������ý

TAMPA, Fla. — A Technology & Maintenance Council task force said several provisions of the proposed federal requirement for electronic onboard recorders need clarification, and the rule’s required data-display equipment could be a costly and ineffective expense for trucking companies.

American Trucking Associations has filed a petition with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration last week seeking amendments to rules regarding employer notification and drivers.

LAS VEGAS — Leading heavy-duty truck components manufacturers said technology exists today to build a safer, environmentally friendly and low-cost heavy-duty “world truck,” but major obstacles are consumer acceptance and the lack of a single global standard for emissions and safety technology.

There were an estimated 3,336 for-hire trucking companies based in Canada with annual revenues of $1 million or more in the second quarter of 2006, almost unchanged from the same quarter in 2005, Statistics Canada said Thursday.

Hino Motors Ltd., Japan’s largest maker of heavy-duty trucks, saw its fiscal third-quarter profit drop 45% as the company spent more to develop new models and expand production, Bloomberg reported.

to write a Letter to the Editor.
WASHINGTON — Shippers would like to see a switch to larger trucks, and U.S. safety inspectors monitoring size-and-weight rules could have more technology at their disposal in the coming years, according to a Transportation Research Board panel discussion here.

Crude oil futures posted their biggest one-day gain Tuesday since September 2005, rising on forecasts of continuing cold weather and expectations of a stronger U.S. economy, Bloomberg reported.

Tank truck carrier Quality Distribution lowered its earnings guidance for the fourth quarter and full-year 2006, due to lower seasonal demand.

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted truck tonnage index jumped 3.9% in December, following a 3.6% downturn in November.