A.M. Executive Briefing - Oct. 29
This Morning's Headlines:
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Relief Is On the Way for Border Bottleneck
The two-lane road connecting Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, with the Colombia bridge to Texas is being widened to four lanes, with completion set for June. A second road is being built alongside the current one, which will become one-way when the work is finished. The road is currently too small to handle the trucks that have begun to use the Colombia bridge to avoid congestion at Laredo, 20 miles away. Truck crashes have resulted. Journal of Commerce (10/29/99) P. 3; McCosh, Daniel J.Truck Safety Has Improved on Highway 99 in the San Joaquin Valley
According to the California Highway Patrol, Highway 99 has seen a 35% drop in the crash rate caused by trucks during 1999, if the current rate drop is projected for the remainder of the year. Increased enforcement and a program by the highway patrol and the California Trucking Association to raise the public's consciousness were credited. Associated Press (10/28/99)
KLLM Transport Services, Inc. Reports Third Quarter Results
KLLM Transport Services says it saw a $747,000 net loss in the third quarter, a net loss per diluted share of 18 cents, while the year-earlier quarter saw $231,000 in net earnings and net earnings per diluted share of 5 cents. Third-quarter operating revenue rose to $58.9 million from $55.1 million.In 1999's first nine months, the company saw an $822,000 net loss counting a $247,000 after-tax charge, a net loss per diluted share of 20 cents, while the comparable 1998 period saw $2.4 million in net earnings and net earnings per diluted share of 56 cents.
While a superior driving staff led to such improvements as reducing the cost of insurance and maintenance, the company was hit by a driver shortage, the rise in diesel costs, and lower revenue per mile, says Chairman and CEO Jack Liles. However, he says the fourth quarter should be better due to certain higher rates, fuel surcharges, and "a continuing focus on reducing operating costs." Business Wire (10/28/99)
Indian Truckers Call Off Strike
The Indian Express says truckers in India striking over a government increase in the price of diesel backed down after a five-hour government meeting Wednesday with the All Indian Motor Transport Congress. The AIMTC did win some concessions during the discussions, although the government was steadfast on the fuel-price increase. Xinhua News Agency (10/28/99)Nafta Promotes Big Brother
Authorities in the United States and Mexico will begin sharing commercial-driver information via a database to go online Nov. 11. Such data sharing already goes on between the United States and Canada, and data from both of those countries will be available in the database. Three days of Nafta road-safety hearings saw many speakers say that making detailed truck-driver information available between law-enforcement agencies will promote safety. Edmonton Sun (10/28/99) P. S5; Holt, JimConsolidated Freightways Driver Honored for Driving 4 Million Accident-Free Miles
Sixty-year-old trucker Bruce Crager, who has been a Consolidated Freightways employee since 1965, has been honored by the company for hitting the mark of 4 million miles driven with no accidents.CF put Crager in the company Hall of Fame, and a new Freightliner tractor featuring gold stripes and stars and Crager's name has been dedicated. This makes him CF's fourth trucker to reach that milestone, and, the Motor Freight Carriers Association says, the sixth such trucker among cross-country unionized carriers. Business Wire (10/28/99)
Western Star Rolling in Profits
Western Star says it saw C$490.3 million in revenue for its first fiscal quarter, a 30% rise from the prior year's first quarter, with C$12.9 million in net earnings, a C$9.2 million year-to-year increase, and C$26.3 million in cash flow for operations, a rise of over 100%. A strike and shutdown impacted last year's first quarter. Truck sales rose 20% and Orion bus sales 122%.Western Star has also made a 10-year deal with Corsorcio G Gupo Dina, which will make medium-duty trucks in Mexico for Western Star. Vancouver Sun (10/28/99) P. F20
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