everytruckjob

Billy Barnes New website

2012-01-27T16:18:00.000-06:00

Was on the web today and found a fast growing south alabama trucking companies agressively looking for drivers. Check it out http://www.billybarnes.net/company.html

Top Three Contenders Named for TCA/Randall-Reilly

2012-01-12T16:13:00.003-06:00

Alexandria, Virginia – The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) and Randall-Reilly Business Media & Information Company (Randall-Reilly) are pleased to announce the names of the top three company driver and owner operator contenders in the 2011 Driver of the Year competition. Competing in the Owner Operator contest will be Kirby Killgore of O & S Trucking, Inc., Springfield, Mo.; Larry Severson of Dart Transit Company, Eagan, Minn.; and Bryan Smith of Art Pape Transfer, Inc., Dubuque, Iowa. For the Company Driver contest, the contenders will be James Coles of MacKinnon Transport, Inc., Guelph, Ontario; John Moeller of Roehl Transport, Inc., Marshfield, Wisc.; and Ronald Round of Pottle’s Transportation, Inc., Bangor, Maine.

The grand prizewinners for each contest will be announced at TCA’s Annual Convention, to be held March 4-7, 2012, at the Gaylord Palms in Kissimmee, Fla.

“We are excited about partnering with TCA on this important program and are pleased to be able to honor these exemplary truckers in the pages of Overdrive and Truckers News,” says Jeff Mason, Randall-Reilly senior vice president, trucking. “And thanks to the generosity of our sponsors—Cummins and Dodge—each winner will receive a Cummins-powered Dodge pickup truck.”

The overall goal of the Driver of the Year competition is to recognize and pay tribute to the outstanding company and owner operator truck drivers who provide reliable and safe truck transportation in moving the nation's goods. The top three in each category are selected based on their ability to operate in a safe manner on the public highways, efforts to enhance the public image of the trucking industry, and positive contributions to the communities in which they live.

To be eligible for the contests, driver applicants had to meet certain minimum criteria, such as having driven one million consecutive, accident-free miles. Trucking companies were limited to nominating only five drivers for each contest. Previous grand prizewinners were not eligible to enter either contest again.

The contest judges examined each applicant’s operating information, work history, and safety record. They also evaluated each applicant’s 300-word essays explaining why he/she is a good “trucking citizen” and should be a candidate for the grand prize. For the owner operators, the judges reviewed equipment specifications, business plans, and financial statements as well.

TCA Chairman Gary Salisbury, president and CEO of Fikes Truck Line, Inc., of Hope, Ark., said, “From my own experience as a driver, I can testify to how much work each of these dedicated individuals went through to get to this moment in their careers. I will be honored to shake each of their hands in Kissimmee!”

As the 2011 program moves toward its conclusion, the 2012 competition is already underway. Two months ago, TCA and Randall-Reilly named the top eight company drivers and top 11 owner operators in the 2012 contests. The next step will be profiles of each finalist appearing in issues of Truckers News (for the company driver contest) and Overdrive (for the owner operator contest) next year. The top three in both categories will be named before the end of 2012 and the grand prizewinners will be recognized at TCA’s 2013 Annual Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.

For further information on the Driver of the Year competition, please visit www.truckload.org/Driver-of-the-Year.

American Central Transport Boosts Driver Pay

2012-01-12T16:13:00.001-06:00

(Liberty, MO) - American Central Transport, Inc. (ACT) announced that it will increase the pay for independent contractors who have their HAZMAT endorsement beginning in March, 2012. Contractors with HAZMAT will be paid $1.00 per loaded mile on every load they haul for ACT, including non-HAZMAT loads.

"We're excited to offer top pay to owner operators who have all their credentials," said ACT Recruiting Manager Chad Still. "Even though less than 5% of our freight is HAZMAT, we're offering premium pay for everything our contractors are hauling. Paying well has always been one of our core values. As a Top Pay Carrier, we've always preferred to keep our pay in the top 5%- to 10%," he said.

"We know that costs are going up and we want to partner with our contractors to see that they're successful and that their businesses continue to make money."

ACT states that they are announcing this increase now in order to give contractors time to start the application for a HAZMAT endorsement if they don't already have one. Still states that contractors may go on and sign with ACT now, and receive $.94 CPM while they're waiting to receive their HAZMAT. Upon receiving their HAZMAT credentials, their pay will be increased to $1.00 per loaded mile.

American Central Transport, Inc. is a dry van truckload carrier serving major shippers throughout the eastern half of the United States. Founded in 1926 as E.K. Motor Service, the company was later renamed after it was purchased by the Kretsinger family, who still run it today. ACT has been frequently recognized for its quality and premium service, signified by its "Raising the Standard" motto.

Barr-Nunn Doubles CSA Bonus for Owner Operators

2011-09-16T17:20:00.001-05:00

Granger, IA (September XX, 2011) Barr-Nunn Transportation has done it again, they’ve doubled their CSA Bonus for Owner Operators from an additional $225 to $450 on their current Performance bonus, and the rules remain simple; drivers just have to stay CSA compliant to get the extra cash every 30,000 paid safe miles.

“Our Owner Operators are a substantial part of our capacity offering to our customers and they’re helping us maintain a strong safety record and excellent CSA scores. While a high level of safety performance has always allowed our Owner Operators to earn more, we are pleased to be able to further highlight the critical importance of safe operations and reward those who perform, through this new element to our compensation program.” says Barr-Nunn President Rene Beacom.

This new Owner Operator bonus program starts with bonuses paid to current Owner Operators on September 23, 2011.

About Barr-Nunn:

Now closing in on their 29th year, Barr-Nunn Transportation Inc. has become known as one of the country’s best-managed truckload carriers. They are the industry innovator in driver pay and benefits packages and work diligently to anticipate and meet the needs of both their clients and their employees.

For more information about Barr-Nunn visit www.barr-nunn.com or call 888-999-7576.

Driver reaches impressive milestone with MCA

2011-09-13T16:15:00.001-05:00

Driver reaches impressive milestone with MCA

Little Rock, Ark. (September 13, 2011) -- Professional driver Michael Dehner has been on the road for over 30 years and knows what it takes to be a safe and successful driver. Dehner, who has been with Mail Contractors of America (MCA) since 1998, recently reached his millionth safe mile with MCA. Although this feat is already something that few drivers ever achieve, Dehner’s work with MCA gives him a total of over 3.5 million safe miles throughout his entire career.

“Safely driving one million miles represents the best that Mail Contractors of America strives to see in all of its drivers,” says Rich Clair, CEO of MCA. “In these days of ever increasing traffic congestion and the needs of our customers for their freight to be delivered on time, I thank Mr. Dehner for the dedication, service and consideration of the motoring public that this award recognizes and hold him as an example to all professional truck drivers.”

