislators Agree on I-66 Proposal

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and key legislators from both parties and both chambers announced Feb. 10 that they have agreed on a plan to add a third lane to a 4-mile eastbound stretch of Interstate 66 from the Dulles Airport Connector Road to Arlington inside the Capital Beltway.

David Elfin | Staff Reporter
February 11, 2016

Daily Briefings from Transport Topics

Transport Topics has partnered with Spoken Layer to make one-minute daily briefings available on all your smart devices. Simply say “Alexa, play Transport Topics” or “Okay Google, talk to Transport Topics” to get the day’s biggest trucking headlines.

Government, Safety, Business

Sleep Apnea Proposal Clears OMB

A plan by federal regulators to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking regarding sleep apnea cleared a review by the White House Office of Management and Budget on Feb. 3.

Eric Miller | Senior Reporter
February 4, 2016
Government, Business, Safety, Equipment

New York Supreme Court Rules Tax and Decal Fee Unconstitutional

New York’s Supreme Court ruled Feb. 1 that the state’s highway-use tax and decal required of out-of-state truckers are unenforceable, awarding a victory to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association in its class-action lawsuit.

David Elfin | Staff Reporter
February 2, 2016
Business, Government, Safety, Autonomous

Omnitracs Introduces Next-Gen Telematics Platform

DALLAS — Omnitracs has unveiled its next-generation telematics platform, which introduces voice recognition software to the company’s technology offerings while expanding wireless connectivity within the truck.

Seth Clevenger | Managing Editor, Features and Multimedia
February 2, 2016
Business, Safety, Government

Drivers Form Human Chain to Rescue Trucker Dangling Over Embankment

When a tractor-trailer traveling the Pennsylvania Turnpike 20 miles east of Bedford lost control and went partially over an embankment Jan. 22 during the historic winter blizzard, drivers stopped to help by forming a human chain and pulling the trucker to safety.

January 27, 2016
Government, Business, Safety

Transport Topics Closed Jan. 25, 26 as Washington Digs Out From Blizzard

Arlington, Va.-based Transport Topics is closed Jan. 25 and Jan. 26 as Washington struggles to overcome the blizzard that blanketed parts of the Mid-Atlantic region with two feet of snow.

January 25, 2016
Business, Safety, Government, Autonomous

Heavy-Truck Repair, Maintenance Costs Have Soared, But Prices for Common Parts Could Decline in ’16

The cost to repair and maintain heavy-duty trucks has surged in recent years, rising more than 50% since 2008, based on a study by the American Transportation Research Institute.

Daniel P. Bearth | Staff Writer
January 25, 2016
Business, Safety

Port of Toledo Tonnage Falls 30% in 2015 as Commodities Slump

A slumping steel industry led to declines in several key commodities across the Port of Toledo’s docks last year that accounted for most of a nearly 30% plunge in cargo tonnage.

David Patch | The Blade (Toledo, Ohio)
January 19, 2016
Business, Safety

Truck-Crash Deaths Down

The rate and total number of fatalities involving trucks weighing at least 10,000 pounds declined in 2014 from the prior year, according to newly released federal data.

David Elfin and Eric Miller | Staff Reporters
January 18, 2016
Business, Government, Safety

Minimal Mention of Transportation in Obama’s Final State of the Union

President Obama’s much-anticipated State of the Union Address on Jan. 12 focused little on infrastructure and freight transportation concerns, surprising stakeholders still praising last month’s enactment of a five-year highway law that had been six years in the making.

Eugene Mulero | Senior Reporter
January 18, 2016