°®¶¹´«Ã½

Highway safety advocates filed a lawsuit Friday challenging the hours-of-service rule published in December, saying it does not go far enough in addressing driver fatigue.

The U.S. House of Representatives has approved an energy bill that would require President Obama to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline to carry crude oil from Canada to Gulf Coast refineries.

The federal government defended its program allowing Mexican trucks into the United States, telling a court this month that the pilot program complies with all federal laws related to safety, environmental protection and driver licensing, in addition to the laws specific to the program itself.

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Freight rates will continue to rise by several percentage points this year, carriers and shippers said, which should open the door for further pay increases for drivers.

The truckload industry, on the upswing as rates and freight rise, gathers for its annual meeting next week in Florida in a business environment that also includes unresolved questions such as the effects of more government regulation.

UPS Inc. said late last week it was continuing talks to buy European package carrier TNT Express, after the Dutch company rebuffed a $6.5 billion bid, sparking speculation that a higher price and other bidders, such as FedEx Corp., could emerge.

TAMPA, Fla. — Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems said it has distributed the first of more than 130,000 kits to fix a defective brake-system valve, but said the process could take about six months to complete as manufacturers, dealers and fleets scramble to repair more than 67,000 affected U.S. and Canadian trucks.

The total U.S. Class 8 fleet dropped 2.1% in the 4th quarter of 2011 compared with the last quarter of 2010, as fleets continued to squeeze out their oldest trucks to bring freight capacity more into alignment with available loads, according to R.L. Polk & Co.

TAMPA, Fla. — Lee Long, the maintenance director of Southeastern Freight Lines and new chairman of American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council, said his biggest interest is drawing more people into work as heavy-duty technicians.

Trucking industry leaders, company associates and family members paid tribute to Don Schneider, the former president and CEO of Schneider National Inc., in a memorial service attended by an estimated 700 people at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wis., on Feb. 15. Schneider died in January after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.