Month: September 2012

Five people have died in two crashes in western Nebraska after mechanical problems forced a truck to stop on Interstate 80.

Cheyenne County Attorney Paul Schaub says the first crash occurred early Sunday morning, when a tractor-trailer rig ran into the stalled truck. The driver who hit the stalled truck died.Traffic backed up on the interstate and the slowdown contributed to another fatal crash.

Schaub says another truck ran into and killed the driver of a 2010 Ford Mustang. The force of that collision pushed a Toyota Corolla underneath another truck, killing the driver of that car and two child passengers.
Schaub said Monday that Josef Slezak, the truck driver in the second crash, faces manslaughter charges. Slezak is from River Grove, Ill.

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The driver of a tractor-trailer who was involved in an accident with a car driven by Kerry Kennedy two months ago pleaded not guilty on Friday to leaving the scene of an accident and vowed to fight the charge.“When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose,” the driver, Rocco Scuiletti said, invoking the Bob Dylan song “Like a Rolling Stone” in an interview after a brief traffic court hearing here.Mr. Scuiletti, 47, of Poughkeepsie, was unwittingly thrust into a national spotlight on July 13, when just after 8 a.m., Ms. Kennedy swerved her Lexus into his truck on Interstate 684 in Westchester County. Ms. Kennedy, the former wife of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and a daughter of Robert F. Kennedy, then exited the highway with a flat tire and rolled to a stop on Route 22. Witnesses reported that she was driving erratically and said that she had been slumped over the wheel, the police said.

Blood tests administered nearly five hours after the accident showed that Ms. Kennedy had a low level of zolpidem, the generic name for Ambien, in her system. She has said that she may have inadvertently taken the potent sleep aid instead of her thyroid medication on the morning of the accident. She was arrested and charged with a single misdemeanor charge of driving with ability impaired by drug.After a July 17 court hearing in which she pleaded not guilty, Ms. Kennedy, 52, apologized to Mr. Scuiletti.“I want to apologize to the driver of the truck who I apparently hit and to all those I endangered while driving my car,” she said.

Mr. Scuiletti said Friday that he had no idea that the driver who had sideswiped his truck was a member of the Kennedy family. He said he was surprised when he saw news reports the next day.He was even more surprised to be charged with leaving an accident scene.“As soon as I had a safe opportunity to pull over, I did; I inspected my tractor,” Mr. Scuiletti said Friday. “There was no damage — not even paint exchange — and the person who bounced off of me was long gone. I just continued on my way. I didn’t know what to report.”Mr. Scuiletti said the trucking company he was driving for fired him after the accident. He declined to give the name of the company, which is based in Massachusetts.

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U.S. employers added 96,000 jobs last month, a weak figure that could slow any momentum President Barack Obama hoped to gain from his speech to the Democratic National Convention.
cent from 8.3 percent in July, the Labor Department said Friday. But that was only because more people gave up looking for work. The government only counts people as unemployed if they are actively searching.

The government also said 41,000 fewer jobs were created in July and June than first estimated. The economy has added just 139,000 jobs a month since
The unemployment rate fell to 8.1 perthe beginning of the year, below 2011’s average of 153,000.

For-hire trucking picked up 1,400 jobs for the month, and has added jobs every month this year except for March. The preliminary August number for trucking is better than the same month a year ago by 49,000 jobs, and it’s 117,000 jobs better than March 2010, the low point in the downturn. But the current total is still 103,100 jobs shy of the industry peak in early 2007 — a slip of 7.1 percent.

Dow Jones industrial futures, which had been up before the report, fell soon after it was released.

The report was weak throughout. Hourly pay fell, manufacturers cut the most jobs in two years and the number of people in the work force dropped to its lowest level in 31 years.

Sluggish hiring could nudge the Federal Reserve to announce some new action to boost growth after its meeting next week.

The report on hiring and unemployment is among the most politically consequential of the campaign. The figures arrive just as the presidential race enters its final stretch. Jobs are the core issue, and the report could sway some undecided voters.

There will be two additional employment reports before Election Day Nov. 6. But by then, more Americans will have made up their minds.

In his speech Thursday night, Obama acknowledged incomplete progress in repairing the still-struggling economy and asked voters to remain patient.