Dehner is known around MCA for his commitment to hard work and safety, as well as his passion for continued education on the job. For his achievement, Dehner received a certificate and company patch, as well as a personal letter from Clair.

“The key is to not be too aggressive on the road. You have to work hard to be safe and expect the unexpected,” says Dehner. “I’m honored to have reached this achievement with MCA.”

In addition to awards for drivers like Dehner who deliver a consistently high level of service, MCA provides drivers with scheduled home time, hourly pay and a variety of health and other benefits. For more information about opportunities at MCA, please visit www.mcalogistics.com or call 1-800-844-6245.

About MCA

Headquartered in Little Rock, Ark., MCA has been in business since 1945. Today, the company’s fleet includes over 900 tractors and 1,400 trailers, operating over 104 million miles annually. MCA offers a wide range of regional, short haul, local and intermodal transportation solutions. It is also the largest ground transportation supplier to the United States Postal Service. MCA’s mission is to provide outstanding service to its customers while continuing to grow in the increasingly competitive transportation environment and to provide good quality of life to its employees and their families.

Fleetmaster Express celebrates drivers, invests in appreciation efforts

2011-09-13T16:11:00.002-05:00

Fleetmaster Express celebrates drivers, invests in appreciation efforts

Roanoke, VA (September 13, 2011) -- While budget cuts and economic woes have forced many carriers to curtail activities during this year’s National Driver Appreciation Week (Sept. 11 - 17), Fleetmaster Express has announced plans to celebrate their drivers’ success.

“We wish to express our gratitude and commend our drivers – and all drivers – on their dedication and professionalism. Regardless of the challenging economic environment, we must recognize the hard work and effort of our drivers. Without them, we would not be able to give our customers the superior service they deserve.” says Travis Smith, Fleetmaster Express director of OTR operations.

The U. S. depends on trucks to deliver nearly 70 percent of all freight transported annually. More than 80 percent of U. S. communities depend solely on trucking for delivery of their goods and commodities. In recognition of that, this year marks the 16th annual celebration of National Truck Driver Appreciation Week and Fleetmaster’s 24th in business. Fleetmaster’s President and CEO, Carl Bumgarner, is honored to participate in a week that celebrates his drivers saying, “Much of our past success is attributable to the high level of professionalism from our drivers. This week we offer our thanks to these men and women for their outstanding safe service and contribution to getting the freight to our nation’s doorstep.”

As part of its appreciation efforts, Fleetmaster is supplying each of its drivers with $40 in gift certificates, a shirt and hat printed with the company logo, and other promotional items. There will be daily raffles of valuable items purchased by the company as well as items donated by vendors such as tires, navigation units, gift certificates, and cash prizes.

About Fleetmaster Express:

The Fleetmaster companies operate over 300 trucks and 1,100 trailers. They provide superior service to their customers from 13 terminals, offering over the road, local, and dedicated hauling as well as freight brokerage, warehousing and spotting services. The company is headquartered in Roanoke and has locations in Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Arkansas, Texas, Georgia, Indiana, and Wisconsin. Harold Hopper, Executive VP & COO, said this about Driver Appreciation Week: “Fleetmaster has the best group of drivers of any trucking company in the U. S. They provide superior service, communication, and professionalism to our customers. We appreciate what they do and this is our opportunity to thank them.”

OOIDA recognizes drivers for safe driving records

2011-01-05T06:52:00.001-06:00

OOIDA recently announced honorees in the Association’s Safe Driving Award program. The following drivers have been recognized by the Association for truck driving excellence:

Lonnie Byers of Ozark, AR, has been recognized for 41 years of safe, accident-free driving. He currently hauls theatrical scenery and other oversized loads.
Don Carter of Rogers, AR, has been recognized for 40 years of safe, accident-free driving.
Paul Jones of South Plainfield, NJ, has been recognized for 39 years of safe, accident-free driving. He currently hauls general commodities.
Richard Tilley of Pasadena, TX, has been recognized for 27 years of safe, accident-free driving.
Shawn and Cindy Ragan of Howard, CO, have been recognized for 20 years of safe, accident-free driving.
John Ferreira of Turlock, CA, has been recognized for 12 years of safe, accident-free driving.
Sunny Ramen of Jersey City, NJ, has been recognized for 11 years of safe, accident-free driving. He currently hauls general freight.
Mark Johnson of Opp, AL, has been recognized for seven years of safe, accident-free driving.
Kevin Ross of Huntingdon, PA, has been recognized for three years of safe, accident-free driving. He currently hauls air freight.

The OOIDA Safe Driving Award Program is designed to recognize and reward OOIDA members for their safe, accident-free years while operating a commercial vehicle. Safe driving awards are available to all eligible OOIDA members who qualify based on the number of years for which the member has operated a commercial vehicle without being involved in a preventable accident.

Driver Training Programs Expressing Concern with Safety,and Training Receive PTDI Course Recertification

2011-01-04T17:39:00.001-06:00

Alexandria, Virginia – Three driver training programs concerned with driver safety and offering high quality training recently received recertification of their courses from the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI): ATDS, Elm Mott, Texas; Baker College of Cadillac, Michigan; and Houston Community College Commercial Truck Driving Center.

“We were always a school that had a training program longer than most, and we were always concerned about safety,” said Robert Hunt, director of ATDS—one of the eight schools that received the original PTDI course certification in January 1989. “In fact, we were the first school to have an onsite visit back in 1986 when the organization was known as PTDIA. PTDI was doing things that we agreed a school should do to deliver a safe driver; safety has been a main concern for us.” Hunt said that focus is one of the reasons why ATDS continues to pursue PTDI certification.

“I’d like to see more carriers look at requiring their new hires to be graduates of PTDI-certified courses,” Hunt added. “Some of these major carriers are hiring from schools that are just getting people through the system, and that’s a major concern for me when I’m driving on the highway.”

Also concerned with high-quality training and safety, Baker College of Cadillac offers “a training program that emulates the real world that drivers face,” according to Tim Baker, program director who says the new multimillion-dollar facility completed in October is unusual. “We own our own set of double trailers and a flatbed with equipment on it which enables us to instruct our students in great detail, including teaching them to put chains on tires. Our winter drivers are some of the best in the country.”

Having all four Baker College campuses with PTDI-certified courses is an advantage Baker said, “because what we lack in the ‘great up north,’ we can get by going down to our parent campus to give our students what they need.”

Because their students have access to the Michigan Center for Decision Driving (Skid Pad), driving simulators, and a diversity of equipment that trains them to work with the local logging and oil field industies, Baker College enables graduates to remain in the area. “Cadillac is mainly made up of state forests and bears, and our guys normally have to relocate when they get hired,” Baker said, “but some of our drivers go back several generations and don’t want to leave this area, so local employment is important. We are very successful in helping them stay here, and PTDI is a big part of making that happen. PTDI benefits our local economy.

