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Class 8 truck sales in the United States continued to scrape along the bottom in November, with original equipment manufacturers selling 10,309 vehicles — down 54.3% from the 22,539 they sold a year ago.

On the heels of YRC Worldwide’s settlement with the Teamsters union on a new five-year labor contract with in-creased work-rule flexibility, ABF Freight System said it will offer an ambitious proposal to spend about $825 million to “withdraw from all of the 27 multi-employer pension plans to which we contribute.”

Ryder System said Wednesday it will buy the truck leasing business of Lily Transportation Corp., a Northeast regional transportation services company based in Needham, Mass.

The Department of Transportation said Tuesday it is asking private industry, research organizations, and state and local governments for commercially available technology to fight congestion and improve the safety within the U.S. transportation system.

American Trucking Associations has launched a campaign to protect the trucking industry’s use of independent contractors, a move officials said is needed to counter recent court decisions and an increasingly “hostile” legislative environment.

Secured Digital Applications, a provider of asset-tracking services, has unveiled its new pocket-size Bluetooth Global Positioning System receiver, saying it offers a cheaper alternative to comparable vehicle-mounted systems.

Fleet management software provider Cadec, Manchester, N.H., said it has joined the Envi-ronmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay Transport Partnership.

FedEx Ground and Parker Hannifin Corp. said Friday they have agreed to test a Class 6 vehicle employing hybrid hydraulic technology that seeks to improve fuel mileage by greater than 50% and significantly reduce engine emissions.

Financial firm Barclays Global Investors, which had been the largest shareholder in Ryder System, has reduced its stake in Ryder by more than 50%, Bloomberg reported.

A large storm system that left ice on roads from the Plains to the Northeast has caused blackouts and led to at least 13 traffic deaths, the Associated Press reported Monday.