Tag: transportation

Categories
Trucker News

How does a truck driver know where to go?

These days everything is computerized. Eighteen wheelers are no exception. MOST trucks are equipped with a QUALCOMM™ Satellite System. OR some other type of satellite system to enable trucking companies to track their trucks to within three blocks anywhere in the country! These trucks now are highly stylish. Qualcomm is a messaging system with GPS built in which is tied into the truck’s computer and allows trucking companies to track where the driver is at, monitor the truck, and send and receive messages with the driver similar to email. It shows you within a few short blocks of where you are at about 3 blocks or so. It may be much closer now. You access the Qualcomm from inside the truck using what looks like a computer keyboard and screen. Each company can set it up to their own needs.
Truck drivers now do not have much need of a telephone. When the trucking company gets a load from a customer they then send a message over the satellite which the driver gets in his truck on an on-board computer telling him/her where to go and when to be there. It also tells the driver how many miles it is to the customer, directions, and any other pertinent information requested by that customer. New advances in technology are greatly enhancing the life of a trucker. These computers are getting very intricate. A trucking company can track how fast the truck is moving as it is moving, how long it has been on the move, fuel economy, idle time, engine rpm, and on and on! It is amazing what has come and what is upcoming soon!

Categories
Trucker News

Shippers Top Priority for Carrier Leaders

The unifying theme of a wide-ranging discussion among several chief executives at the Truckload Carriers Association conference this week was that trucking needs to make sure its customers have a clear understanding of the challenges the industry now faces.Shippers need to be as familiar as carriers are with the complexities of the driver shortage, industry costs, inflation and fuel prices, said the presidents of Swift Transportation, Knight Transportation and Prime, Inc. Talking about the coming driver shortage, Robert Low of Prime said that it is hard for shippers to understand but the truth is that drivers are not making enough money to reward them for their sacrifices.

SHIPPER
That’s in part because shippers are used to the truckload sector’s ad hoc business model, which makes for efficient trucking but is hard on the driver, he said. Over the past several years the industry has not made much progress on this issue because with business down there was not much need to. That’s going to change this year, he said. “It bodes well for rates but we need drivers.”Richard Stocking of Swift echoed the point: “The burden is on the industry to educate the shipper,” he said.

SHIPPER
One tactic Swift has adopted is to bring in unemployed workers for training to get a CDL and then indoctrination into the company as drivers. The average age of those novice drivers, by the way, is 43. “We’re not growing kids to be truck drivers,” Stocking said.Stocking stressed that it is important to create a driver-friendly environment. “(Drivers) have the hardest job out there and we owe them a lot of respect,” he said. Another Swift tactic is to start assigning several drivers to a single truck, so that it’s easier to schedule time off.Kevin Knight of Knight Transportation said that because his company has always hired experienced drivers, the recruiting job is getting more challenging. In preparation, the company a couple of years ago started a training business that takes on CDL holders and integrates them into the business, as a supplement to its recruiting efforts.Knight returned to his core message: “We need to work with customers to make them understand that this industry needs reinvestment. It is a difficult mission but if all speak loud and clear there’s a great opportunity that we will have breakthrough.”

Categories
Trucker News

Ports react to Japan quake tsunami

The massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan has pushed down the price of oil today and may affect traffic at the West Coast intermodal ports.

Ocean shipments going in and out of Japan, including those going through U.S. West Coast ports, have come to a standstill. The quake could disrupt shipments of Japanese vehicles to the U.S., which some trucking operations haul to dealers. Longer term, the disaster may translate into more shipments headed toward Japan as the country rebuilds from this disaster.

Meanwhile, truckers along some West Coast routes today are reportedly running into additional traffic congestion following a tsunami warning that was issued earlier, causing people to evacuate some coastal areas The Port of Los Angeles has suspended the transfer of hazardous materials at the facility, but normal cargo operations have not been affected. A similar move was made at the Port of San Francisco.