“Baker College as a whole has been working closely with PTDI since we started our program,” Baker added. “There was never any doubt we would not strive to be PTDI certified. Our course was formed with PTDI in mind.”

Houston Community College also offers high-quality training at a premium facility. As Martin Garsee, director of transportation training at the program, explained, “We have eight classrooms dedicated to truck driving on a 13-acre facility designed specifically for truck driving. It’s unusual in a large city like Houston to have this type of facility, and it provides a good, safe environment to learn in. We feel very fortunate to have this type of facility in a college system.”

In addition to offering a premium facility, Garsee said he is proud of his program’s PTDI course certification. “When you can show you meet industry standards, you’re able to hold your head up high and say you’re servicing the population’s needs. Even though our resources are limited, I was willing to factor the cost of PTDI certifying our course into my budget because of the benefits of having that certification. The consistency of the PTDI program has brought us back for recertification.”

Baker said he also can easily justify the cost of PTDI certification. “When I first took this position on a year ago, I wasn’t sure about the need for PTDI certification, but I changed my perspective. Once I started talking to trucking companies and they stressed how important PTDI was to them and I started looking at programs that were not PTDI certified, it became very obvious why we wanted [certification]. My family has to drive on the same highways as these drivers. To me, truck driving is not a fall-back career; it’s a first-choice career, and you need to hold your head up and be proud of it. The more serious we take [truck driver training], the more the students can take pride in what they do.”

The current list of all schools with PTDI-certified courses can be found at www.ptdi.org.

PTDI is a national, nonprofit organization established for the twofold purpose of developing uniform industry skill, curriculum, and certification standards for entry-level truck driver training and motor carrier driver finishing programs, and certifying entry-level truck driver training courses at public and private schools and driver finishing programs at carriers for compliance with PTDI standards. PTDI is based in Alexandria, Virginia.

Trucking Hours of Service Rules

2010-12-28T07:07:00.001-06:00

(Grain Valley, MO) – Professional truck drivers won’t be surprised if mainstream media headlines announcing the newly proposed hours of service include phrases about “tired truckers” or “fatigued truckers” or similar innuendos. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which represents more than 153,000 professional drivers and small business truckers, wants to emphasize that hours spent driving is only a part of the overall issue and that all involved in the transportation supply chain have a role in highway safety.

“We want the motoring public to know that it’s not just about how long a truck driver spends behind the wheel that affects the safety of everyone on the highways,” said Todd Spencer, executive vice president. “Many truck drivers spend between 30-40 hours per week waiting at loading docks. Everyone involved in transportation, from shippers to receivers, has a responsibility for its role in keeping highways safe. And we won’t have optimum safety until others in the supply chain truly act responsibly.”

Proposed changes are taking place in the regulations that govern hours of service for commercial vehicles drivers. That proposal will go through a review process before becoming final summer of 2011.

About a year ago, an organization that previously has fought for changes in current hours-of-service regulations, agreed to suspend its legal challenge to specific provisions in the regulations. In exchange, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) agreed to send the hours-of-service regulations back through the regulatory process. FMCSA had promised to take a fresh look at the rules and finalize a new rule in 21 months.

Since that time, the FMCSA has held numerous listening sessions where they heard truck drivers, many of which were OOIDA members, share their concerns about the need for flexibility in the work day to take needed rest breaks, and that with the current rule, there is no incentive for drivers to take breaks that cut into driving time.

“To say the least, federal hours-of-service regulations are consequential to the lives and livelihoods of our nation’s truck drivers,” said Spencer. “Those rules govern truckers whether they are behind the wheel of a truck or off duty and at home with their families.”

OOIDA has long held that to meaningfully improve highway safety, proposed changes would need to include all aspects of a truckers’ workday that affect the ability to drive safely. This includes loading and unloading times, split sleeper berth for team operations, and the ability to interrupt the 14-hour day for needed rest periods.

As far as the details of the proposed changes, OOIDA has not yet provided an opinion. “We have been anxiously awaiting the public release of the proposed new rules,” said Spencer. “We are carefully analyzing the proposal, but I can tell you that to make additional safety gains, the next hours-of-service rule must be more flexible to allow drivers to sleep when tired and to work when rested. The rules must encourage truck drivers to get off the road when they are tired and must not penalize them for doing so.”

INFO ABOUT TRUCK CRASHES

The latest statistics from FMCSA on truck-related fatalities

www.fmcsa.dot.gov/facts-research/media/webinar-10-09-29-slides.pdf

Hands-free, too? FMCSA interest goes beyond hand-held phones

2010-12-22T06:45:00.001-06:00

By David Tanner, Land Line associate editor

A notice of proposed rulemaking issued by the FMCSA targets the use of hand-held cell phones by commercial drivers. That, we know. But within the proposal is a request for public comments about a possible future ban on hands-free communications as well.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration filed its notice of proposed rulemaking, also known as an NPRM, on Tuesday, Dec. 21. As proposed, the NPRM lays groundwork to ban the use of hand-held use of cell phones while driving for commercial operators. Earlier this year, the agency issued a final rule to ban the specific act of texting while driving a CMV.

The latest proposal is an indication of how deep into the issue of distracted driving the agency is willing to tread.

The proposal is not yet a final rule, and the outcome can still be shaped. That’s precisely what OOIDA leadership and membership have a chance to do during a 60-day public comment period, which ends Feb. 22, 2011.

“It makes it illegal to reach for your phone,” OOIDA Director of Regulatory Affairs Joe Rajkovacz pointed out Monday on Land Line Now.

“That is a form of a thought crime. It’s very arbitrary and capricious. It opens up potential abuse on the part of law enforcement to use that as an ‘I gotcha’ against a driver. … The law needs to be much more specific than that. They need to do a much better job in the final rulemaking in dealing with that.”

Also key within the NPRM is language by FMCSA – think of it as a fishing expedition – that solicits public comments about the possibility of an outright ban on all cell phone use for commercial drivers, including hands-free.

“We are requesting comments on whether to propose a complete prohibition on mobile telephone use by drivers of CMVs,” FMCSA regulators stated in the NPRM document.

That one, Rajkovacz said, is sure to draw some comments from truckers.

“At 2 in the morning, as you’re driving through the night, having a conversation with somebody is a form of caffeine. It actually keeps you alert. And that’s one of the things we’ll be commenting to with FMCSA. They’re asking questions about the possibility of sometime in the future, perhaps banning cell-phone use altogether.”

