2017 MCE

Government, Business

Tax Reform First, Then Infrastructure, Chao Says

ORLANDO, Fla. ­— The Trump administration’s multiyear infrastructure funding proposal to modernize freight corridors and commuter networks will be unveiled after Congress reforms the tax code, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said Oct. 23 at American Trucking Associations’ annual conference.

Eugene Mulero | Senior Reporter
October 23, 2017
Government, Business

Truckers Key to Job Growth, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta Says

ORLANDO, Fla. — The trucking industry can play a major role in creating quality apprenticeship programs that could teach the skills needed to put some of the nation’s nearly 7 million job seekers to work, U.S. Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta said.

Eric Miller | Senior Reporter
October 23, 2017
Government, Business, Technology

‘Time to Move Forward’ on ELD Mandate, ATA's Spear Says

ORLANDO, Fla. ­— With the electronic logging device mandate fast approaching, the leader of American Trucking Associations emphasized that a delay will not occur, cementing the industry’s long-held view on the rule during his annual state of the industry address.

Eugene Mulero | Senior Reporter
October 23, 2017
Business, Technology

MCE Panel Lays Out Trucking’s Triumphs, Challenges

ORLANDO, Fla. — The North American Free Trade Agreement needs updating, but the process appears frozen in adversarial positions, even as truckload freight has grown 4% over the past five month, panelists here said.

Roger Gilroy | Senior Reporter
October 23, 2017
Business, Technology, Equipment, Safety

Human-Machine Interaction, Computing Power Key to Development of Autonomous Trucks

ORLANDO, Fla. — To pave the way for autonomous trucks, technology developers will need to refine the interaction between the human and the machine, and add more advanced sensors and greater computing power to the vehicle, experts said.

Seth Clevenger | Editor, Features and Multimedia
October 23, 2017
Business, Technology, Equipment

Navistar Announces Price Increases, New Services

ORLANDO, Fla. — Navistar International Corp. announced price increases of up to 2% for its model-year 2019 vehicles, citing rising commodity prices. The price increases may affect all product lines and classes of trucks and don’t single out Class 8 trucks.

Roger Gilroy | Senior Reporter
October 23, 2017
Government, Business, Technology, Equipment, Safety

Driver Shortage Returns to Top of ATRI’s Survey of Critical Industry Issues

ORLANDO, Fla. — The driver shortage has regained its status as the trucking industry’s most pressing concern for the first time since 2006, American Transportation Research Institute reported.

Seth Clevenger | Editor, Features and Multimedia
October 23, 2017
Government, Business, Safety

‘Item Response Theory’ Model Has Potential to Reduce Crashes, FMCSA Says

ORLANDO, Fla. — A new complex statistical model that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is exploring would utilize data to measure a motor carrier’s “safety culture,” rather than attempt to predict its likelihood of a crash, a top agency official said.

Eric Miller | Senior Reporter
October 22, 2017