Categories
Lifestyle

Importance of Transportation to Industry

Freight transportation is a very important need of every business these days. In fact this is the backbone of several industries and business. One cannot deny its importance in any respect. Although freight transportation depends upon three main modes of transportation Air Cargo, Railways and Road Transport (involving trucks), but trucks remain the major contributor of all time.
Different Roles of Trucking Companies
Trucking companies play an important role in moving freights from one place of country to another. For agro businesses and several small, medium and large industries these trucking companies are lifeline. Its impact can be felt in case of trucking companies’ strikes when the prices of all commodities go up.

Trucking Business
Importance of Trucks for Industries
Importance of Trucks for Industries – Every industry needs raw materials and fuels to keep their operations smooth. To keep their output rate intact, they need proper supply of both raw materials as well as fuels to induce their production in provocative manners. To serve this need they have to maintain the flow of raw materials and fuels regularly, trucking companies help these industries in maintaining required flow. At the end of production process, trucking companies also help industries to transport their end product to their end customers. Thus, trucking companies are of great help to industries in both pre and post production operations.
Trucking Business
Importance of Trucks in Agro Business
Importance of Trucks in Agro Business-Trucking companies are among one of the most vital factors for the success and failures of agriculture and other agro businesses. Right from the transportation of seeds, fertilizers and required machinery for agriculture, to the transportation of final products and by-products of agriculture, trucking companies help farmers and other people associated with agriculture based businesses or small industries.
Truckgif Pictures, Images and Photos
Trucking Business
Trucking Needs of Common Man
Trucking Needs of Common Man – Not only industries and business but also common man needs services of trucking companies at several point of time. People need services of trucking companies in home construction, transportation of their furniture and other home stuff in case of shifting to some other places. Even some business entities like packers and movers are completely dependent on trucking companies for all their operations.Thus, we can easily figure out how important trucking companies for everyone are. In first look, not everybody can understand its importance directly, but after an observation everyone can figure out the involvement of trucking companies.

Categories
Trucker News

A new scope for Canadian-American Border

Leaders of the two nations, the US President Mr. Barack Obama and the Canadian Prime Minister Mr. Stephen Harper conducted a meeting last week. The main issue was the long-term co-operation relating to the borders. The negotiations lead to signing a pact Friday calling dealing with the increased trade and security tie ups between the U.S. and Canada. This will facilitate quicker and hassle free transport between the countries and a good source of business generation for the trucking companies of both the countries.
The cross-border relations regarding the trade between the two nations were in turmoil since the 9/11 terrorists attack in the U.S. The meeting was focused to “intend to pursue a perimeter approach to security”. The loads available and people should be allowed to travel with more flexibility making the transport much easier for them.

The joint declaration stated that they will work to develop an integrated security policy which will ensure that the cargo and other goods undergo compatible screening tests, before they move out of the Canadian and U.S. ports. This will enhance the quick crossings at either port enabling the subsequent crossings much more fast.

Check out some of the latest industry news and happenings on our truck load board blog page.

The leaders directed to create a Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) between the United States and Canada which will be formed by combining the foreign affairs officials and senior trade regulatory from both the countries.

The other aspect they looked towards jointly is an approach to increase and modify the available infrastructure at major public ports at the point of entry. The target is 10 major public ports.
The pact is welcomed by the Canadian Trucking Alliance. CTA expressed, this will help recreate the cross border relations which were much strained in the last decade after the terrorists attack. There is at least one truck crossing the U.S. – Canada border in every three seconds. Thus the pact will have a direct impact on truck driver employment.

We were looking towards this border agreement to be initiated by the government of both the countries from a long time. David Bradley CTA president said this agreement is the start point to achieve a more stable trade and security measures. This will help achieve more reliable risk-management and yield profits in trading programs between the countries.

It might take some time to finalize the things and start the real action; however a work group will be formed to work across the borders and look after the proceedings in this matter. The same will be reported to Obama and Harper by this work group.