Federal agencies have relied on studies to back up their points. FMCSA regulators cite a Virginia Tech Transportation Institute that shows texting while driving increases the risk of a crash or a near crash.

“However, it is not clear if simply talking on a mobile telephone presents a significant risk,” FMCSA regulators stated in the NPRM.

“For example, the same (Virginia Tech) study that detailed the risks of reaching and dialing found that ‘talking or listening to a hands-free phone’ and ‘talking or listening to a hand-held phone’' were relatively low-risk activities and had only brief periods of eyes off forward roadway. It is the action of taking one’s eyes off the forward roadway to reach for and dial the mobile telephone that is highly risky.”

OOIDA helped shape the FMCSA’s final rule on texting earlier this year, by saying truckers should be able to use smart phones for GPS navigation. The Association is hoping to offer additional points on the issues of hands-free, hand-held and push-to-talk technologies.

“The question of push-to-talk is going to be broached. (FMCSA is) asking questions here. They’re also using the NPRM to look into the future of what they may or may not want to ban in the future in terms of onboard communications technology that drivers could eventually be using.”

Once the public comment period ends, the FMCSA will draft a final rule and undergo another round of public comments. Rajkovacz says don’t wait if you want to make comments on the proposal.

“This is the time to make your comments, at the time of a notice of proposed rulemaking,” he said.

Comments are being accepted in writing, by fax or on the Web as follows:

Docket Management Facility (M-30)
U.S. Department of Transportation
West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140
1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001
Fax: 202-493-2221
Online: regulations.gov Follow the link to the NPRM and click the “submit a comment” button to fill out a form and submit your comments. You can submit comments anonymously.

FMCSA has issued a list of questions or points the agency would like to receive public feedback about. The following list is copied directly from the NPRM language:

Should the agency completely restrict all mobile telephone use, both hand-held and hands-free, by CMV drivers while driving in interstate commerce?
Should some CMV drivers, for example, drivers of passenger-carrying vehicles or of vehicles carrying hazardous materials, be more restricted than other CMV drivers?
Some motor vehicle design guidelines suggest limiting the time that a visual or a visual-manual task takes the driver’s eyes off of the forward roadway when designing vehicle controls. Should the agency define a time limit for CMV drivers’ interaction with mobile telephones (either hand-held, hands-free, or both)?
Should the agency propose limiting the number of keystrokes or button pushes that a CMV driver is allowed within a certain time frame when using a mobile telephone (either hand-held, hands-free, or both)? Should dialing be defined as a specific number of keystrokes or button pushes such as at least seven keystrokes or button pushes?
Are there technologies available or soon to be available that would allow completely hands-free mobile telephone operation by CMV drivers? Please provide any information on the availability and costs of such technologies. The agency also requests comments regarding the amount of time and steps that are required by the driver to initiate and then conduct a hands-free mobile telephone conversation with such devices.
The agency has proposed a definition for “use of a hand-held mobile telephone” in the regulatory text. The agency requests comments on this definition as well as the public’s views on whether to include a description of allowable alternatives to “use of a hand-held mobile telephone,” such as hands-free technologies.
FMCSA seeks comment on its assumptions on states’ costs, any increase in enforcement costs to the states, or any other costs or increases borne by the states.

Land Line Now Host Mark Reddig contributed to this report

Hornady Transportation Unveils,New Look For Corporate Website

2010-12-17T07:27:00.001-06:00

(Monroeville, AL) -- Hornady Transportation announces the launch of a new corporate website, www.hornadytransportation.com, designed to better serve the needs of customers and employees.

"This is something we've wanted to do for a long time," said Guy Martorana, Director of Human Resources. "The new web site is easy to maneuver and gives potential drivers and customers an overview of Hornady Transportation. We're a grass roots company - a company that respects and values its drivers - but we're also a company striving to satisfy every customer."

The new website features pages on sales, safety, service, maintenance and customer service, as well as complete corporate history, contacts and an archive of their downloadable newsletters. To make it easier for drivers, the new Hornady site also features hiring information, an online employment application and details about new promotions for drivers -- like the $2,000 sign-on bonus currently available for drivers.

"We feel like the new website represents who we really are," said Martorana. "We're eager for people to see it."

Established in 1928, Hornady Transportation, LLC is a family-owned and operated flatbed carrier operating east of the Rockies. With customization services to meet flatbed transportation needs, from line-haul, regional or dedicated services, business is coordinated through the corporate office in Monroeville, Alabama.

For additional information, visit www.hornadytransportation.com or call 1-800-633-1313.

CRST Malone Opens New Ohio Office

2010-12-17T07:26:00.001-06:00

(Birmingham, AL) - CRST Malone announces the opening of an additional company terminal in Middletown, Ohio. This new office, located at 4708 Oxford Station Road, will assist in CRST Malone's operations and driver recruitment for the northern region. It may be reached by calling (877) 352-5580. "We're thrilled to be adding another location," said Sherri Cook, CRST Malone Director of Recruiting. "Now, it'll be even easier for contractors to sign on to a great career with us." Malone also maintains offices in Dallas, TX, Lake Station, IN and Birmingham, AL.

CRST Malone is the largest U. S. flatbed organization under one roof, with over 1200 trucks and field offices throughout the United States. Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, CRST Malone provides freight services in strategic areas including Sided Equipment, Specialized Freight, Long Haul, Regional, and LTL.

CRST Malone was founded in 1928 on the principals of superior customer service, along with the relentless pursuit of maximizing the success of our independent contractors and terminals. The company continues today as one of the oldest truckload carriers in the industry.

For more information, contact CRST Malone Recruiting at (800) 366-6361 or visit their website at www.joinmalone.com

Judge backs FedEx: drivers are independent contractors, not employees

2010-12-17T07:15:00.001-06:00

By Clarissa Kell-Holland, Land Line staff writer

Since 2001, FedEx Ground has been embattled in numerous class-action lawsuits filed by its independent contractors across the country who say they have been misclassified and are actually employee drivers.

On Tuesday, Dec. 14, U.S. District Judge Robert Miller of Indiana sided with FedEx on this issue, dismissing 20 of its 28 consolidated class-action cases against them, ruling that its drivers are indeed independent contractors.

The court returned a number of individual cases to the courts in which they originated for determination of the plaintiff’s employment status in eight states where they worked: Alabama, Arkansas, California, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Massachusetts.

In his 182-page decision, Miller ruled that there was no reasonable inference that FedEx retained the right to control the “methods and means of the drivers’ work on a class-wide basis.”

In a statement, Maury Lane, director of corporate communications, said FedEx is “very pleased with today’s significant rulings from the federal District Court in Indiana in favor of FedEx Ground related to the independent contractor business model.”

Lynn Faris of Leonard Carder LLP, who is the lead counsel for the FedEx drivers, stated on Thursday, Dec. 16, that the plaintiffs will appeal Judge Miller’s decision.

