News Briefs - Dec. 3
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The Latest Headlines:
- Ohio Authorities Link I-270 Shootings
- Service Economy Expands at Slower Pace
- Air Cargo Shipments Decline in October
- Voss Transportation Faces Federal Indictments
- Ryder Acquires Vertex Services
- Oklahoma Senator Plans to Draft Bill to Increase Fuel Taxes
- O&S Trucking Buys Reefer Mo-Cal Line
- Service Economy Expands at Slower Pace
Ohio Authorities Link I-270 Shootings
Authorities have now linked 12 shootings along a five-mile stretch of interstate around Columbus, Ohio, including one that killed a woman, the Associated Press reported.Although ballistics tests have only directly linked four of the shootings, investigators in Franklin County "are comfortable" saying all 12 are connected, AP said.
Many were not reported until after Nov. 25, when 62-year-old Gail Knisley was killed by a bullet that pierced the side of a car driven by a friend, AP said. Transport Topics
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Service Economy Expands at Slower Pace
The Institute for Supply Management said Wednesday its non-manufacturing index showed that the service economy expanded in November, but at a slower pace than the previous month.ISM said the index was 60.1, compared with 64.7 in October. Readings above 50 indicate expansion.
Services account for 85% of gross domestic product. Trucking is part of the service economy.
ISM also said new service orders slowed from the prior month, to 60.1 from 64.4.
The institute bases its services index on a survey of more than 370 non-manufacturing companies. Transport Topics
Air Cargo Shipments Decline in October
Air cargo shipments slipped by 6.5% in October, led by a decline in freight and express package shipments, according to the Air Transport Association.Overall cargo shipments declined to 2.1 billion revenue ton-miles. A revenue ton-mile is the measure by which the association gauges air cargo shipments. A revenue ton-mile is the revenue generated by carrying one ton of freight one mile.
Freight and express shipments fell 7.1% to 2 billion revenue ton-miles, with mail shipments jumped 7.7% to 107 million revenue ton-miles.
Air cargo shipments are often hauled to and from airports by trucks. Transport Topics
Voss Transportation Faces Federal Indictments
Trucking firm Voss Transportation Inc., owner David Voss and dispatcher Merry Robinson face indictments for violating federal safety and air pollution laws, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.Calls by Transport Topics to the company were not returned.
The indictment alleges a driver for the Cuba, Mo.-based company died in April 2000 while working in excess of the hours allowed under federal law, AP said. The owner and dispatcher are accused of conspiring with drivers and others to conceal the violations.
The defendants are also accused of selling conventional gasoline at Voss Express service stations, rather than the reformulated gasoline required under federal Clean Air Act, and failing to report a spill of diesel fuel into Pleasant Valley Creek in March 2001, AP said. Transport Topics
Ryder Acquires Vertex Services
Ryder System Inc. said Wednesday it had acquired Vertex Services, a provider of outsourced fuel storage tank compliance and fuel systems management services.Ryder said in a release the deal gives it the ability to offer management services and solutions in storage tank operations to more than 13,000 existing customers.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Ryder is ranked No. 3 on the 2003 Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Oklahoma Senator Plans to Draft Bill to Increase Fuel Taxes
Oklahoma state Sen. Robert Milacek plans to draft a bill that would allow Oklahomans to vote on whether to raise the fuel tax to help fund repairs and maintenance for the highway system, the Associated Press reported.The bill would include a gradual increase in gasoline and diesel taxes. But unlike an earlier measure that failed, it would require all proceeds to go to roads and bridges, AP said.
Oklahomans pay 14 cents a gallon for diesel and 17 cents for gasoline. Milacek's proposal would phase in the tax increases with gasoline reaching its highest level July 1, 2006, and diesel hitting its top level a year later.
When fully implemented, the higher fuel taxes would produce $145 million a year, Milacek told AP. The higher taxes would remain in effect until June 30, 2030, when prices would return to current levels. Transport Topics
O&S Trucking Buys Reefer Mo-Cal Line
O&S Trucking Inc. said Nov. 19 it had acquired Mo-Cal Express, a Springfield, Mo.-area refrigerated carrier, for an undisclosed sum.O&S said it would assume responsibility as of Dec. 1 for the Mo-Cal customer base, purchase all equipment, warranties and other assets, and hire all current qualified drivers under Mo-Cal’s employ.
Mo-Cal, a privately held carrier founded in 1991, reported about $3.7 million in revenue so far this year. Under the deal, O&S said it was not buying Mo-Cal’s real estate holdings and would move Mo-Cal’s 20 trucks to the O&S terminal in Springfield.
Spokeswoman Sundy Muse-Morton said O&S currently runs 325 trucks and operates in 48 U.S. states and Canada. Transport Topics
This story appeared in the Dec. 1 print edition of Transport Topics.
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