Trucking

Borderlands is a weekly rundown of developments in the world of United States-Mexico cross-border trucking and trade. This week: Embracing tech standards before pandemic benefited manufacturers; eBay opens platform to millions of sellers in Latin America; Bull Moose Tube announces Texas mill; and CBP seizes $4 million in fake items at Port Houston.

Nikola founder makes bank for early employees to whom he gave 6 million low-priced stock options.

The 20-year battle over broker post-accident liability may be resolved once and for all.

Trucking owner Keith McConnell, 43, of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, is facing federal charges after prosecutors claim he used PPP funds for personal use.

Transport deregulation’s long game has left much of the asset-based carrier field with few players. Will the cycle turn to usher in a cast of competitive newbies?

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers found more than $6 million worth of marijuana in trucks purporting to have paper shipments in two separate seizures in the Buffalo, New York, area.

The president of the Arkansas Trucking Association estimates $2.4 million a day in trucking industry losses due to the I-40 Mississippi bridge closure.

Workhorse Group has nothing significant driving its stock price higher, only retail traders seeking to make money if the price falls.

Republicans deride “restrictive” policies that were retained from last year in the Democrats’ latest version of the surface transportation reauthorization bill.

Another trucking company responds to the strong freight market by increasing truck driver pay.

Two sets of numbers in the monthly BLS report show a decline in seasonally adjusted numbers, but an increase in the less widely watched not-seasonally adjusted figures suggest more hires.

Truck Talk is a weekly newsletter that brings perspective and context to trends and issues in the trucking industry.

This look at the past week in images features a container crane collapse, Alaska snow and a decorated semi trailer.

A tale of 2 job reports: Seasonal numbers are closely watched by economists, but the other measurement suggests some success at hiring.

There was a fair amount of “feel-good” talk regarding inventory build during the fiscal first-quarter retail earnings season. But for several chains, the year-over-year comparisons were easy. Further, sales have continued at an elevated clip, suggesting the massive merchandise restocking is far from over.

A U.S. House subcommittee has launched an investigation into Yellow Corp.’s $700 million CARES Act loan.

Turning to younger drivers may be the key to assuring the success of the next generation of truckers.

Declining Class 8 truck orders in May are deceptive. Fleets would order more but they are holding off because it might take a year to get them.

The Modernization of Cross Border Trade event will be Thursday in Laredo, Texas.

Less-than-truckload carrier Old Dominion reported further acceleration in tonnage and yields in the first two months of the second quarter on Thursday.

DHL research released Thursday provides insights for “e-tailers that wish to lead on environmental issues,” said Greg Hewitt, CEO at DHL Express USA.

The Federal Communications Commission is sued over a decision that could affect progress in truck platooning communications.

From a shortage of truck production workers to parts depot staff, Daimler Trucks North America is trying to keep up with blistering demand.

With the pay boost, the company’s more experienced drivers will bring in 63 cents per mile.

Unlike in 2020, parcel delivery carriers will have breathing room between late June and the traditional holiday cycle.

Software firm Setenal says trucking fleets using radio frequency identification chips can increase length of tire use and save money.

Although new guidance on mask wearing returns the industry to some semblance of normalcy after over a year of lockdowns and restrictions, employers should remain cautious in revising policies.

The United States Cattlemen’s Association warns JBS hack could disrupt the meat supply chain without emergency work-hour changes.

Less-than-truckload carriers ArcBest and Saia report continued strength in demand through the first two months of the second quarter.

Christen Diane Schulte, 35, of Washington, Missouri, was sentenced to six years and eight months in federal prison for embezzling more than $700,000 from a family-owned trucking company and farm.

Truck drivers and carriers that transport livestock are feeling the sting as the cyberattack on JBS disrupts operations at multiple meat processing facilities.

Truck broker Landstar System raises its second-quarter guidance as shipments and pricing outpace its initial outlook.

Worker pay at Volkswagen’s plant in Puebla, Mexico, ranges from about $15 per day for new employees to more than $50 per day for veteran workers.

The benchmark number for fuel surcharges isback to levels not seen since ’18.

