Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, April 24, 2024: Truck tonnage fell in March After a 4% increase from January to February, ATA's Truck Tonnage Index fell 2% in March.ATA The amount of freight hauled by trucks in March was down 1% year over year and down 2% from February, according to the American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index. The 2% decline from February follows a 4% increase in February from January. In March, the index equaled 113.4 compared with 115.7 in February. “Tonnage in March suggests that truck freight volumes remain lacklust ..read more

Research conducted by American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) shows renewable diesel is not only a promising solution for lowering the trucking industry’s CO2 emissions, it's also significantly cheaper than battery electric technology.  Produced from food and organic waste, renewable diesel (RD) is chemically identical to petroleum diesel and can therefore be mixed with petroleum diesel in various ratios or used as a standalone drop-in fuel in a traditional diesel truck without consequence or aftermarket upfit. It is not a biofuel (or biodiesel), which is chemical ..read more

Shawn Stewart has been named Forward Air Corporation's (CCJ Top 250, No. 34) chief executive officer and director of the board effective April 28, replacing Michael Hance, who has served as Interim CEO. Hance stepped into the interim roll last month following the departure of Tom Schmitt, who left the company less than a month after completing the acquisition of Omni Logistics – a deal that at first was met with internal controversy and later nearly spiked entirely.  Hance will continue to serve as the company's chief legal officer and secretary. “The bo ..read more

There remain a multitude of economic changes in 2024, and while this has been top of mind for many in the industry ever since the pandemic, heavy duty fleet executives are cautiously optimistic about the current year and how it may shape up for their organizations. Today’s stronger emphasis on strategic planning The economy in 2024 has been punctuated by a general sense that inflation is becoming more closely aligned with the Fed’s target, and this could spell lower interest rates at some point during the year. This would be a sign of relief for those organizations looking to invest in new tru ..read more

Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, April 23, 2024: Mississippi cracks down on predatory towing Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves on April 19 signed a bill into law that aims to cut down on predatory towing practices targeting commercial vehicles in the state. The new law establishes a Commercial Vehicle Towing Advisory Committee within the state’s Department of Public Safety’s Public Commercial Transportation Enforcement Division. That committee is charged with: Establishing regulations and standards for the inclusion of a towing and recovery service on the tow list, including application proce ..read more

Roughly 10 years ago, Paper Transport (CCJ Top 250, No. 102) integrated compressed natural gas (CNG)/renewable natural gas (RNG) vehicles into its fleet. Just in time to celebrate Earth Day Monday, the company surpassed 70 million miles.  Emerging from the 2008 recession, De Pere, Wisconsin-based PTI saw three potential benefits of transitioning to natural gas: it's a cleaner fuel source for the environment, there was economic cost savings to be had, and the fleet wanted to alleviate its reliance on foreign oil.  For one of its large consumer products manufacturers, PT ..read more

Trailer orders for March saw a decline month-over-month and year-over-year, according to data from ACT Research and FTR Transportation Intelligence. ACT said preliminary net trailers orders dipped “nominally” from February, coming in at 13,600, whilst FTR said March trailer orders declined by 7,659 units from February, a 38% month-over-month decline to 12,313 trailers. U.S. trailer net ordersACT Research In a year-over-year comparison, ACT said March orders decreased by 24%, while FTR indicated an 18% decline, leaving trailer orders 25% below the average for the last 12 months.   Jennifer ..read more

Trucking news and briefs for Monday, April 22, 2024: ATA’s Women in Motion hosts first Call on Washington Members of ATA's Women in Motion traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with lawmakers to discuss areas of need in trucking.Women in Motion Last week, 18 women trucking leaders from 10 states met with their members of Congress and White House officials for the American Trucking Associations’ inaugural Women In Motion Call on Washington. The WIM members represented a wide variety of backgrounds and ranged from truck drivers to trucking executives.   Over the course of two days ..read more

From telematics, to ELD and chatbots, trucking companies are aiming to keep up with the latest technology to stay competitive. However, no matter how impressive a new technological advancement is, if it’s too complex, more often, it ends up being more of a hindrance. I’m reminded of my grandmother. A couple of years ago, I found myself faced with the daunting task of teaching her how to use Facebook. At first, the idea seemed overwhelming. My grandmother, while tech-savvy in many aspects, had little experience (and patience) with social media platforms. As I sat down with her and guided her th ..read more

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