Trucking

Parcel giant weighed down by soft US retail sales, continued slowdown in Asia

Pam Transportation saw first-quarter earnings fall as the truckload market searches for a bottom.

Amazon drivers and dispatchers in Palmdale, California, have won recognition to join Teamsters Local 396 in Los Angeles.

Yellow confirms that it has asked the Teamsters to open up the National Master Freight Agreement a year early as talks around proposed network changes have stalled.

Toyota expects to deliver incentive-supported, Kentucky-produced heavy-duty fuel cell kits to U.S. customers this year.

The final panel at the TIA annual meeting echoed a theme of the whole meeting: Double brokering and fraud are surging.

General Motors is recalling 40,000 medium-duty trucks built by Navistar that can catch fire because of leaking brake fluid.

TruckParkingClub.com is launching hourly parking with a pilot program at a Kentucky McDonald’s restaurant.

FreightWaves will host the Small Fleet & Owner-Operator Summit on Wednesday with a full day of industry insights.

TravelCenters of America brings up failed deal in argument for BP purchase.

This week in Borderlands: $102M cold storage warehouse planned for Houston area; auto parts supplier opens $34M plant in Mexico; steel manufacturer, distributor expands Texas operations; and CBP seizes $21M worth of fentanyl in green beans shipment.

Geoff Kelley’s departure from Transportation Insight Holding Co. is part of a restructuring at the Atlanta-based company.

Despite what may be a lot of available parcels, Amazon may have better things to do with its capital than to chase UPS customers.

Layoffs continue at the FreightTech unicorn, Flock Freight, as 45 employees were fired at a recent all-hands company meeting, four months after 60 workers were let go.

A company with just under a 5% holding in TravelCenters of America wants the board to speak with Arko, whose bid for the company has been rejected so far.

Shippers are in a strong market position. At TIA, they talked about what they want from the brokers who serve them.

“There have been companies that have introduced [dashcams] with great success and haven’t lost any drivers at all, and then there are other companies that have lost quite a few drivers because of it,” Reliance Partners’ Brian Runnels said.

One of the drawbacks of hydrogen adoption as a transportation fuel is the lack of infrastructure. Guess what? A network of hydrogen fueling already exists.

Schneider said Friday it will be a strategic intermodal carrier for the Canadian Pacific Kansas City rail line from Mexico to Chicago.

The potential widening of broker liability in the Miller case against C.H. Robinson is creating fears among 3PLs, but attorneys see a potential reversal.

Localz offers a differentiated platform, logistics IT firm Descartes says.

Paccar Inc. is taking a $600 million pretax charge against first-quarter earnings from settlements in a 2016 European price-fixing scandal.

Knight-Swift Transportation has recalibrated its 2023 outlook after posting an earnings miss to start the year.

Biden’s labor secretary pick says she’s ready to step in if West Coast dockworkers and their employers cannot resolve their remaining issues.

Volvo Group reported record sales and deliveries in the first quarter, projecting a positive note as the first truck manufacturer to release financials.

Link Logistics’ customers will be able to do a better job of managing energy consumption under a collaboration with Carrier Global Corp., the companies said.

Deregulating trucking made modern supply chains achievable — but it also carved out one of America’s essential blue-collar professions.

XPO fills vacant chief operating officer role with an Old Dominion veteran.

A case involving the theft of expensive freight may have led to a legal precedent benefiting brokerage liability.

There is a lot more competition waiting to take a UPS parcel if workers go on strike, consultant Satish Jindel says.

Propane haulers were unable to convince federal officials that a work-rule exemption could be provided without boosting crash risks.

Federal regulators are rolling out a rule proposal as a first step to potential new and costly requirements aimed at reducing truck crash fatalities.

Truckload carrier Marten had a first quarter in which it drove more miles than last year but made less money.

Nikola Corp.’s hopes for a zero-emissions trucking future may be realized without the startup being part of it.