The pattern of mid- to high-single-digit raw materials price increases continues.

Growth rates throughout the supply chain cooled in May from recent record highs. However, the latest reading on transportation capacity stepped lower again.

Freightliner Cascadia headlamp bulb replacement fires lead Daimler Trucks North America to recall 72,508 Class 8 trucks.

The digital freight platform has a big market share in China, is growing its revenue but remains unprofitable.

A whistleblower filed a complaint in 2013 alleging pricing fraud by Navistar Defense that its parent company settled with no admission of wrongdoing.

Knight-Swift announced Tuesday the acquisition of third-party logistics provider UTXL in a $22.5 million transaction.

Vietnam veteran and trucker Alvin Garrard took the trip of a lifetime as he hauled a mobile replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial that bears the names of more than 58,000 U.S. service members, including some of his friends.

The injunction blocking AB 5 is still in place for now.

Borderlands is a weekly rundown of developments in the world of United States-Mexico cross-border trucking and trade. This week: Mexico records 692 commercial cargo thefts in April; VW cuts production in Mexico and Tennessee plants; ATRG acquires Texas trailer fleets; and CBP officers seize $5.5M worth of meth in Otay Mesa.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador put the army in charge of customs at border crossings and seaports across the country last year.

President Joe Biden’s 2022 funding request of $676 million for FMCSA safety programs dropped 10% from 2021 levels.

This look at the past week in images features wild weather, a truck spill and a progress report on a major bridge repair.

The company’s chief retention officer said a far wider range of steps explains the company’s recent success on several fronts.

Canadian trucking firm People Express Transport was shut down by a court-appointed trustee following a months-long fight over millions of dollars in debt.

A white paper by TIA and CLDA stresses the need to differentiate from Amazon to succeed in final-mile delivery.

Compliance reviews can catch any motor carrier off guard. Reliance Partners’ John Seidl encourages participation in mock audits to reveal and correct violations before the federal government does.

The company’s new facility in Grand Prairie follows the opening of new facilities in Atlanta and Port Houston, and an expansion in Laredo, Texas.

Three years after winning an exemption to use cameras instead of ungainly outside mirrors on semi-trucks, Stoneridge Inc. is winning over fleets.

In one case, the insurance and medical payouts totaled $275,500.

In a FreightWaves survey, truckers say these are some of the U.S. and Canadian tunnels they dislike the most.

Bipartisan legislation would limit truck speeds to no more than 70 mph.

The nation’s top trucking research group plans to update previous studies on the effects of legalized marijuana and other drugs on truck safety along with integrating 18- to 20-year-old drivers into the industry.

Allowances for potential future write-offs also showed improvement in the bank’s second quarter.

The coronavirus pandemic inspired retirement-age drivers to leave the industry en masse while also shutting down driving schools for months on end, exacerbating the existing shortage.

Truck drivers transported millions of dollars worth of contraband tobacco from North Carolina to Mohawk territory in New York as part of a U.S.-Canada smuggling ring that involved Hells Angels members and snowmobiles, according to federal prosecutors.

Illinois trucking company B & B Logistics Inc., cited several times for hours-of-service violations, shuttered operations and filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in mid-May.

Bizarre actions behind the wheel during 2020 should raise alarm bells for truckers and fleets, survey’s author says.

One piece of legislation backed by the Texas Trucking Association is heading toward approval, while a second may not be necessary as a result of a court ruling.

FedEx is raising the fees on U.S. residential deliveries, its Ground Economy service and on packages requiring “additional handling.”

ATRI plans to build on research studying the effects of legalized marijuana and employing 18- to 20-year-old drivers.

For many companies, sourcing talent and growing their IT teams to meet new demands is both time consuming and cost prohibitive.

With the Canadian ELD mandate going into effect on June 12, fleets operating in that country need to know the key differences from U.S. regulations and whether they have a compliant device.

Intelligent Spot leverages leading-edge technology, a team of domain experts and a vast unbiased carrier network to true spot market execution.

FreightWaves chats with chief sustainability officers about their experience and how they drive sustainable change at each company.