Categories
Business

Time to Review the Challenges Faced by the Country’s Transportation

We have included this crucial article on our load board blog page as the nation’s transport system is the lifeline for the complete trucking industry, thousands of trucking companies and millions of owner operators and truck drivers who earn their bread through driving big rigs, using the transportation system every day of their lives.
The much heated debate revolving around the Transportation bill has raised many campaigns nation wide. They want the all the facts that the transportation industry and the road networks of the US are facing to be reported to the leaders. The infrastructure and road networks of the 20th century are a much cause of concern for the economic growth leading to the 21st century. Below are listed the facts and figure of the US transportation that is hampering overall economic growth of the country and off-course the individual as well.

Costs and losses incurred due to incompetent Transportation system:
If the transportation system is not perfect then both the individual as well as the economy gets a setback. The loss is in terms of time consumed, accidents and fuel wasted. The improper transportation costs $78 billion to the nation’s expenses annually. $230 billion are lost over annual crashes owing to poor road networks. The loads available as freight tonnage are always increasing with the multifaceted growth; therefore it is a high time to increase the transport capacity too. The congestion on the roads is already costing $200 billion annually and it would cost 14% of the annual GDP by 2050.

The Gap in Transportation Used and Investment made over it:
As per the Transportation Research Board, there is $50 billion gap in the maintenance, capital and operations funds that require for the US highway maintenance. For the improvisation of the existing system the gap is even more around $100 billion. According to the Road Information Program one third of the US roads need immediate to light maintenance. American Society of Civil Engineers has rated the U.S. transit system D+ rating. The funds for transit system are declining as people seeking public transport facilities has increased to a great level. The federal and GDP share that the government was spending earlier has shown decrease from 11.2 percent in 1960 to just 3.5 % currently.

Benefits form the Transport Infrastructure Developments:
For every dollar invested in the Highway maintenance and infrastructure generates large number of employment opportunities, the main one being the truck driver’s employment. The increased GDP percentage is generated with each dollar invested on federal highways in a very short time.
Other than growth and benefits the improved highways are very essential to decrease the number of crashes that are taking place. The loss of life each year is around 42,000, out of which 15,000 lives are lost due to bad road conditions and other road related safety hazards.
Thus, we see there are alarming facts related to the current transportation system which would pose threat to the country’s growth both in short and long term. Already there are many campaigns running to ring the bell so that some effective measures are taken well in time.

Categories
Carriers

Trucking Industry – Going Green!!

In all fields of business and life, everybody these days is concerned about the environment and saving our planet by adopting greener ways of doing things. Going green is a tough job in almost all spheres and it is even tougher in the case of trucking industry. This is because diesel fueling is the lifeline of the trucking industry and every truck runs on the road delivering goods world over with the billions of gallons of diesel consumption. However, many carrier and trucking companies have come up with greener solutions to manage the increasing carbon emissions causing environmental hazards.
The heavy duty 18 wheeler truck manufactured are highly competent these days. Their efficiency has improved manifolds, thus attaining more loads available being delivered with lesser fuel being consumed. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is setting up standards to make this move more successful and to ensure that there is a governing body to keep a check on the trucking activities that are harmful for the environment. Trucking industry is the backbone of US economy therefore more planned and smaller operational changes would be largely beneficial.
Some of the ways that will help control the carbon emissions are:
Slow Down: Speed Reduction is the most simple and effective way. If the speed limit is set to 65 mph, then the fuel mileage can be improved as well as fuel can be saved. This move can save up to 27 percent of fuel as against with the speed limit of 75 mph and the carbon emission around 31.5 million tons could be reduced.
Engine Maintenance: The long hail drivers who use their trucks to sleep through the nights and resting hours can make use of the Truck auxiliary units or truck stop electrification systems to heat or cool their trucks. This way they will save the diesel consumption which they otherwise used while idling the truck.
Driving Behavior: A little change in the driving habits of a driver can save up to 5-10% of the fuel consumed. Soft and timely shifting of gears, avoiding sudden break and sharp starts proves helpful in this regard. These steps make truck driver jobs more responsible towards nature.
Accessories and Equipments: Low viscosity lubricants can be used to reduce friction and thus use lesser fuel energy. Monitoring tire pressure regularly is yet another efficient step towards fuel-economy. Many companies who can afford a little expenditure have installed aerodynamic panels on their trailers and have replaced the old polluting engines with new more environment friendly engines.
Read more articles on Trucking on our loadboard blog page.
Many trucking companies have joined the move already and others plan to do so very soon. EPA’s SmartWay Transport Partnership is also becoming hugely popular among the transportation industry. This is a joint initiative by EPA and Freight Industry experts to combat the environmental risks associated with trucking jobs. SmartWay assists companies in measuring the carbon emission by their fleets and to track the steps to achieve long term results.