At its core, Bitfreighter is an integration enablement platform. The company’s driving principle is to make integrations affordable and accessible by stepping away from the transactional pricing model and offering unlimited everything.

NFI Industries has acquired warehousing and fulfillment provider SDR Distribution Services in Canada.

As negotiations get underway between UPS and the Teamsters, here are key considerations for shippers navigating a period of uncertainty.

FedEx celebrates its golden anniversary of operations with its most intense few years in decades ahead of it.

J.B. Hunt missed first-quarter expectations Monday as weak intermodal and trucking trends plagued the quarter.

J.B. Hunt Transport Services missed analyst expectations for the first quarter on Monday.

As their populations grow, Class 8 electric trucks are proving as susceptible to safety recalls as diesel-powered units.

TA expects to be bought by BP next month, but spurned suitor Arko is continuing to hone its offer for the truck stop giant.

A Daimler Truck recall of Western Star models for a windshield wiper defect has grown from a few hundred to more than 54,000.

Navistar is recalling about 45,000 older trucks because insufficient current to the HVAC blower motor led to melting and fires.

The Teamsters meet with UPS on Monday in Washington to discuss progress on supplemental agreements as main negotiations begin.

This week in Borderlands: Production and exports of Mexican-built cargo trucks soared in March; Walmart is closing a logistics facility in Fort Worth, Texas; Target announced three distribution centers in Texas; and Maersk opened a global service center in Mexico City.

Transportation shipments and rates back up during March, according to Cass Information Systems.

Splitting ammonia to get hydrogen is the approach of Amogy, another startup seeking success in the transportation energy transition.

Commercial operations at a Texas border bridge have been suspended temporarily as U.S. border agents assist with migrant processing.

Financially struggling Nikola Corp. wants shareholders to double the company’s authorized shares so it can pay its loans in stock.

Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien charges UPS with foot-dragging; UPS says regional supplements and the national contract are often negotiated at the same time.

Tesla this week delivered a fleet of Semi trucks to PepsiCo, which said the all-electric Class 8 vehicles will be used for local and long-distance deliveries.

Crash data for carriers entering the industry before the pandemic suggests a gradual deterioration in safety, according to a sample of federal data.

An executive with 30 years of experience in trucking and technology has been named COO of the National Motor Freight Traffic Association.

EPA is proposing stricter standards and revisions to move heavy trucks to zero-carbon beginning in model year 2027.

Cargo insurance is vital protection for carriers, but preventing damages in the first place, like these tips from Reliance Partners, can help them avoid cash payouts and maintain trust with shippers and customers.

Team drivers for Cromex Inc. of Villa Park, Illinois, say they were stranded for three days in a hotel room, more than 1,000 miles from home, after the owner failed to deliver on his promise to pay drivers and set them up in a new truck.

Truckload rates will continue falling at a steep rate in the second quarter while less-than-truckload rates level, a report from a large 3PL asserts.

Truck safety advocates and labor are at odds with big business over a request to loosen regulations for driverless trucks.

Current market conditions – combined with the climbing expenses of operating and maintaining a truck – have created a difficult situation for the small companies that keep America moving.

President Joe Biden signed a bill ending the COVID-19 national emergency, but U.S. border vaccine requirements remain in place for foreigners.

Pilot is replacing its CEO and CFO, and TA says a key date has passed in its pending sale to BP.

A brand change ends lead company LaserShip’s involvement in the name of what is now simply “OnTrac.”

A first-quarter survey of shippers showed inventories are being drawn down and that a second-half freight recovery remains in play.

Arrival once had a $5.4 billion valuation. Its $524 million valuation in the electric van maker’s second SPAC is about 10% of that.

“If there comes a time when you have a crash and attorneys or law enforcement start digging into your records and find falsifications, it’s all going to come to the surface,” said Brian Runnels, vice president of safety at Reliance Partners.

Forward Air said Monday it is adding an intermodal drayage operation in Linden, New Jersey, to serve Port Newark.