“The upshot of these rulings is that drivers doing the same work will be classified differently in different states and, indeed, for different purposes within the same state,” Faris said. “This is a result that I do not believe either side expected or wanted.”

MCT Names Daniel Allen, Driver of the Month

2010-12-16T07:40:00.000-06:00

(Sioux Falls, SD) - Midwest Coast Transport (MCT) has selected Daniel Allen as the MCT Driver of the Month for October, 2010. Allen has driven with MCT since February of 2008.

Allen was presented with an award certificate and a custom MCT Driver of the Month duffle bag. His photo will be also be displayed in the corporate headquarters with the previous months' honorees.

Founded in Sioux Falls, South Dakota in late 1949, MCT operates an independent contractor fleet of over 500 trucks, transporting perishable and general commodities for a solid base of quality shippers in a 48-state operation.

Part of the half billion-dollar transportation system Comcar Industries of Auburndale, Florida, MCT also has facilities in Sanford, Florida, West Chicago, Illinois, and Florence, KY. MCT operates the largest LTL foliage consolidation/shipping operation in Florida at our Sanford terminal.

For more information, call MCT at 1-877-JOIN-MCT or visit our website at www.midwest-coast.com.

Decker Truck Line Names,November 2010 Drivers of the Month

2010-12-15T07:21:00.001-06:00

(Fort Dodge, Iowa) - Decker Truck Line, Inc. is pleased to announce that Ricky Catherwood and Joe Holmberg have been chosen as the company's November 2010 Drivers of the Month.

Ricky Catherwood was selected as Driver of the Month in the Flatbed Division. Dispatcher Jerry Chapman nominated Catherwood, saying, "Ricky is a good worker and is always there on time." A 14-year Decker veteran, his hobbies include riding his motorcycle and enjoying time at home with his wife, Karie.

Joe Holmberg was chosen as the Reefer-Van Division Driver of the Month for November. Holmberg works out of the Fort Dodge Terminal. His dispatcher, Michael Kehoe, says, "Joe is a dependable and courteous driver. He communicates very well and anticipates situations that may arise while he is working." A family man with three children and six grandchildren, Holmberg enjoys fishing, football and vacationing in Branson, MO.

In addition to winning a Decker gift certificate, both of these drivers will now be eligible to compete for Driver/Owner-Operator of the Year. This year-end recognition of one driver from each division brings a 1-cent-per-mile pay increase for twelve months.

Decker's Drivers of the Month are selected by their dispatchers based on overall performance within all areas of the company, including operational productivity, safety record, maintenance/care of equipment, payroll, billing and customer service.

Founded in 1931, Decker Truck Line, Inc. is a diversified carrier, transporting flatbed, refrigerated and dry van freight to the 48 contiguous states and seven Canadian provinces.

For more information, visit www.drivedecker.com.

Decker Truck Line Names November Drivers of the Month

2010-12-14T17:32:00.003-06:00

(Fort Dodge, Iowa) - Decker Truck Line, Inc. is pleased to announce that Ricky Catherwood and Joe Holmberg have been chosen as the company's November 2010 Drivers of the Month.

Ricky Catherwood was selected as Driver of the Month in the Flatbed Trucking Division. Dispatcher Jerry Chapman nominated Catherwood, saying, "Ricky is a good worker and is always there on time." A 14-year Decker veteran, his hobbies include riding his motorcycle and enjoying time at home with his wife, Karie.

Joe Holmberg was chosen as the Reefer-Dry Van Trucking Division Driver of the Month for November. Holmberg works out of the Fort Dodge Terminal. His dispatcher, Michael Kehoe, says, "Joe is a dependable and courteous driver. He communicates very well and anticipates situations that may arise while he is working." A family man with three children and six grandchildren, Holmberg enjoys fishing, football and vacationing in Branson, MO.

In addition to winning a Decker gift certificate, both of these drivers will now be eligible to compete for Driver/Owner-Operator of the Year. This year-end recognition of one driver from each division brings a 1-cent-per-mile pay increase for twelve months.

Decker's Drivers of the Month are selected by their dispatchers based on overall performance within all areas of the company, including operational productivity, safety record, maintenance/care of equipment, payroll, billing and customer service.

Founded in 1931, Decker Truck Line, Inc. is a diversified carrier, transporting flatbed, refrigerated and dry van freight to the 48 contiguous states and seven Canadian provinces.

For more information or to apply for a truck driving job visit www.everytruckjob.com

PRIME INC. HONORS FALLEN SOLDIERS WITH WREATH DELIVERY

2010-12-10T13:09:00.001-06:00

(Springfield, Mo.) – Prime inc. recently announced its participation in this year’s “Wreaths Across America™ Day”, which takes place on Saturday, Dec. 11, at 12 p.m. EST. Held annually on the second Saturday in December, the custom of placing wreaths on veteran graves across America relies on the help of volunteers, active organizations and the generosity of the trucking industry.

Prime inc.’s participation in the event has become an annual tradition for the company. This year, the company has not only donated a truck for the cause, but a driver and several thousand dollars to purchase wreaths in Springfield, Mo.

“We are honored to be able to pay tribute to the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom,” said John Hancock, Prime inc. director of training and driver recruiting. “It is Prime’s hope that every grave is decorated for the holidays to signify just how important their service was to our country.”
The Missouri Highway Patrol will escort Prime inc.’s driver through the state to deliver wreaths in Bloomfield, St. Louis, St. James and Springfield. Ceremonies around the nation will be performed in unison at 12 p.m. EST on Saturday, Dec. 11. Each ceremony will include a flag ceremony, the traditional playing of “Taps” and a 21-gun salute. One member from each branch of the military will place a wreath on a grave.

About Prime inc.
Founded in 1970 by Robert Low, Prime inc. is North America’s most successful refrigerated, flatbed, tanker and logistics trucking company. Headquartered in Springfield, Mo., Prime's personnel, equipment and technology remains on the cutting edge of the transportation industry, and the company's growth remains steady and well managed. For more information about Prime, please visit www.primeinc.com.

About Wreaths Across America ™
Wreaths Across America™, a non-profit 501-c3 organization, was formed as an extension of the Arlington Wreath Project. The Arlington Wreath program began with the donation and laying of 5,000 Christmas wreaths in Arlington National Cemetery by Morrill Worcester of Worcester Wreath Company of Harrington in 1992. The program was expanded in 2006 to create Wreaths Across America™, providing wreath donations nationwide. The wreath laying, held annually on the second Saturday of December, is now in its 19th year of existence with over 450,000 wreaths placed on a veteran’s grave.

For more information about Wreaths Across America, please visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.

