As administrators for the Black Smoke Matters group on Facebook worked to get a handle on the sudden explosion of members in the group, one administrator announced he is stepping away from the page and the group has posted what it is calling “Truckers Declarations for the 2019 Shutdown” on its website.

Trucking companies could be exposed to increased liability while a challenge to FMCSA’s hours-of-service preemption in California is pending.

While onboard with the group’s goals, not all truckers seem happy with the approach Black Smoke Matters is taking to achieve them.

The new fees for 2019 are more than in 2018 but less than they were two years ago.

ELDs have been required for the majority of the industry for more than a year now, but there are still some that do not have to comply until Dec. 16, 2019. A look back at ELDs, and what the next deadline means.

Black Smoke Matters, a group formed by truckers, is planning a nationwide shutdown on April 12 to protest several issues facing truckers.

The regulatory body granted Stoneridge a five year exemption to install its MirrorEye camera monitoring system on trucks in lieu of two rear-view mirrors.

Freight clearance at border crossing at ports could be susceptible to backups and delays if Washington lawmakers are unable to resolve the funding crisis sooner rather than later.

FMCSA has ruled that California can’t dictate meal and rest break requirements that conflict with federal hours-of-service regulations.

States will soon be able to give would-be drivers more time to get their CDLs at the same time potentially lowering knowledge exam costs.

The federal guideline is “hearsed, nursed and towed,” and that will be the rule in Pennsylvania now.

FMSCA Administrator Raymond Martinez comments on his first nine months, and the potential for an early rollout of revised HOS rules.

FreightWaves adds a real time news widget with twitter feeds and up to the minute financial and transportation new reporting.

FMCSA has made public the denials of 10 exemption requests from its ELD rule, including OOIDA and nine smaller groups that were formally rejected earlier this year.

FreightWaves adds commercial vehicle accident injuries and fatalities in SONAR as well as adds regions to the TRI.

The original notice failed to include propane. It can become a factor particularly if deliveries go on past 12 hours.

It is now clarified that your truck can be laden while driving for personal conveyance.

Head of FMCSA and largest U.S. truck trade group say California attempting to preempt federal regulations.

FMCSA is allowing concrete pumper operators to work up to 14 hours in a day through a new exemption to the 12-hour workday for short-haul operators.

While 60% did say that ELDs were forcing drivers to stop, rest, and run legally, the other 40% of respondents felt that ELDs decreased driver safety, as well as for others on the road.

A long list of concerns in the ATA President’s annual speech to his group’s conference, including young drivers and California’s own laws.

On the agenda for the day: AOBRD transition, personal conveyance, sleeper berth rule and plenty of other issues for FMCSA’s top attorney.

Martinez also said the process has begun to look at the overlapping rules regarding agriculture transportation, and he clearly doesn’t favor California’s separate rules on meal breaks.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will no longer assume a commercial driver is always a human as autonomous trucking makes its way onto the scene.

But lead agency for commercial vehicle safety says autonomous trucking will serve drivers well and make industry better.

In an effort to give our subscriber base input on a hot topic – HOS changes – we decided to conduct a survey during the FMCSA open comment period. Check out what we found!

The FMCSA took public comments on possible changes to the hours of service rules. We polled our own subscribers to get their thoughts on what changes they’d like to see.

It’s a wide range of opinions that are expressed in FMCSA’s call for comments on changes in the HOS rule.

In Today’s Pickup: Michael is headed toward the Gulf, a quote by Hunter Harrison and a not-complimentary look at the job of a truck driver.

Fatalities in all other types of accidents were down. Crashes involving large trucks were the only one moving the other way.

As part of a wide-ranging DOT initiative to prepare for driverless vehicles, FMCSA will address regulations that could be slowing the development of these technologies in the commercial vehicle space.

SambaSafety, powered by Vigillo, just announced the development of a new CSA scorecard utilizing item response theory methodology.

Under California law, drivers making their way through the Golden State are entitled to a 30-minute meal break for every five hours worked.

FMCSA Administrator Martinez and his officials listened to truck drivers and fleet owners as they asked for more flexibility in the hours of service. The usefulness of split sleeping and breaking up the mandatory 30 minute break were brought up most frequently.

The popular electronic logging device (ELD) exemption for agricultural haulers is up for renewal before Sept. 30, but it’s longer-term fate may hang with Congress’ ability to pass a budget – or at least a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the government open beyond Sunday.