Categories
Trucker News

Department of Transportation Works to Re-establish Bonds between Mexican and U.S. Trucking Industry

There has been a conflict for quite some time between the two countries regarding the transportation issue. Since there has been a release of new proposal under the current administration which has lead to the new start and a series of negotiations involving the use of U.S. roads by Mexican trucking companies.
The US Department of Transportation has laid down the guidelines for Mexican long-haul carriers and truck drivers to abide by the US transportation rules and regulations. These include vehicle emissions standards, drivers portfolio and safety compliance. These checks will be conducted and the carriers will be permitted only after the complete satisfaction of the authorities.
There will be a selective quota and time for the number of trucks that will be permitted to drive on the U.S. roads from Mexico. The work on calculating and negotiating on these terms will start soon. Earlier the Mexican truck driver were opposed by the US truck drivers on the ground that the Mexican carrier companies and truck driver don’t have set standards of safety and fleet operations as they have, they follow the US truck drivers regulations. These way Mexican truck drivers enjoy flexible rules and make more profit.
This proposal is also taken negatively by some trucking associations. They are saying when the unemployment within the country is already so high then Why DOT is making this proposal to endanger the existing trucking jobs in the country. This way the good truck driving jobs will become harder to find. Also taking into account the cross border violence this proposal seems simply out of question.
Check our loadboard blog page for more interesting trucker news and topics.
On the other hand Mexico is protesting to get free access in the U.S, as per the North American Free Trade Agreement signed between the two countries in 1994. In 2009, when the program to allow limited number of Mexican carrier companies to indulge in transportation beyond the U.S. commercial zone failed, Mexico increased the tariff charges on the U.S. products. This move adversely affected people connected with the produce of fresh fruits and vegetables.
This way the pressure mounted on the administrative authorities to implement new methods and release new proposals so that Mexico changes the barriers it has imposed on the U.S. agricultural products. Therefore this truck industry proposal got an overwhelming response from various other U.S. industries whose business largely depended on the exports made to Mexico.
U.S. truck drivers feel that this proposal will be an unfair deal for them as with the drug violence running in Mexico they will not be allowed to cross the Southern border. Thus Mexican driver will have the access in the U.S. but not vice versa. The president of Owner-Operator Independent Truck Drivers Association expressed his worries that the Mexican truck driver will have the economic benefit as they will not have to follow the stringent rules to run their trucks for loads available on the US lanes as their U.S. counterpart will have to.

Categories
Lifestyle Owner Operators

Social Media Serving Freight and Owner Operator Businesses

The world has turned into a small globe and it owes its debt to the technological advances that have taken place. It has made dynamic changes and no industry or field can be said to be have remain untouched by it. No century saw as much growth and development as the 21st century. Transportation and communication in one way go hand in hand.

Cargo business could not be also put into a different place from this as this industry has very much to do with transportation. Social networking is no more a new thing and it has become a chain linking many people to it. Most of the people are associated with the social networking sites like twitter, face book or Orkut in some way or the other. These sites have been proven really fruitful in giving its results and have helped giving a boom to many businesses linked to it.
There was a time when the companies had to go for the newspaper classifieds to promote their business and plan a market strategy making it a costly issue. But now the things have changed entirely giving a new shape to the whole scenario.