Affordable Health Care for Millions of Drivers offered by HTAA

2010-12-07T10:10:00.001-06:00

ATLANTA, GA and PHILADELPHIA, PA –The Healthy Trucking Association of America (HTAA), the trucking industry's authority on driver health and wellness, announced plans to launch a nationwide initiative aimed at making affordable health care more accessible for our nation's professional truck drivers. Through a joint project with the Convenient Care Association (CCA), the national trade group representing the retail-based convenient care industry, retail clinics nationwide will soon be offering expanded medical treatments and services designed specifically for transportation industry employees.

The CCA is comprised of the nation's largest operators of retail health clinics, which will be performing a variety of services customized for drivers including Department of Transportation (DOT) examinations, treatment of acute illnesses, chronic disease management, smoking cessation, and weight loss management, to name a few.

"We are very pleased to be working with the CCA to bring these vital services to the professional driver community," says Brett Blowers, HTAA spokesman. "CCA clinics are located in retail locations like major pharmacies and large supermarkets, which are much more accessible and affordable for drivers than traditional doctors' offices or emergency rooms. The CCA has made a commitment to the HTAA and to our nation's drivers to help their member clinics become very 'trucker-friendly' by providing ample truck parking and a number of new services designed especially for professional drivers and their families."

The official launch of the HTAA/CCA driver medical care initiative will be announced March 1- 3, 2011 at the HTAA - Healthy Trucking Summit. This meeting will have the leading HR Managers and Safety Directors from the largest trucking fleets in the country. Health Promotion Solutions will be the organization coordinating the activities at CCA locations and the professional registry based on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) clinical guidelines.

Blowers pointed out that many CCA locations have already begun performing driver-specific services such as DOT exams and other services that appeal to drivers like flu shots, smoking cessation programs, and a number of health and wellness screenings. This initiative is undertaken as part of the HTAA's ongoing efforts to improve the health of our nation's over-the-road professionals and build a healthy trucking industry.

About the Convenient Care Association (CCA)

The Convenient Care Association is a national non-profit organization comprised of leaders of the retail-based convenient care industry. CCA members operate more than 90 percent of the convenient care clinics in the United States, which today includes more than 1,100 clinics in 35 states. For more information or to find a clinic near you, please visit www.ccaclinics.org.

About HTAA

The Healthy Trucking Association of America was established as a result of alarming statistics concerning the unhealthiness of the professional truck driver population. Current statistics show that over-the-road professionals have an average life expectancy of less than 61 years and exhibit well above average occurrences of a wide variety of ailments and conditions, including high blood pressure, sleep apnea and obesity to name a few. The HTAA offers programs to improve the health of professional drivers and has quickly evolved into the leading authority on driver health and wellness issues.

The mission of the Healthy Trucking Association of America is promoted via multiple lines of communication, including representation at all major transportation trade shows, the annual Healthy Trucking Summit, Healthy Trucking Brunches, an interactive website, a variety of digital media vehicles, a monthly newsletter, and the official monthly magazine of the HTAA, Driver HEALTH, which is the only magazine dedicated to the health and wellness of drivers. To learn how you can become involved with the Healthy Trucking Association of America please call 800-800-1198 or visit www.HealthyTruck.org .

About Health Promotion Solutions

Health Promotion Solutions provides evidenced based solutions to support chronic disease screening, health education and management to employers, insurance companies, retailers, consumer groups, government agencies and other businesses in the Health Promotion Industry. Call 215-968-7800 or visit www.healthpromosolutions.com.

Rising Country Star Will Sing "Highway Angel," A Tribute to TCA's Program

2010-12-03T08:40:00.000-06:00

Alexandria, Virginia – The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) is pleased to announce that it will sponsor a performance by country singer Lindsay Lawler at the uDrove Humanitarian Bowl’s pre-game Transportation Expo. The artist, who is known for her songs about trucking and a newly released song called “Highway Angel,” will perform December 18, 2010, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., just prior to the 3:30 p.m. MT kickoff of the game at Bronco Stadium in Boise, Idaho.

Considered by many to be a rising star in the country music world, Lawler has performed all over the country since a young age. Born in Oklahoma and raised in Texas, she began singing in church and at various country venues throughout the South. While attending the University of Oklahoma, she fronted a rock-and-roll band that recorded and toured the Southwest.

After graduation, Lawler relocated to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of being on stage. She joined and fronted a band called Ciattic and soon began playing for packed houses all along the Sunset Strip. Lawler amazed audiences with her powerful vocals and stellar stage presence at venues such as the famous Whisky-A-Go-Go, Viper Room and The Roxy. Additionally, her band recorded a full-length album and toured.

She has since relocated to Nashville and was a featured performer for more than two years at the famous Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge. She is currently touring the country in promotion of her solo record, Train Wreck, and is working closely with the trucking industry, appearing at conventions and events across the country. Her new song, “Highway Angel,” which was inspired by TCA’s Highway Angel program, is currently being promoted in the industry and to radio, and Lawler will be appearing at events over the next year to feature the song. To listen to it, visit Lawler’s Web site, www.lindsaylawler.com.

“It will be a thrill to see Ms. Lawler again after TCA made her an honorary Highway Angel at the Great American Trucking Show this past August,” said John Kaburick, TCA’s chairman and the president of Earl L. Henderson Trucking Company, Salem, Illinois. “It’s no secret that her new song ‘Highway Angel’ is a tribute to the professional truck drivers who stop to help people on the highways. So it’s fitting that she perform prior to the start of the Bowl game, where we will be honoring the 2010 Highway Angel of the Year, Shawn Hubbard, in front of thousands of fans.”

In addition to Lawler’s performance, the pre-game festivities will include autograph-signing by Lisa Kelly, who appears on The History Channel's Ice Road Truckers and IRT: Deadliest Roads television shows. The Transportation Expo will also include trucking-related exhibitors, truck driver simulator sessions and a traveling medical resource vehicle.

The uDrove Humanitarian Bowl, is a post-season, NCAA-sanctioned Division I FBS college football bowl game. The Bowl recognizes the positive impact teams, coaches and student-athletes have in their communities and their leadership roles in promoting humanitarian efforts. It also provides an opportunity to offer a special tribute to the trucking industry and highlight the positive impact that transportation plays in our everyday lives.

Commercial driver’s license holders and other members of the transportation industry may request two complimentary tickets to the game. Visit www.truckload.org and click on the uDrove Humanitarian Bowl banner to apply.e

RUSH ENTERPRISES SIGNS AGREEMENT

2010-12-03T08:39:00.001-06:00

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, — Rush Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ^®: RUSHA and RUSHB) (the “Company”), which operates the largest network of commercial vehicle dealerships in North America, announced today that its subsidiary Rush Truck Centers of Georgia, Inc. has entered into agreements to purchase certain assets of Asbury Automotive Atlanta, LLC, a subsidiary of Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. (NYSE^®: ABG), which operates commercial truck and bus dealerships representing International, Peterbilt, Isuzu, Hino, UD, IC Bus, and Workhorse in Atlanta, Doraville and Kennesaw, Georgia and a collision center in Atlanta under the “Nalley Motor Trucks” name.