As U.S. automakers pivot into the electric, autonomous vehicle era, cross-border operators say Mexico is more than ready to seize the moment.

FMCSA clearinghouse data reveals violations per number of employers within states.

Shippers leaning toward private fleets need to consider the risk, as well as how to optimize warehouses, trailers and containers.

Regulations coming out of SCQAMD are usually for stationary sources of pollution, but the rules on trucks are an expansion of its authority.


Logistics company Blume Global announced Monday it is carbon neutral. CEO Pervinder Johar tells FreightWaves how the company got there.

The ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline should serve as a wake-up call to the trucking and logistics sector, where companies keep getting targeted by hackers even though many incidents are preventable.

Logistics professionals can’t predict the future, but they can assess the likelihood of specific problems emerging during an inner-city construction project.

Borderlands is a weekly rundown of developments in the world of United States-Mexico cross-border trucking and trade. This week: Driver shortage affecting cross-border trucking; auto parts maker opens plant in Mexico; Laredo International Airport partners with UPS; and UPS hiring 450 in Dallas-Fort Worth.

New trailer orders slid dramatically in April as manufacturers had more dry and refrigerated van bookings than they could build.

The White House has proposed to Republicans a $1.7 trillion counteroffer on its initial $2.25 trillion infrastructure package.

Thefts incidents nationwide spiked 35% in 2020, CargoNet said.

NHTSA is looking for truck drivers to test the safety of in-cab cameras.

Truck Talk is a weekly newsletter from FreightWaves that adds perspective and context to happenings in the trucking world.

The cyberattack that temporarily shut down the Colonial Pipeline this month serves as a stark reminder that all industries are prone to security threats.

Scott Prince, CEO of CarrierHQ, shared on WHAT THE TRUCK?!? how his company is modernizing insurance.

The previous UAW and Volvo Trucks North America tentative agreement went down in flames. A new deal may face the same fate.

The electric vehicle pilot is part of Walmart’s last-mile delivery initiatives.

Gatik’s Sam Saad talks about his autonomous vehicle company’s expanding Walmart partnership, Isuzu manufacturing deal and other trends in the transportation industry.

DOT’s response to the Interstate 40 bridge outage needs more urgency, according to U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn.

Adam Miller, CFO of Knight-Swift Transportation and president of Swift Transportation, joins George Abernathy, president of FreightWaves, during Day 2 of FreightWaves LIVE @HOME to talk capacity, drivers, rates and more.

Commentary from trucking executives at an investor conference suggests the capacity crunch may last well into next year.

Three FreightTech companies demonstrated their innovative technology solutions to increase supply chain efficiency during FreightWaves LIVE @HOME on Thursday.

Mark Hazelwood, the former president of Pilot Co., wants a federal judge to recuse himself from overseeing the retrial of a fuel rebate fraud case against him and two of his former staffers and also wants to have his case moved from Tennessee to another state.

Drivers are wanted in New Mexico and Texas to transport nuclear weapons and materials at a starting salary of $52,248.

FreightWaves’ Zach Strickland and Loadsmart Vice President of Operations Jim Nicholson chat about mode optimization, truckload consolidation and technology’s role in sustainable shipping.

Werner Enterprises CEO Derek Leathers says electrification and other technologies are coming quickly to trucking, and he wants his company out front.

People are eager for face-to-face gatherings. But health and safety issues will still call the shots.

Schneider Logistics SVP and General Manager Erin Van Zeeland chats with TriumphPay VP of Sales and Marketing Haley Evans about the top challenges facing logistics companies and what they can do to overcome them.

Appearing at an investor conference Wednesday, management from J.B. Hunt Transport Services said delivery schedules for new containers are being hindered by a lack of ocean capacity, not manufacturers’ build schedules.

Republicans unveil a $400 billion, five-year highway bill reauthorization ahead of Democrats’ proposal.

Reliance Partners discusses how new technology allows transportation companies to reduce insurance costs.

Four FreightTech firms demonstrate their innovative technology solutions for transportation companies during FreightWaves LIVE @HOME.