Posts by MTAC Staff

From Transport Topics. A proposal by federal regulators to require unique electronic identifiers on large trucks wasn’t well received by many of the nation’s motor carriers and independent truckers. In fact, the large majority of the more than 2,000 comments sampled on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s website were clearly either vehemently opposed to…

From Transport Topics. With a Dec. 9 deadline looming to reach an agreement on a nationwide freight rail contract, President Joe Biden is asking Congress to intervene in the dispute, which threatens to severely damage the U.S. economy. “As a proud pro-labor president, I am reluctant to override the ratification procedures and the views of…

From FreightWaves. As efforts to crack down on employers misclassifying workers as independent contractors ramp up in Washington, a new research brief from a Mercatus Center at George Mason University senior research fellow is warning of unintended consequences should the current rules change. “By narrowing the definition of what it means to be an independent…

Webinar: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the Future of Connecticut Medium and Heavy Duty Trucks and their Fuels. From Greater New Haven Clean Cities. New technologies, policies, and incentives are poised to upend life for the owners and managers of Connecticut’s 145,000 MD and HD trucks. The US just committed to only…

From Transport Topics. Ongoing concern about labor and management talks regarding two separate contract negotiations and a slowing U.S. economy resulted in a big drop in container volume at two of the nation’s biggest ports on the Pacific Coast. Year-over-year cargo numbers were down 25% at the Port of Los Angeles. In October, the port…

From Associated Press via Transport Topics. The nation’s major shipping companies are in the best shape to get holiday shoppers’ packages delivered on time since the start of the pandemic, suggesting a return to normalcy. Carriers like the U.S. Postal Service, FedEx and UPS project to have enough capacity after struggling under the holiday crush…

From FreightWaves. By now, most industry observers and analysts agree that the U.S. truckload market has slowed significantly, part of a broader goods normalization and hangover in our COVID-recovery. Multiple spot rate benchmarks have been falling for months; capacity metrics have loosened. Accepted contract loads (CLAV.USA) peaked in October 2021 and just took a sharper…

Legal Alert from the Scopelitis Law Firm. On November 16, 2022, FMCSA will issue guidance regarding the definition of what constitutes a “broker” and a “bona fide agent” of a broker. The guidance is not a rulemaking and will be effective immediately. However, FMCSA has nevertheless requested comment on the guidance and may issue updated…

From CVSA. Commercial motor vehicle inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. conducted 38,117 inspections of commercial motor vehicles Aug. 21-27 for Brake Safety Week. Of the total number of the commercial motor vehicles inspected, 13.3% were placed out of service for brake-related critical vehicle inspection item violations. That also means that nearly 87% of…

From Transport Topics. Unprecedented diesel prices mean that demand destruction for the fuel is probable, the International Energy Agency said. Both the outright price of the fuel and its trading level relative to crude oil rose to records in October, jumping 70% and 425% respectively year-on-year, the Paris-based adviser said in its monthly report on…