The proposed acquisition would expand the Company's contiguous network of Rush Truck Centers in the southeast and would result in the Company operating 64 Rush Truck Center locations in 14 states.

The Company anticipates that the purchase price for the assets of Asbury Automotive Atlanta, LLC will be paid in cash and partially financed under the Company’s floor plan and accounts receivable financing arrangements and the incurrence of long-term debt for the real estate. The Company expects the transaction to be accretive to future earnings. The completion of the acquisition is subject to several closing conditions, including the approval of the manufacturers currently represented by Nalley Motor Trucks, and is expected to close in the first quarter of 2011.

“The proposed acquisition is a tremendous opportunity for Rush to support customers in the Atlanta market with well-respected heavy- and medium-duty truck and bus brands,” said W. M. “Rusty” Rush, President and CEO of Rush Enterprises, Inc. “We look forward to the opportunity to welcome the employees of Nalley Motor Trucks into the Rush organization.”

About Rush Enterprises, Inc.

Rush Enterprises, Inc. owns and operates the largest network of commercial vehicle dealerships in North America, representing truck and bus manufacturers including Peterbilt, International, Hino, Isuzu, Ford, Mitsubishi, UD, Blue Bird, IC Bus, and Autocar. The Company's dealerships are strategically located in high traffic areas on or near major highways in 14 states throughout the southern and western United States. These one-stop dealerships offer an integrated approach to meeting customer needs -- from sales of new and used vehicles and equipment to aftermarket parts, service and body shop operations plus a wide array of financial services, including financing, insurance, leasing and rental. For more information, please visit www.rushenterprises.com.

Old Dominion Adds New Feature to Customer Website

2010-12-02T09:19:00.001-06:00

Old Dominion Adds New Feature to Customer WebsiteTHOMASVILLE, N.C. – Users of Old Dominion Freight Line’s odfl4me.com can now customize their reports and receive them via e-mail.

Odfl4me.com is a secured website that allows customers to manage their accounts with Old Dominion and control transactions, including scheduling pickups and tracking shipments in real-time.

With the added feature, users can now create a report, selecting from a number of fields, including shipper information, bill of lading, purchase order numbers, delivery information and the delivery’s current status. Users can also receive a digital version of the report, selecting a frequency (daily, weekly, monthly or one time) and a format (spreadsheet or html) for how they want to receive the information.

The report, which will be sent to the odfl4me.com user’s e-mail address on file, will continue to be generated until the user removes it from the system.

“We are always looking to improve how we use technology so that our customers have the best experience possible,” said Wayne Capwell, Old Dominion’s director of eCommerce. “With this added feature, users of odfl4me.com can now easily build reports using information that is tailored to their specific needs.”

The secured website is available to all Old Dominion customers. Those who do not have an account can sign up for free.

In September 2010, Old Dominion was named to the 2010 InformationWeek 500 – a list of the top technology innovators in the United States. The company ranked No. 15 on the magazine’s overall list and topped the logistics and transportation category.

In an effort to better serve customers, Old Dominion overhauled its claims management process – moving to a computerized system for handling claims and away from a traditional, paper-based method of filing and tracking.

Currently, more than 99 percent of the company’s claims are either handled during the initial call from a customer or they are processed automatically from that first call. Since the claims system can be linked to the company’s SAP Business Intelligence and Data Warehouse platform, Old Dominion employees can now easily review a customer’s history and remedy any problems that might arise before they happen.

For more information about Old Dominion, visit www.odfl.com or call (800) 432-6335.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (NASDAQ: ODFL) is a national less-than-truckload motor carrier providing one-to-five day service among six regions in the United States and next-day and second-day service within these regions. Through its four product groups, OD-Domestic, OD-Expedited, OD-Global and OD-Technology, the Company offers an array of innovative products and services that provide direct service to 48 states within the Southeast, Gulf Coast, Northeast, Midwest, Central and West regions of the country. In addition to domestic less-than-truckload services, the Company offers assembly and distribution services as well as LCL and FCL delivery services to and from all of North America, Central America, South America and the Far East. The Company also offers a broad range of expedited and logistical services for both its domestic and global markets, and for more than 75 years, Old Dominion has been helping the world keep promises. More information can be found at www.odlf.com.

Schneider National Bulk Carriers Increases Owner-Operator Compensation

2010-12-02T09:13:00.001-06:00

Green Bay, Wis. – The Tanker division at Schneider National, Schneider National
Bulk Carriers, is increasing owner-operator compensation by $.05 per mile. The new rate increases owner-operator compensation to $1.05 per mile, plus fuel surcharge, for loaded and unloaded miles.

“Schneider National Bulk Carriers’ increase of $.05 per mile for tanker owner-operators is a very aggressive move and is one of few that we’re aware of in the industry for owner-operators,” said Gordon Klemp, president of the National Transportation Institute. “The new rate, strong because it’s on loaded and unloaded miles, reconfirms our judgment that Schneider is a top-paying carrier.”

Schneider’s Tanker owner-operators average 125,000 miles a year and, with the largest increase in company history for this group taking effect on Dec. 5, 2010, could see an extra $6,250 per year in revenue with the new mileage rate.

“We have had double-digit growth in 2010 and are expecting the same in 2011,” said George Grossardt, vice president and general manager for Schneider National Bulk Carriers. “Our customers need long-haul chemical carriers who are committed to this market and drivers who have a strong regard for operating safely and with the highest levels of service. Owner-operators are savvy businesspeople and know that aligning with the right carrier is crucial for success. Schneider’s Tanker Division offers owner-operators a business relationship with a financially stable company that has a 75-year track record of providing good opportunities for drivers.”

Schneider National Bulk Carriers will be adding experienced tanker owner-operators and will also provide training to assist owner-operators considering a transition into the chemical-hauling industry.

Schneider is in full compliance with the new safety standards after the first CSA BASICs (Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories) review, making the carrier a smart choice for owner-operators looking to do business with an organization as committed to safety as they are. Owner-operators are also able to turn to Schneider for support as the new CSA rules are implemented industry-wide. The company provides drivers with their individual performance data and works with the FMCSA if the data are incorrect.

In addition Schneider Finance features truck-leasing/purchasing options for drivers looking to start their own business as an owner-operator. To learn more about leasing opportunities with Schneider National Bulk Carriers, please visit www.schneiderjobs.com or call 1-800-28-LEASE (1-800-285-3273).