Striking Sysco drivers in Louisville, Kentucky, reached agreement on a contract, the first since the union was voted in last August.

“We think about these investments as long term. We’re not making them for the next few quarters, we’re making them for the next few years and beyond,” said XPO’s Ali Faghri.

Two Canadian cities are taking an aggressive stance against illegal truck parking and storage in their communities.

A Florida-based trucking company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection recently, owing truck drivers back wages.

This week in Borderlands: LG Energy Solution is building a $5.5 billion EV battery plant in Arizona; a France-based auto parts maker opens a $147 million plant in Mexico; Nuevo Leon opens a $100 million “peripheral” highway; and an Arizona port of entry opens cold storage rooms.

The port of entry in Laredo, Texas, regained the No. 1 spot among the nation’s 450 international gateways for the first time in three years.

Proterra Inc. and Ouster Inc. are just two of many technology startups and growth-stage companies struggling financially.

The truck transportation sector increased jobs in March, reversing a one-month decline in February.

UBS’ Tom Wadewitz says more clarity on cost-cutting actions provides a “long runway” for stock.

The White House is evaluating a proposal that may require new trucks be equipped with automatic emergency braking systems.

The debt rating of Ryder, already in investment-grade territory, was upgraded by S&P Global Ratings this week.

“TrueTMS carries a price point that is affordable for a one- to 20-truck operator to purchase,” says T3 Tech’s George Thellman.

DFI Systems’ president says soaring lumber prices, the costly decision to move the company’s headquarters during the COVID-19 pandemic and the inability to find new investors was the perfect storm that forced him to lay off 90 workers, including truck drivers, in late March.

ArcBest announced Thursday that Treasurer Matt Beasley will assume the role of chief financial officer in May.

When John heard his trailer was missing, he was able to track the stolen property using his LandAirSea GPS and lead authorities to the thief. He saved the trailer, $300,000 worth of material and likely his reputation with his customer.

Increasingly volatile weather threatens safety and efficiency throughout transportation. Tomorrow.io’s weather intelligence is finally allowing teams to focus on drivers, not manual weather monitoring.

Computer issues have led to long lines for Mexican cargo truckers at a Texas border port of entry.

Federal Express Corp. will consolidate its air, ground parcel and other units; LTL will operate separately under the brand.

Truckers Integral to our Economy starts with handful of members but very clear target.

A trucking group’s assertion that Washington violated its First Amendment rights following the painting of the city’s “Black Lives Matter” street mural did not hold up in appeals court.

Truck manufacturers booked about 19,000 Class 8 truck orders in March, a manageable load that lets them whittle away at backlogs.

Hydrogen fuel cells the only real option for long-haul trucking, North American Council for Freight Efficiency predicts.

Shekar Natarajan moves on as logistics provider Quiet Platforms looks to improve on a disappointing outlook.

Newly tapped interim CEO Lance Rosenzweig is targeting a four-fold increase in Pitney Bowes’ share price in coming years.

Teamsters representing workers at Sysco are on strike, while separately, the union was voted out of a warehouse in Wisconsin.

A five-year conspiracy to disable emission-control devices installed in trucks has ended in a federal guilty plea for a Rhode Island trucking company owner.

Tesla issued a voluntary recall of 35 Semi trucks just three months after its release.

Cummins used the occasion of a visit from President Biden to announce more than $1 billion of investment in its plants.

It has been a year since I wrote “Why I believe a freight recession is imminent.”

Young’ Ed Burns has succeeded his father as CEO at Burns Logistics as the elder becomes chief relationship officer.

Chinese automaker Jetour announces $3B electric vehicle assembly plant in Mexico.

Trimble’s U.S. strengths have been combined with Transporeon’s overseas presence through a $1.98 billion acquisition.

The White House is reviewing a proposal setting mandatory hair-test guidelines that would be used to screen truck drivers for illegal drugs.