Military members looking to become truck drivers may have an easier time in doing so as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has authorized states to waive the commercial learner’s permit (CLP) knowledge test and driving skills tests.

FreightWaves adds additional functionality to SONAR with tri-delta functionality on the Headhaul Index as well as the newly revised Trucks in Market, making it easier than ever to identify market disruptions.

Beyond the Hours of Service rule that is under consideration for changes by the federal government, the introduction of the hard ELD rule has created several other less-publicized problems.

FEMA stands ready to address the aftermath of Hurricane Florence and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has now issued a “Regional Emergency Declaration” for 13 states and the District of Columbia as the southeast braces for the historic storm.

Joe DeLorenzo, director of the Office of Enforcement and Compliance for FMCSA, went through some of the common problems the agency is seeing since the ELD mandate went into effect, and there have been plenty.

If there is just one word that can best sum up the official Listening Session on hours of service (HOS) that FMCSA held on Friday at the Great American Trucking Show, it would be flexibility.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is moving forward with plans to solicit public comment on current hours-of-service (HOS) regulations.

FMCSA has agreed to implement a series of actions as it works toward the possible implementation of a more data-driven to identifying at-risk carriers for intervention.

The waiver granted by FMCSA covers the federal code governing truckers, but only for their activities involving aiding the efforts to fight western wildfires.

Truck drivers involved in certain behaviors are more likely to have a future crash, ATRI research has concluded.

Chaos at the New York bus terminal could be a sign of a driver squeeze at Greyhound, but likely isn’t the result of federal regulations.

Despite repeated efforts, confusion still reigns when it comes to hours-of-service compliance and when drivers can use personal conveyance or the agriculture exemptions available.

Waste Management Holdings has applied for an hours of service exemption, asking the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to consider allowing its drivers to work extra hours without losing short-haul status.

The statistics on 2018’s spot brake check day on trucks and buses are remarkably similar to what was found in 2017.

Following the publication of a National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report last June that recommended changes to the way the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) records and displays SMS data, the agency has decided to scrap proposed changes.

Cashflow Corner presented by TriumphPay …Weigh station bypass systems are an often-overlooked way for drivers to save both time and money.

The Heartland Express pay increase, what commenters said about young military drivers, and oil tankers are getting scrapped quickly.

An OOIDA executive took to the airwaves a few days after its ELD exemption request was denied, and he had a few things to get off his chest.

The OOIDA request would have exempted companies meeting the definition of a small business along with various safety standards.

A rule last year by DOT on testing trucking applicants for drugs specifically left hair testing out, but the HHS needs guidelines if the push is to proceed.

A USDOT 3-year pilot program would allow drivers under the age of 21 and holding a military CDL to drive interstate commerce when sponsored by a participating trucking company.

Cashflow Corner presented by TriumphPay …Drivers can potentially benefit from added flexibility by utilizing the current split sleeper provision allowed under hours-of-service laws.

Understanding hours-of-service and ELD regulations and their exemptions can help fleets better manage driver’s time.

The FMCSA has posted a new infographic on its website, which it says it plans to update monthly.

The FMCSA and ATA talk regulations at SMC3; Cummins has to pay tariffs to import its own engines; Canadian National and Canadian Pacific investing in Port of Vancouver; why protectionist rhetoric is roiling the markets; key takeaways from OPEC’s Vienna meeting.

Most bills introduced now have little chance of passage, but this one may suggest something when reading between the lines.

A few thoughts in Today’s Pickup from a two-day visit to Washington.

U.S. Xpress goes public; retail sales numbers explode for May; BNSF seeks positive train control delay; Brussels airport goes to blockchain for air cargo management; American LNG exports expected to benefit the entire economy.

The new Trucker Path whitepaper finds that 70% of truckers have had to violate HOS, and 96% have parked in areas not designated for trucks. 48% spend an hour or more to find safe truck parking, driving time that does not translate into fleet revenues.

Cashflow Corner presented by TriumphPay …Starting your own trucking company takes time and planning, but it takes more than just buying a truck and choosing a load.

Also: jobs report, the FMCSA guidance, and who should pay for parking?

Freedom of movement in the 150-mile radius, and a loosening of the rules to get somewhere safely are part of FMCSA’s latest guidance.

Freedom of movement in the 150-mile radius, and a loosening of the rules to get somewhere safely are part of FMCSA’s latest guidance.

