Westport Innovations,
Volvo enter agreement

Volvo has entered into an agreement with Westport Innovations Inc as a Tier 1 Development Supplier for its heavy-duty natural gas engines and associated supply chain...

CF Industries confirms
fatal ammonia release

CF Industries Holdings Inc confirmed that a fatal release of anhydrous ammonia occurred during loading operations at its ammonia terminal at Pine Bend MN...

Apex Logistics puts its trust
in RSC from Meritor WABCO

In August 2004, Mike Siebert climbed into a truck cab for a demonstration of Meritor WABCO’s Roll Stability Control (RSC) system, and 15 minutes later, came away a believer...

Price of diesel fuel sinks
for third week in a row

The average price of a gallon of diesel fuel nationwide decreased for a third consecutive week, according to US Department of Energy information...

HR 4016 calling for more study of tanker rollovers

The tank truck rollover issue would get more study if HR 4016, the Hazardous Material Transportation Safety Act of 2009, becomes law. The provision on tank truck rollovers was a late addition to the bill...

Wetlines ban passes transportation
committee, moves to full House

Members of the House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a bill November 19 to ban wetlines (exposed retained product piping) on cargo tank trailers used to transport Class 3 flammable liquids. The bill (HR 4016) still must be approved by the full House and must be passed by the Senate...

Class 8 vehicle orders soar
to 21,500 units in October

Net orders for heavy-duty Class 8 commercial vehicles soared to 21,500 units in October, the highest level since January 2008, according to ACT Research Co...

Mack MP diesel engines
are certified for EPA2010

Mack Trucks Inc diesel engines have been certified by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board to meet the near-zero emissions standards that take effect in January 2010...

EPA, CARB certify Volvo
diesel engines for 2010

Volvo Trucks North America’s D11 and D13 engines have been certified by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board as meeting upcoming 2010 diesel emissions standards...

Stena Bulk opens Brazilian
office, plans new tankers

Stena Sonangol Suezmax Pool has opened a representation office in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Stena Bulk will add two new Suezmax tankers to the pool...

Hoyer 2008 annual report
wins international prize

International logistics service provider Hoyer GmbH Internationale Fachspedition, headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, has received the Silver Award in the Transportation & Logistics category, presented by the LACP (League of American Communications Professionals), for its 2008 annual report...

Stolt-Nielsen SA acquires
LPG carrier Althea Gas

Stolt-Nielsen SA (SNSA) has agreed to acquire through its subsidiary Stolt-Nielsen Gas Ltd the 82,557-cbm LPG carrier Althea Gas from Iino Kaiun Kaisha of Japan...

Wetlines markup occurring November 19

Congressional markup of the proposed tank trailer wetlines legislation should proceed on Thursday, November 19. Markup comes just days after what has been termed a very productive field trip to a Baltimore MD cargo tank repair shop and a public hearing convened by Rep Corrine Brown (D-FL), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials...

FMCSA preempts Boston’s hazmat routing restrictions

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) granted the American Trucking Association’s (ATA’s) preemption petition challenging the City of Boston’s hazardous materials transportation restrictions on the grounds that Boston failed to comply with the federal requirements for designating hazardous materials routes...

2009 Fleet Study indicates
slow demand for 2010 units

The 2009 Fleet Study conducted by CK Commercial Vehicle Research indicates a likely slow demand for new 2010 EPA-compliant power units when they are initially introduced. Respondents to the study were wary of committing to placing orders for the new equipment in the first half of 2010...

Trucking Conditions Index
higher—but still negative

The FTR Trucking Conditions Index (TCI) for October 2009 increased for the third consecutive month to –16.4, the highest reading since November 2008. This index, a combination of five truck industry statistics in one metric, remains significantly below a neutral reading of zero...

Westway Group signs
$175 million credit facility

Westway Group Inc announced the signing of a new three-year, $175 million senior secured revolving credit facility. The facility is being provided by a nine-bank syndicate led by JPMorgan Chase Bank NA and was arranged by JPMorgan Securities Inc...

FMCSA to add fifth option
to roadability final rule

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has responded to a petition for reconsideration of the final roadability rule and will amend the regulations to allow a fifth intermodal equipment marking option...

Price of diesel fuel dips
for second straight week

The average price of a gallon of diesel fuel nationwide dropped for a second straight week, falling 1.1 cents to $2.79 a gallon, according to US Department of Energy information...

Kenan Advantage Group
acquires Reinhard assets

The Kenan Advantage Group Inc (KAG) has completed an acquisition of the assets of Washington-based Reinhard Transportation...

Commercial vehicle market
recovery likely to be slow

While the medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicle markets are beginning a slow recovery from the lowest level of production since 1991, significant headwinds remain for the sector to return to normal replacement level demand, according to ACT Research Co ...

NRDC attacks ignore
success of Clean
Truck Program: ATA

In a series of blogs and open letters, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) attorney David Pettit has attacked the Port of Long Beach CA for working with the trucking industry to develop a Clean Truck Program at the port that is achieving positive results, creates a tightly controlled regulatory atmosphere to ensure that those results are sustained and built upon, and also ends costly litigation...

Ida has minimal effect
on oil and gas production

Tropical Storm Ida caused no significant loss of oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, though Chevron, Marathon Oil Corp, and Exxon Mobil Corp temporarily shut down some production and evacuated some personnel as a precaution...

Trimac completes purchase
of StarTrans business, assets

Trimac Dry Bulk Group Inc has completed the purchase of the business and certain assets of StarTrans Inc. A South Carolina-based motor carrier, StarTrans is engaged in the transportation of dry bulk products, including cement and lime products, and operates in a 20-state area east of the Mississippi River through a network of nine terminals in eight states...

Small number of fleets
planning to buy trailers
negatively affects index

The Q4 2009 FSR Equipment Buying Index as reported by CK Commercial Vehicle Research fell 23% from the previous quarter to a reading of 68.7. The Q4 2009 index was severely impacted by the small percentage of fleets planning trailer purchases...