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Trucking companies that don’t watch who they do business with internationally could be setting themselves up for civil or criminal penalties under a new federal law that took effect in December.

Although the wave of change for women in the 1970s was slow to hit trucking, one Florida woman rolled in early and is still riding high.

A drop in shipments of van trailers caused truck trailer shipments during the first five months of 2000 to lag 1999 numbers by 3% after taking three months to draw even with the previous year’s figures.

No date has been set for the initial meeting of a House-Senate conference that is to decide whether to stop funding for the proposed hours-of-service rules from the Department of Transportation.

The largest state trucking association has become the second carrier group to support the use of electronic on-board recorders to monitor compliance with hours of service regulations — with some caveats.

Fixing downed power lines and restoring telephone service could take longer if hours-of-service regulations proposed by the Department of Transportation are enacted, according to industry officials.

When planting season starts, the hours-of-service clock stops ticking for agricultural haulers in 32 states as they take advantage of a 1995 federal law.

Road construction could take as much as 20% longer to complete and cost as much as 15% more if proposed changes in hours-of-service regulations for truck drivers take effect, according to Associated General Contractors of America.

While members of the oil cartel argued over production increases last week, fuel users in the United States saw little relief as the national average price of diesel rose 2.1 cents a gallon and hit a 15-week high in the latest federal survey.

Diesel and gasoline prices receded in Illinois last week after suspension of the state’s sales tax on motor fuel. Within days, the tax holiday knocked a nickel or more off pump prices.