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The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has approved legislation that would open more of the eastern Gulf of Mexico to oil and gas drilling, Bloomberg reported.

The use of diesel fuel has fallen sharply as freight levels have nose-dived during the global recession. The home-heating oil season has ended, so there is no competition for the distillate both heating oil and diesel are made from.

The Department of Transportation is preparing to issue its long-delayed rule that would slice the stopping distance for large trucks by as much as 30%.

Wyoming legislators are considering a highway funding plan that could cost trucks more than $100 in tolls to run the full 400 miles across the state on Interstate 80.

Heavy-duty U.S. truck sales continued their severe slide into a fifth month, as retail volume fell 39% in May, while the year-to-date total now lags the pace of last year by 33.9%, according to WardsAuto.com.

Several truck and engine manufacturers who plan to use selective catalytic reduction technology to meet 2010 emission standards have denied allegations by Navistar Inc. and have asked a federal appeals court to give them standing to argue against Navistar’s lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Diesel emission standards change again in January 2010, but unlike the previous modifications when all manufacturers used essentially the same emission-controlling technology, medium-duty truck buyers next year will have a choice of competing systems.

A requirement that tank trucks carrying gasoline and other flammable materials be retrofitted with equipment to purge wetlines would kill and injure far more repair shop workers than it would save motorists lives, the head of a tank truck carriers industry group told Congress.

The average price paid for retail diesel jumped another 7.4 cents last week to $2.572 a gallon, marking the sixth straight week of increases in the price of trucking’s main fuel for a total rise of 38.7 cents, the Department of Energy reported.