“The truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over the decades,” Obama said.

In addition to those who’ve given up looking for work, many young Americans are avoiding the job market by remaining in school. All told, the proportion of the population that is either working or looking for work fell to 63.5 percent. That’s the lowest level in 31 years for the labor force participation rate.

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Maryland State Police say commercial truck drivers should plan in advance where they want to park when they need a break — and not park on the shoulder of Interstate 83. Good luck, says the head of the Maryland Motor Truck Association.

The police say there’s been an increase in tractor-trailers parked on the side of the highway between Interstate 695 in Towson and the Pennsylvania state line. Police say the parked trucks lead to “extremely dangerous conditions.”

Starting Friday, Sept. 7, police are implementing a zero-tolerance policy and will issue $60 tickets to truck drivers who park on the shoulder.

“State police are correct that parking on the shoulder of I-83 is significant, but what they overlook is that there aren’t sufficient spaces available for the trucking industry, not just on I-83, but the entire state,” Louis Campion, MMTA president told The Trucker.There is not a single truck stop along I-83 in Maryland, which runs from Baltimore to Harrisburg, Pa.

For the Maryland State Police to take the position that drivers needs need to adequately plan routes to make sure they can stop at a parking facility represents a fundamental misunderstanding of what these drivers face every day — weather, congestion, available hours to drive — without providing them with adequate parking,” Campion said. “What other option do they have? Drive tired? No one wants to see them to do that.”

Campion noted that a truck partnership study conducted in 2006 clearly identified no truck parking on I-83 as an issue and recommended two overarching strategies —public-private partnerships and local problem solving.

Six years later a major parking program remains, he said, but did note that a federal grant had been awarded to help add over 20 spaces at a welcome center on I-95 south of Baltimore.
Campion said police can only give truckers found parked on an I-83 shoulder the $60 citation.

Truckers can’t be forced to move because most stop only because they are out of hours.
Truck drivers are urged to stop at rest areas, welcome centers or weigh stations.
The state police said electronic highway signs will also be used to remind drivers about the increased enforcement.

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The IRS Form 2290 is traditionally due on August 31st at midnight, but due to the maintenance it was stopped at 1:00pm EST. Over the Labor Day weekend, the IRS shut down their E-Filing system for maintenance. During this time, taxpayers were not able to E-File the IRS Form 2290 for Heavy Vehicle Use Taxes. This E-File shutdown came at a particularly inconvenient time for Truckers, Trucking Companies, and anyone else owning a heavy vehicle. As with most IRS taxes, people often wait until the deadline, and this shutdown caused a serious delay for anyone attempting to E-File this return at the last minute. However difficult this may have been, ExpressTruckTax has made it easy to submit this information to the IRS as soon as they begin processing returns again.

Fortunately, the IRS system will be back up and running at 12:00pm on Tuesday, September 4th. According to a recent letter from the IRS, any Form 2290 returns E-Filed by Friday, September 7th will still be considered on time. The IRS has extended the E-Filing deadline for the Form 2290 from August 31 to Friday, September 7th.

The Form 2290 can still be completed online through ExpressTruckTax. Once all the information is submitted, it will be transmitted to the IRS on September 4th when E-Filing becomes active again. If any truck driver, owner operator, trucking company, or anyone else owning a heavy vehicle still needs to file the Form 2290, they are strongly urged to get it E-Filed this week, or IRS fines and penalties will be incurred.

This tax must be filed by anyone owning a vehicle weighing at least 55,000 pounds using the IRS Form 2290 on an annual basis. This means that every heavy vehicle must be filed for during the months of July and August. Individuals and businesses with 25 or more vehicles are required by the IRS to E-File the return rather than paper filing.

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An eastern Missouri truck driver has been convicted of failing to properly secure a bulldozer that fell off his flatbed and fatally injured two women.

St. Charles County jurors deliberated about four hours Friday before finding 27-year-old Adam L. Steinmann of Marthasville guilty of two counts of involuntary manslaughter. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that jurors also convicted him of a misdemeanor count of driving with a suspended license.

The bulldozer tumbled off Steinmann’s trailer in July 2009, bounced and landed on a car driven by 63-year-old Judith Ulery, of New Melle. She died 44 days after the crash. Her 86-year-old mother, Elsie Sherman, died about nine months later.

