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ORLANDO, Fla. — Uncertainty about the life cycle of key emission control components and higher maintenance costs have emerged as the top concerns fleets have with 2007 heavy-duty diesel engines, maintenance and equipment heads at several major carriers said here.

If there is a silver lining in the current freight recession, it might be that the challenging economic environment is forcing carriers to focus more closely on business fundamentals to keep the bottom line healthy.

President Bush’s proposed Transportation Department budget for next year would increase DOT’s spending slightly but cut highway spending more than $2 billion from last year, and it proposes to borrow funds from mass transit to cover a shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund.

Transportation software firm Xata Corp. said Thursday it lost $1 million, or 14 cents a share, in its fiscal first quarter, compared with a loss of $554,000, or 9 cents, a year ago.

Third-party logistics company and freight broker Hub Group’s fourth-quarter profit rose 33% to a record $18 million, or 47 cents per share, up from $13.5 million, or 34 cents, a year earlier.

American Trucking Associations said Wednesday it is seeking nominations for professional truck drivers to serve on the 2009-2010 America’s Road Team.

Patriot Transportation Holding took a fiscal first-quarter loss of $139,000 or 5 cents a share, compared with net income of $2.2 million or 69 cents a year earlier.

U.S. worker productivity rose at an annual rate of 1.8% in the fourth quarter, the Labor Department said Wednesday.

Rhode Island transportation officials are checking the designs of 15 bridges in the state for a flaw that may have contributed to a fatal bridge collapse in Minneapolis last August, the Associated Press reported.