Trucking News
December was a busy time in trucking. From holiday prep to storms and bad weather seemingly all over the US and Canada, everyone felt the pressure to get things done and get drivers home for the holidays.
As always we got through it. And now we put together a short list of trucking industry news you might have missed. Grab a coffee and scroll through industry updates we feel you should know.
Trucking Safety
Speeding tops the list of violations found during CVSA’s Safe Driver Week – Operation Safe Driver Week, held July 10-16 in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico is an annual concentrated enforcement effort organized by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. Officers issued a total of 8,586 citations and 7,299 warnings for speeding/violating the basic speed law/driving too fast for conditions. That amounts to 2,577 warnings and 1,490 citations issued to commercial motor vehicle drivers. That compares to 4,722 warnings and 7,096 citations given to passenger vehicle drivers.
Over 500 semis inspected during Georgia blitz targeting unsafe truckers – The enforcement effort targeted CMV traffic on I-20, I-75, I-85, and I-95 for aggressive driving, speeding, following too closely, failing to wear safety belts, distracted driving, and driving under the influence. Police say that the SafeDRIVE enforcement was also meant to ensure that CMV drivers obey safety regulations, including hours of service compliance, commercial driver’s license compliance, medical certification, and commercial motor vehicle credentialing.
Layers of grime and snow trigger extra truck inspections – When the lights, licence plates, decals and logo are clean, and conspicuity markings are present, it shows drivers care for the vehicle, Taraso, a Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance-certified inspector, says.
These are the states with the highest speeding fines for CDL drivers – The state of Illinois has the steepest potential fines for CDL speeding tickets, and California has the largest minimum fine for CDL drivers who exceed the speed limit.
Trucking Tech
Truck stops will soon need more electricity than stadiums, small towns – When trucking goes electric it will transform not only the industry, but also the country and its physical layout, according to a new study from National Grid, one of the world’s largest publicly listed utilities.
Canadian businesses face challenges in zero-emission truck journey – Transport Canada is acknowledging that Canadian businesses face plenty of barriers in the journey to eliminate vehicle emissions, and that diesel or biodiesel will continue to drive longhaul trucking until new technologies and fuel sources reach scale.
The long road to electric trucks – The electric future for trucks will likely see a similar real estate frenzy as the infrastructure builds out. Don’t think just about the charging points, which might be unstaffed, but restaurants, maintenance and repair facilities, workspaces, hotels, and power generation facilities, and support infrastructure to build and maintain those.
Truck Parking & More
Bipartisan bill would require businesses give truck drivers restroom access – Legislation introduced by Representatives Troy Nehls (R-Texas) and Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pennsylvania) would require shippers and receivers to grant truck drivers access to the facility’s restrooms. Nehls is also a member of the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure.
Bipartisan Truck-Parking Bill Introduced in Senate – A bipartisan bill introduced in the U.S. Senate would address problems with truck parking, authorizing $755 million in grant funding to expand commercial truck parking capacity.
VIDEO: CHP troopers team up to push/pull a stuck semi truck – In a video shared on December 1 by CHP’s Truckee Division, you can see two troopers working together to both pull and push a big rig with their cruisers during harsh winter weather conditions.