Hours of Service violations will be the biggest focus this year, but ELDs may hold their numbers in check.

Cashflow Corner presented by TriumphPay …If your ELD provider suddenly shuts down service and goes out of business, do you know what to do?

FMCSA chief touts military program as a possible model for bringing in younger drivers.

Autonomous trucks, CSA, hours-of-service and more were topics of a wide-ranging keynote address given by Dan Murray, vice president of ATRI, at the NTPC 2018 conference.

While April 1 turned out not to be the total disaster so many predicted, the hard enforcement date has brought pain to some individual truck drivers and fleets who continue to be tripped up by common mistakes.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has formally extended an ELD waiver for livestock and insect haulers until Sept. 30, 2018, under terms of the waiver that was included in the Fiscal Year 2018 Omnibus Appropriations Bill.

The FMCSA has formally moved to exempt the MirrorEye Camera Monitor System (CMS) from Stoneridge from federal regulations as the company seeks to begin on-road testing of the system on vehicles without side mirrors.

We have received word that the FMCSA is reportedly deploying military drones to beef up the ‘hard enforcement’ of the ELD mandate beginning April 1.

Used truck prices strengthen; trailer orders go crazy; Arizona suspends Uber self-driving; Canadian National trades at 52-week lows; aftermath of Harvey still affects Houston tanker traffic; Philadelphia freight market is heating up.

FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez heard plenty of complaints from truck drivers over ELDs, hours of service, and parking issues during a Listening Session at Mid-America.

April 1st promises a surge of HOS violations; Uber pulls out of Southeast Asia; China starts trading oil futures; US Customs looks to upgrade their digital tools; Kansas City Southern hit by new tax bills.

The administrator said he is on an “aggressive listening” tour. 

FMCSA’s Joe DeLorenzo took plenty of questions from the audience as he tried to clear up confusion over the ELD rule during a session at the Mid-America Trucking Show.

Clarifying the grandfathering of AOBRDs in a fleet expansion.

The current exemption ends April 19.

The sector gets another 90 days to comply, while the rest of the industry faces April 1 enforcement.

Presented by Reliance Partners …For truly safe trucking companies, chameleon carriers are a problem. But it is one that data is helping solve.

The ATA recognizes that “technology is cool,” but also that it had better play its own vital role in adopting and adapting plans in a realistic manner.

Used Class 8 truck prices increased 2% year-over-year in January, but fell 3% over December 2017, according to latest data from ACT Research.

Psychemedics Corporation says they have developed a test which eliminates false positives and has been vetted by the FBI.

Drivers aren’t robots and one size doesn’t fit all, so in the absence of flexibility, wide-awake drivers attempt to sleep in rest stops on 10-hour breaks during the day, which is what makes the 14-hour clock so dangerous.

In all, 35% of Americans will purchase flowers this year, says the Society of American Florists, totaling some $2 billion in sales, and the most of them get to their destinations via the trucks.

Freight brokers’ revenues went up but margins went down in 2017; Amtrak blames CSX for yesterday’s crash; Hazelwood won’t testify in Pilot trial; oil tanker shipping rates crater; click through for more!

The race to self-driving and electric vehicles has focused medium and heavy-duty vehicles lately, even though many believe local and urban is the best place for electric trucks. udelv, though, is focusing on that last-mile.

Even trucking original equipment manufacturers are not immune to spot freight volatility. Because of that, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), is working to shore up its supply chain relationship with contracted freight carriers through a new digital platform.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is taking a survey of truck drivers’ commutes to and from work.

Have the good days of high rates ended? While not declaring an end to rising van spot rates, a blog post yesterday by DAT Solutions’ Matt Sullivan did note some indications that the rapid rise may be slowing.

A holiday week did little to slow the rising tide of rates as 2017 came to a close. According to DAT Solutions, national spot rates for van and refrigerated loads reached their highest point of the year.

Recently, there were a couple of Facebook posts from owner-operators asking for advice on where to look for new insurance. One poster said their insurance company was dropping them because their “maintenance scores” were too high. What, they asked, did that mean?

One of the big mysteries around hours of service is personal conveyance. When can a driver use a vehicle for personal reasons without it counting against their driving time? The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is now attempting to clarify that usage through regulatory guidance.

Nearly 17 years in the making since the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration first attempted to require electronic logging devices (ELDs) on commercial vehicles, the day has finally arrived for most of the nation’s 3 million plus driver workforce to begin using the devices.