News
Trucker pay increasing as driver shortage grows, industry capacity tightens
From Transport Topics. As capacity tightens in the trucking industry, some carriers are beginning to announce pay hikes. While the frequency of these increases are not yet nearing the rapid pace of hikes the industry saw during the busy year of 2018, some industry watchers said they would not be surprised to see more jumps.…
Read MoreUnderstand Hours of Service regulations
From FMCSA. FMCSA’s Educational Tool for Hours of Service (ETHOS) helps motor carriers and drivers better understand the HOS regulations going into effect on September 29, 2020. When drivers and carriers enter their duty statuses into the web-based log below, ETHOS will identify where potential violations of the following rules may have occurred: 11-hour driving…
Read MoreInsurance challenges for small trucking companies
One of the biggest expenses for a small business trucking company is insurance. Unfortunately, there are signals that this cost will only be increasing. A recent study by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) found that insurance premiums increased by 12 percent to 8.4 cents per mile in 2018. MTAC members should participate in the…
Read MoreConnecticut DMV and FMCSA announcements on credential extensions
The Connecticut DMV has published a document which clarifies the timelines of their recent actions regarding extended credentials (CDLs, IRP registrations, non-IRP registrations, etc). Rather than having extensions that are valid for 90 days or 180 days, the new document provides dates for all credentials covered by their extensions. Specifically: Credentials that expired between March…
Read MoreCHRO extends sexual harassment prevention training deadline
The Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO) has announced that, pursuant to Executive Order 7DDD, as amended by Executive Order 9A, the Oct. 1st Sexual Harassment Prevention Training deadline has been extended to January 1, 2021 due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. This is a blanket extension and does not require a request to…
Read MoreExpect a ‘checkmark’ recovery, says economic expert
From Fleet Owner. “By ending the lockdown, I think we did the right thing and we got the economy growing again,” said Dr. Jeffrey Rosensweig, director of the John Robson Program in Business, Public Policy & Government at Goizueta Business School of Emory University. Rosensweig, provided insights on economic trends affecting the heavy-duty commercial vehicle…
Read MoreTrump’s ‘tax holiday’ has few takers in Connecticut
From CT Mirror. It’s been two weeks since President Donald Trump offered employers a way to temporarily fatten their worker’s paychecks, but in Connecticut there have been few takers. Using his executive authority, Trump has allowed the nation’s employers to defer the payment of certain payroll taxes from Sept. 1 through the end of the…
Read MoreFed signals rates will stay near zero for at least three years
From Transport Topics. The Federal Reserve left interest rates near zero and signaled it would hold them there through at least 2023 to help the U.S. economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic. The Federal Open Market Committee “expects to maintain an accommodative stance of monetary policy” until it achieves inflation averaging 2% over time, and…
Read MoreCompliance Alert: Issues with extended vehicle registrations
MTAC members are aware that the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has issued three separate extensions of expiring credentials, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This message is to emphasize that these extensions are separate from each other. They are: A 180 day extension for credentials that expired between March 10, 2020 and June 30,…
Read MoreRenew extended credentials now
MTAC has been advised that most motor carriers are waiting until the end of applicable credential extensions to begin renewing their vehicle registrations. This is not good, as it could cause a bottleneck of paperwork at DMV and contribute to potential delays in processing that would impact all carriers. Perhaps more importantly, MTAC members should…
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