������ý

U.S. factory shipments of commercial trailers plunged 44% in 2009 from the previous year to 80,415 units, the lowest total since 1975, as dry van shipments fell to the lowest level since 1961, ACT Research Co. reported.

WASHINGTON — Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood last week issued an order immediately forbidding commercial drivers from texting on handheld mobile devices and instituting steep fines for violators.

In questions of safety, heavier trucks are not the answer.

At long last, we report this week that American Trucking Associations’ freight index actually rose, as tonnage carried by fleets in December was 6.6% greater than what was moved in the same month of 2008.

The decline in surface transportation trade among the United States, Canada and Mexico slowed in November from a year ago compared with October figures, the Department of Transportation said Thursday.

Truckload carrier Knight Transportation’s fourth-quarter profit fell 18.6% to $13.1 million, or 16 cents a share, compared with $16.1 million, or 19 cents, a year ago.

DALLAS — Trucking industry officials said that while they needed more flexibility to take rest breaks, the current hours-of-service rules were working.

California environmental regulators are considering several options to delay some requirements of the state’s diesel emissions regulation to provide “short-term relief” for truckers feeling the effects of the recession.