Steinmann’s attorney blamed brake problems and described what happened as “a tragic accident.”Sentencing is set for Oct. 30.

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Hauling freight with a truck is common practice; unfortunately, you can’t just throw a bunch of stuff in the back of a truck and drive away; loose cargo can fall out, so it needs to be properly secured first. Follow safety precautions and secure the load to the truck before attempting to haul cargo. When attaching a trailer to a tow hitch, it helps to have somebody assist you.Here are the thing that you have to do;Arrange the cargo so the weight is evenly distributed in the truck bed. Always load cargo as close to the truck cab as possible.Locate the loopholes on the walls of the truck bed nearest the truck cab.Insert the hook of one end of a bungee cord into one of the loopholes.Stretch the bungee cord across the cargo and pull it tight.Insert the hook of the bungee cord into the loophole on the opposite side of the truck bed. Make sure the bungee cord is taut and holds the cargo against the truck cab. If the cargo is large, attach a second bungee cord.

On installing a Trailer Hitch,here are what you have to do;Jack up the rear end of the truck so you can fit underneath.Lay underneath the truck. Take the installation instructions with you. Consult the installation manual during installation. Most trailer hitches are similar in design, but installation instructions may vary. Remove any spare tires or skid plates from underneath the truck. Review the installation instructions to help you locate the bolt holes on the underside of the truck used during installation.Drill a hole into the truck bed in the appropriate location using the appropriate drill bit or punch press. Center the hole between the two tires.Get out from underneath the truck and insert the drop bolt into the hole.Lay underneath the truck. Take the hitch frame and any necessary tools (screwdriver, adjustable wrench) with you. Hold up the hitch frame to the underside of the truck and align the mounting holes with the holes located on the truck. Insert the appropriate bolts and tighten with an adjustable wrench. Some trailer hitches require you to drill mounting holes into the truck bed. Consult the owner’s manual for the model’s specific mounting instructions.Get out from underneath the truck and insert the ball into the ball mount. Some balls attach to the ball mount by screwing them into place, while others require you to tighten a nut onto the threaded end of the ball. If the ball attaches to the ball mount with a nut, tighten the nut into place with an adjustable wrench. Consult the installation manual for ball mounting instructions.

Using a Trailer Hitch;Have somebody stand by the cargo vehicle, which could be a trailer or travel cart.Back up the truck so the ball mount is lined up with the tow mount of the trailer.Have somebody jack up the trailer so the tow mount sits higher than the ball mount on the truck. Back up the truck slowly until the ball mount is directly below the trailer’s tow mount. Have the person standing by the trailer tell you when you are properly aligned. Stop the truck and put it into park once the two mount is aligned with the ball mount.Lower the trailer, making sure the tow mount slides on top of the ball mount. You should feel the tow mount clamp onto the ball mount when it is properly secured.

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All items that move by ground in the United States are subject to regulations administrated by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Commonly know as the DOT, this agency regulates safe ground commerce by enforcing guidelines for trucking companies that handle freight. The NMFC (National Motor Freight Classification) breaks down all shippable items in categories into which all freight must be properly classified prior to being shipped. To the surprise of many first-time shippers, each classification code affects the cost of transportation. In order to avoid confusion and possible fines for infractions, it is imperative to properly classify freight.

Determine what item is going to be shipped. Make a list of items to be shipped if there are more than one. Describe in great detail what the item is made of, its purpose, its value and its condition. Weigh and measure the dimensions of all packages being shipped. MNFC classification codes are extremely detailed, so any additional details, such as types of packaging, is helpful.

Contact a local LTL carrier. An LTL (less than truckload) carrier is a trucking company that consolidates various customers’ orders to fill trucks. Contacting a local LTL carrier is easiest by calling during business hours, but is also possible in many case online.

Give a description of the item to ship, along with all additional information, to LTL carrier. List all items that follow under different classification numbers, so that an accurate price can be quoted. The trucking company will help you classify the items by looking up the freight in the MNFC classification manual.

Calculate the density of the freight. Density is calculated by dividing pounds by cubic feet. Classifications are determined not only by classification number, but by density.

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