Momentum Freight's Weblog

Trailer trucking firms looking at the Unified Carrier Registration fees they’ll have to pay in the calendar year under the new proposals are probably wondering how this is going to affect them during a time when they’re already hauling a tough financial road? Reports by many carriers indicates that they’ll be paying as much as double the fees they paid in previous calendar years and many think this additional cost could create new problems for many of America’s and North America’s trucking transport firms. Especially, for large trucking services firms this could mean some major changes in the financial landscape and future of the company, and this of course is making some trucking professionals doubt the wisdom of the increases at this time in the trucking industries history.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has indicated in statements that it was forced to increase the United Carrier Registration fee at this time in order to provide states with the money they’re expecting under the Single State Registration System. This statement must provide little comfort to the trucking firms that will have to pay the increased fees, since in the end they’ll have little choice but to pay, if they want to continue to conduct business. At least the fees are less than the original numbers the FMCSA was throwing at trucking firms in the start of this affair, which for some trucking firms must be a positive sign. They can still expect a rather large bill in the days ahead from the FMCSA and this is probably going to stick in their throat for a few days.

http://www.todaystrucking.com/news.cfm?intDocID=23849

There’s apparently a belief in parts of the world that more needs to be done to reduce the carbon wheel-print of North America’s trailer trucking industry. The latest report on this subject, titled Freight Trucks and Climate Change Policy Mitigating CO2 Emissions, even suggests that the governments of North America need to get to work in partnership with the trucking transport industry on reducing the carbon emissions of the trucking services industry of North America. The belief exists that not enough is being done to help the trucking industry reduce its carbon wheel-print and more needs to be done on all sides to move the trucking industry down the road to carbon sustainability a little further.

There could be some truth to this statement, but we could probably always do more and we do have to keep the trucks moving as we are trying to make the business of freight trucking a little greener for the health of the future of the trucking industry. We do have to control our emotions and make sure any changes we make are going to be useful for achieving the goals we have in mind. Solutions can cause additional problems in the trucking industry that we just don’t need at this time in history, so we do need to make sure any change we do make is going to do the job. The trucking industry of North America can no longer afford to think in terms of a North American industry and we must take into account the activities of all of the trucking industries around the world.

The good news is that we have started the trucking industry down the road to reducing carbon emissions, but obviously we still have lots of work to do, before the work is going to be complete. If we make sure we study the ideas we have implemented and alter our future plans using the facts we collect during the journey the job should be a lot easier.

http://www.todaystrucking.com/newscenter.c…&intDocID=23665

The trailer trucking industry is preparing to try to navigate through the upcoming months of 2010, after a first three months to the year that has shown some signs of improvement in the business of trucking transport. You can be sure trucking services companies have been trying to pay attention to events occurring around the industry and the world for indications that business could be about to increase. Trucking firms will have to begin investing in new equipment in order to meet future orders and navigate the changing landscape of the trucking industry in the environment of the century. A changing landscape that could mean the trucking industry could see more losses in the weeks, months and years ahead. Before they invest money during a time when money is hard to make, they want to be as sure as possible they’re going to have the business in the future to pay for the investment. Unfortunately, forecasting the future has always been a doubtful affair and yet trucking companies are still going to have to invest money in order to conduct business in the future.

Still, when we see trucking firms investing huge sums in new equipment, it can often be a sign that the business of trucking is going to begin to get better in the future, at least the company investing in new equipment and trucks, probably thinks so. One American trucking firm recently put in an order for over a thousand new Kenworth T660s with the Paccar MX engine, and there have been suggestions around the trucking industry that this could be a sign that the American trucking industry is getting healthier. Hopefully, the suggestions are correct, but we should probably get more evidence to confirm the belief in an increase in the business of trucking in America.

http://www.trucknews.com/issues/story.aspx?aid=1000368844

There’s probably a few worried trailer trucking firms and owner operator trucking professionals making plans to try to be at their best during the expected 72-hour safety blitz by the safety agency officials from June 8 to 10. Called Operation Roadcheck by many, the upcoming trucking transport inspection period is estimated to be the largest targeted trucking services inspection on the planet. This year’s edition is apparently going to go on your official CSA 2010 score, so the score you achieve is going to possibly affect your CSA 2010 ratings and your relationship with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association.

