Southwood J. "Woody" Morcott, chairman and chief executive officer of Dana Corp., Toledo, Ohio, is the 1998 Automotive Industry Leader of the Year.

A traffic stop near Memphis last Saturday led to the arrest of man on murder charges in the slayings of four hotel guests, including three men from the trucking industry who came to Atlanta to watch a football game.

John E. Wren, chief executive officer of Lakeville Motor Express, Roseville, Minn., was elected 1998-99 chairman of American Trucking Associations. He succeeded Edward R. Trout, president of Cornhusker Motor Lines, Omaha, Neb.

The Professional Truck Driver Institute of America’s Certification Commission recently certified 12 truck driver training schools and recertified one other under the organization’s revised curriculum standards.

Two Southeastern grocery distributors — Gist Logistics of New Orleans and Star Georgia of Atlanta — have joined forces to expand their services in the area.

TransFinancial Holdings, the parent of Crouse Cartage Co., formed a new subsidiary, TFH Logistics and Transportation Services, to oversee all its transportation operations.

American Trucking Associations selected 25 of the nation’s best drivers as finalists for its 1999 America’s Road Team. Twelve of the candidates will be named to the team in January.

Veteran journalist David Barnes has joined the staff of Transport Topics as national affairs writer, where he will head the newspaper’s coverage of Capitol Hill.

The Federal Highway Administration will conduct a symposium on improving transportation communications with the public Dec. 3-4 at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Alexandria, Va. The meeting has two goals: to make people more aware of transportation concerns and to improve their perception of transportation. It also aims to better cooperation among communications professionals in various transportation sectors.

John E. Wren, chief executive officer of Lakeville Motor Express, Roseville, Minn., was elected 1998-99 chairman of American Trucking Associations. He succeeded Edward R. Trout, president of Cornhusker Motor Lines, Omaha, Neb.