Executive Briefing - March 13
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U.S. Bans European Union Meat Imports
The United States banned all imports of live animals and meat products from the European Union on Tuesday following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in France, the Associated Press reported.The ban will apply mostly to pork imports. According to the Department of Agriculture, U.S. buyers purchased 265 tons of French pork products in 1999.
Since 1997, the United States has not imported any cattle or beef products from France because of concerns about the unrelated mad cow disease.
The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Britain has led to the slaughter of nearly 120,000 cattle, sheep and pigs. France reported its first case of the disease since 1981 on Tuesday. Transport Topics
Reports Target Truck, Bus Brake Safety
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, a group of truck inspectors, issued a set of reports Tuesday showing that defective or poorly adjusted brakes continue to be the leading reason for removing trucks and buses from North American highways.The reports stem from last September's North American Brake Safety Conference, and are also available from the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators and the Ontario Trucking Association.
CVSA said it is preparing to send letters to about 60 organizations in the United States and Canada, primarily trade groups involved in the trucking and motor coach industries, seeking a response to the recommendations outlined in the reports for improving safety. Transport Topics
Yellow Cuts Times on Nearly 1,900 Lanes
Yellow Freight (YELL) said it has boosted service in the southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, cutting transit times by one and two days on nearly 1,900 lanes connecting all major markets.
On Sunday, changes took effect that reconfigured local pickup-and-delivery and shipment handling operations as well as over-the-road transportation schedules at 89 Yellow facilities that feed into Nashville, Tenn., and Charlotte, N.C., distribution sites.
Yellow is using an expanded complement of sleeper team drivers and is rescheduling dock professionals in key cities. The company said it is moving about half its shipments nationwide in two days, compared with about 30% two years ago.
Yellow is ranked number No.4 in the Transport Topics 100 list of U.S. trucking companies, based on 1999 data. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
TNT Post Unit May Interest U.S. Carriers
TNT Post Group (TP), the U.K. Post Office and Singapore Telecommunications won European Commission approval for their joint mail venture, on the condition that TNT sell its Dutch international mail unit, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday.
Parcel carriers such as FedEx, United Parcel Service, or Deutsche Post could be interested in buying TNT's Dutch mail unit, Bloomberg said.
The EC wants to ensure that the buyer will be able to generate sufficient volumes and be able to sell its services at prices comparable to those TNT now offers in the Netherlands, according to a commission statement.Transport Topics
Motorola to Cut 7,000 More Jobs
Motorola (MOT) said Tuesday it is slashing 7,000 more jobs from its cellular phone division in an effort to cut costs.
The job cuts, which likely means fewer shipments for trucking companies that do business with the Schaumburg, Ill.-based tech giant, are also further evidence of a cooling U.S. economy.
Motorola is the world's No. 2 cell phone maker, and has now job cuts for 16,000 workers in the past three months, slicing its total work force to 133,000.
The company said the latest cuts should be completed in the next two quarters, and will be spread throughout the world. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
N.Y.-N.J. Port Saw 2000 Container Loads Grow 10.8%
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said the volume of loaded intermodal containers moving through its terminals rose 10.8% during 2000, the Journal of Commerce reported.The port said its terminals handled 2,246,194 containerized loads, measured as twenty-foot-equivalent units or as if the total volume rode in 20-ft. boxes. In reality, most modern containers are much larger, but the industry retains this standard measure.
In addition, the dominant East Coast port's share of the container transportation along the range from Hampton Roads, Va., to Boston, grew to 57.9%.
The port also said that for the first time in 20 years, ship calls in the Port of New York and New Jersey topped the 5,000 mark. Transport Topics
Truck Ban Begins on Ky. Stretch of U.S. 119
Tractor-trailers and other large vehicles over 30 feet have been banned indefinitely for safety reasons from a stretch of U.S. 119 across Pine Mountain in extreme southeastern Kentucky, state officials said.The Lexington Herald-Leader reported the ban, which covers a 7.2-mile stretch of road between Ky. 932 near Oven Fork and Whitesburg in Letcher County. It goes into effect Tuesday, but strict enforcement won't begin until March 26.
Studies on this stretch of road found that trucks were involved in more than 60% of accidents, and that there are several locations where trucks cannot take curves without crossing into the oncoming lane.
Crews plan spot repairs for some curves, and a task force has been set up to find long-term solutions. Transport Topics
Volkswagen Truck Vehicle Profits Up 15.5%
Volkswagen AG (VOW-FRK) said pretax profit at its commercial vehicle unit rose 15.5% in 2000 to $243 million, helped by higher demand in South America and Western Europe outside Germany, Bloomberg News reported.
Deliveries in Germany fell 8% last year to 87,396 units, while truck deliveries in North America fell 9.8% to 3,206. The story quoted a VW official hoping that 2001 would bring positive overall results as well.
However, during January and February VW's worldwide deliveries of commercial vehicles dropped 3% and German deliveries slipped 5%, Bloomberg reported. Transport Topics
FedEx, Pilots Tug Over Mail Training
FedEx (FDX) is asking some pilots to fly extra hours, while other pilots train 500 new fliers hired to handle the flood of mail that will be required by a new contract with the U.S. Postal Service, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.
The FedEx Pilots Association members want to write the longer hours and extra pay into their labor contract. FedEx does not want to amend the collective bargaining agreement, and insists the squabble will not derail or delay launch of the postal contract, the Journal said.
FedEx is No. 2 on the Transport Topics 100list of largest U.S. trucking companies, based on 1999 data.Transport Topics
BNSF Adds Lanes to Intermodal Guarantee
Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway Co. (BNI) said it would add four more lanes to its guaranteed ontime intermodal service program, beginning March 19.
The new lanes include service between Memphis, Tenn. and San Bernardino, Calif.; Chicago and Denver; St. Paul, Minn. and Portland, Ore.; St. Paul and Seattle.
With these, BNSF now offers guaranteed intermodal service in 10 lanes connecting major U.S. markets. Transport Topics
(Click here) for the full press release.
Vehicle Parts Maker SPX to Buy United Dominion
SPX Corp. (SPW), a maker of auto parts and other industrial components, plans to buy United Dominion Industries for $954 million in stock while also assuming $876 million in debt, the companies announced Monday.
Muskegon, Mich.-based SPX said this $1.83-billion purchase of the Charlotte, N.C.-based engineered products manufacturer will double its revenues to $5 billion and expand its international presence.
This deal comes at a time when the auto-parts industry is being hit hard with production cuts by major manufacturers due to the slowing economy and inflated inventories, Reuters noted. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