If you have had a less than stellar record before? This period is a chance for you to show the FMCSA that you’re a different and safer transport driver. It could also be a chance for you to set a good example for young drivers in the industry and put your professional safety standing in order. Young drivers, who will be experiencing Operation Roadcheck for the first time, might want to seek advice from experienced drivers in order to prepare a little better. The better prepared you’re for anything that might happen during an inspection or the more knowledge of the process you have the easier the affair is bound to go, when you’re talking to officials from the FMCSA. Drivers with an outstanding safety record, this is your time to shine and try to pass on some of your wisdom to drivers who are looking for advice on how to be a safer and more professional driver.

Whatever your current safety record is or future CSA 2010 rating? There’s only a short time to prepare and get your truck in order before Operation Roadcheck begins, so you better start getting ready. This doesn’t of course guarantee that everything will go without a hitch, but it certainly is going to help.

http://www.todaystrucking.com/news.cfm?intDocID=23782

The trailer trucking industry of America has been waiting for about three years now for the recession to start pulling back and the business of trucking services firms to begin to recover. The problems of unstable fuel prices and low freight volumes have been the main problems in the freight trucking industry during this time, but there certainly could be underlying reasons for the problems in the trucking transport industry that we just haven’t clued into yet. At the moment, many in the freight trucking industry professionals believe that a majority of the trucking firms operating in America have begun to re-evaluate their business operations after the past three years. Does this mean that these companies have decided that the freight trucking industry has changed and it’s not going to be returning to pre-recession levels? It appears that there’s a belief in the trucking industry that this could be a fact and according to many freight trucking industry professionals, many trucking firms have begun to do business with this idea as a fact.

If the trucking industry isn’t going to be returning to the levels of old, this could mean that some trucking firms are going to be making some tough choices in the months ahead, in order to control their costs, and get the company ready for a possible transition to a different freight trucking industry in the future. Does this mean that some workers in the freight trucking industry could be working less in the months ahead? This is certainly the question for the workers in the freight industry that are aware of the current changes in the way trucking firms do business. A question that must have some of them uneasy at the moment and considering the conditions in the freight trucking industry, one could hardly blame them for being a little apprehensive at the moment.

http://fleetowner.com/management/news/tran…-underway-0406/

The trailer trucking industry of the United States is currently in a transition of sorts from technologies that are carbon based to innovations that emit less carbon and help the trucking transport industry reduce its carbon wheel-print on the roads of North America. In order to help the trucking industry of America make the transition to technologies that emit less carbon or are totally carbon free, the US Department of Energy (DOE) has been spreading around a little money in the form of grants to the manufacturers of light and heavy trucking services units. The money handed out is to help trucking manufacturers develop new technologies to reduce the fuel consumption of these types of trucks, while making sure emission standards stay the same or are better.

This is obvious good news for the trucking industry and light and heavy duty truck manufacturers doing business in America. At present it’s estimated by trucking industry analysts that heavy truck transport accounts for about 20 percent of the current fuel consumed by trucking transport in America, while they only make up a 4 percent of the total amount of transport trucks in use. This means that reducing the amount of fuel consumed by heavy-duty transport trucks is going to mean a much more significant reduction in carbon emissions for the trucking industry of America.

The US Department of Energy has made funding available for nine different projects aimed at improving the fuel efficiency of the heavy and light duty transport trucks operating on the roads of America. The nine different projects delve into areas such as increasing fuel efficiency of Class 8 tractor trailers by as much as 50 percent within 5 years, technologies to reduce idling, and all sorts of amazing combustion innovations.

It will be a few years before the trucking industry gets to take advantage of any developments out of these nine projects, but this is a nice turn down the road to using less fuel for the trucking industry of the United States. This is likely just the first step in a plan that will eventually see America and the world begin to turn to technologies that are totally carbon free as the trucking industry travels further into the century of the environment.

http://fleetowner.com/green/archive/doe-grant-program-0112/