The trucking companies can simply post their ads on the internet using loadboards and also give their links on the various social networking sites as well. These companies can create their groups and also make associates with whom they can be in a constant link. The freight business basically thrives on supply chain management and proper communication can prove a boom to it. The world is no longer isolated and anyone from any part of the globe can correspond with the trucking companies. This will definitely help them groom their business. There are bundle of trucking companies who have registered on the social networking sites and are a part of it.

Not only businesses can receive a boom by these sites but also other purposes can be served by it. Truck driver jobs can be placed on the Facebook community or on your twitter page. The area of choice increases and one can choose the right person for the job. There are also communities of truck drivers by which they remain in touch with other and also help them communicate. They are also aware of the job listings and the credit can be given to these social network groups.
The information of the loads available could be placed on the website or any other source of the social network and one can go picking up the load. These things are surely going to give a boost to the business and will help flourish it.

Many freight companies agree that their businesses have seen a remarkable change after having a link up with the social network. One can use twitter for posting contents while photos and other similar links can be placed on Facebook.

It cannot be denied that in this competitive world social networking sites have given a huge platform to businesses as well helping them grow.

Categories
Business

Changing Times

With the 2010 elections behind us we can now look forward to the 112th Congress and what it might have in store for the trucking industry. There are several important trucking issues that the new Congress should address, but there is no guarantee that they will make progress on them. Highway funding, parking safety, Mexican trucking, and other hefty issues will rear their head in 2011, but will there be any resolution?

The U.S. House of Representatives, which the Republicans took control of, is where the greatest change occurred. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will remain the leader of the House Democrats, but Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, is the new Speaker of the House. In a somewhat surprising election result, longtime House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar lost his re-election bid. Not only was this a gain for the Republicans, but it means the trucking industry has a new committee chairman. At the time of this writing, that chairmanship has not yet been assigned, but it is likely to go to Rep. John L. Mica, R-Fla.

Oberstar’s former committee may have the most transportation-related work to do in the upcoming Congress. The Highway Trust Fund continues to operate on a deficit. This is the fund that pays for road improvements and other highway infrastructure improvements. The real challenge is that the gas tax simply isn’t covering expenses (though some might argue earmarks not related to highways are helping cause this deficit). Newly elected Republicans have suggested one of the first things they will do during the next Congress is to ban earmarks, so that could be an interesting and distracting debate that could keep officials focused on issues other than infrastructure and potentially kill current plans.

Oberstar has urged Congress to approve a one-year extension of the current highway legislation so the new Congress can have time to “come to agreement on a funding mechanism for a six-year bill.” This is the same omnibus funding bill that has failed to leave the floor of the House the last two years. The challenge for Oberstar and his recommendation was that the remainder of 2010 was a lame-duck session in Congress. Yes, they should extend the current bill that they failed to fully renew after it officially expired on Sept. 30, 2009, but they also needed to pass a continuing resolution to make certain the federal government can operate after Dec. 3, 2010. As it turns out, they failed to pass this omnibus bill, too.

Though the Republicans in the Senate gained five seats, the Democrats maintained control of the upper house. The five additional Republican seats all but guarantee numerous opportunities for stalemates on major policy issues – possibly including the Major Highway Bill. The 112th Congress will also have its hands full with environmental-, safety- and trade-related issues. The Obama administration continues to negotiate and consider reinstituting the cross-border trucking program with Mexico. And Congress will likely see a new bill introduced to address truck parking safety (Jason’s Law).
Check our load board for more trucking related articles.
Should those of us in the trucking industry be excited by the new makeup of Congress? It’s tough to gauge, but probably not. The first several months will be devoted to partisan bickering as those newly elected to Congress attempt to reverse many of the steps the Obama administration has taken. Any reversal attempts on major issues like health reform will likely be unsuccessful and will only serve to divert resources from those issues that can successfully be addressed – like actually doing their truck driver job and passing an omnibus highway funding bill.

So, expect more of the same partisanship. And expect it to intensify as we approach the end of 2011 and enter the 2012 election cycle. It’s interesting how change can often bring more status quo.

Source: http://ptcchallenge.com/2011/01/changing-times/