About Schneider National, Inc.
Schneider National has exceptional career paths for professional drivers and truck school graduates. Solo and team opportunities exist for company drivers and owner-operators in Schneider’s Regional, Over the Road, Dedicated, Tanker and Expedited lines of business. Local and regional solo opportunities also exist for company drivers in Schneider’s Intermodal division.

A $2.9 billion company and one of the largest truckload carriers in North America, Schneider has been a top choice for drivers for 75 years. Schneider provides drivers great weekly miles, steady freight and the comfort of knowing that “safety first and always” is the cornerstone of the company’s philosophy. Schneider is ranked a top-paying carrier by the National Transportation Institute and has been nationally recognized for its support of veterans, Reservists and National Guard members. For more information about Schneider National career opportunities, visit www.schneiderjobs.com. You can also connect with Schneider on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jobsatschneider and Twitter at www.twitter.com/schneiderjobs.

FirstFleet’s Bill Whitehead is TCA’s latest Highway Angel

2010-11-19T11:30:00.001-06:00

Professional Truck Driver Helps Motorists Hit By A Deer

FirstFleet's Bill Whitehead is TCA's latest Highway Angel

Alexandria, Virginia – The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) has named Bill Whitehead, a professional truck driver with FirstFleet, Inc., of Murfreesboro, Tenn., as a Highway Angel for helping motorists whose car had been struck by a deer.

At approx. 5:30 p.m. on October 7, 2010, Whitehead was about to make a delivery and was driving east on Highway 402 in Georgia when he saw a car collide with a deer. The car, which had been in the right lane, suddenly swerved to the left and came to a stop in the median. Two women and two girls were inside.

Seeing flames underneath the vehicle, Whitehead made sure the stunned women got out of their car. He then obtained an extinguisher from his truck and began working on the flames. When some other motorists stopped to help, he returned to the truck to retrieve a second, larger fire extinguisher. With the help of the other motorists, by the time the police arrived, he had mostly extinguished the flames and pushed the car back over to the right shoulder of the road.

"I have a daughter who is a single mother, and I hope someone would help her out if she ever needed it," said Whitehead, who has been driving for nearly 30 years.

For the kindness shown to the women that day, Whitehead has received a Highway Angel lapel pin, certificate, and patch. FirstFleet, Inc., also received a certificate acknowledging that one of its drivers is a Highway Angel.

Since its inception in August 1997, the Highway Angels program has recognized hundreds of drivers for the unusual kindness, courtesy, and courage they have shown others while on the job. TCA has received letters and e-mails from people across North America nominating truck drivers for the program.

To view archival copies of past Highway Angel press releases, visit www.truckload.org/pressroom. To learn more about the program or to nominate a driver, go to www.truckload.org/highwayangels. For additional information, contact TCA at (703) 838-1950 or angel@truckload.org.

Boyd Bros. provides Howard with comfortable lifestyle

2010-11-19T11:04:00.001-06:00

Clayton, Alabama --When Dennis Howard first signed on to drive for Boyd Bros. Transportation, he knew he’d found exactly what he was looking for.

“Boyd has provided the life that I’ve always wanted,” says Howard. “I have enough money to take care of my family and do other things on top of it. I always get time off to go home when I request it. Boyd is a very family-oriented company.”

Howard recently reached two million safe miles during his 22-year career driving for Boyd Bros. Although the company recognizes drivers who reach this milestone a number of different ways, for Howard, the recognition means more than any other reward ever could.

“Every time I stop, there are guys who see the decal that Boyd put on my truck that tells everyone I’ve driven this many miles safely,” says Howard. “They congratulate me and ask what they need to do to accomplish this too. This has been an incredible goal for me to work towards. I feel very blessed.”

Boyd Bros. was recently selected as Best Fleet for Company Drivers by the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) and CarriersEdge. Howard has been telling other drivers that Boyd is the best company to work at for years.

“I always tell them that they should come to Boyd because I work here,” jokes Howard. “In all seriousness, I tell them that they can look around, but they’ll find that Boyd has the best of everything – the best equipment, the best retirement, the best insurance – and the pay is always right.”

Boyd Bros. driver benefits include medical and life insurance plans, a referral bonus program, $1,000 sign-on bonus and the company just implemented a $0.01 pay increase for company drivers, marking the fourth raise this year.

“I love to fish, but I usually spend most of my time at home playing with my two grand-daughters,” says Howard. He and his wife of 23 years, who live in Goodwater, Ala., are very thankful for the life Boyd Bros. has helped them provide for their family.

###

About Boyd Bros.

In business since 1956, Boyd Bros. Transportation knows what it takes to do business right. From their headquarters in Clayton, Ala., to their terminals in Birmingham, Ala., and Cincinnati, Ohio, the employment picture at Boyd Bros. is vibrant and full of opportunity. Join the team and discover how it feels to work for a stable company that values who you are and offers the support you need to succeed.

For more information, contact Boyd Bros. at 800-543-8923 or visit www.driveforboyd.com

Landes Trucking Presents First Employee CARE Award

2010-11-19T10:06:00.001-06:00

(Jacksonville, IL) - Landes Trucking, Inc. has selected Bob Oitker as the recipient of its first employee CARE Award, given in recognition of outstanding customer service.

"This award, named CARE for Customer Appreciation Recognition for Employees, was established in 2010 to honor any Landes employee who receives significant and unsolicited recognition from a customer for doing an outstanding job in support of the customer's business," said Landes CEO Jim House.

Oitker was recommended for this award after he caught a shipper loading error in two trailers. "Mr. Oitker's professionalism and thoroughness kept us from having big issues with two major customers," said the shipper's plant manager. "He does a great job for our customers and Landes Trucking."

Oitker received a $50 cash award and his name was inscribed on the CARE plaque displayed in the lobby of Landes Trucking.

Landes Trucking, founded in 1977, employs more than 100 people with a fleet of 80 trucks and 150 tanker trailers. The company's 16,000-square-foot state-of-the-art headquarters is located in the Jacksonville, Illinois Eastgate Industrial Park and includes a motor freight terminal with a certified kosher tank wash, maintenance shop, and administrative offices.

Landes Trucking is a proud member of Mid-West Truckers Association, Jacksonville Area Chamber of Commerce, NASTC, NTTC.

For more information, call Landes Trucking at 1-800-747-0004 or visit our website at www.landestruckinginc.com.

Con-way Multimodal Opens New Office in Greater Chicago

2010-11-19T10:05:00.001-06:00

AURORA, Ill. — Con-way Multimodal, a division of Con-way Inc.’s (NYSE: CNW) operating unit Menlo Worldwide Logistics, today announced it has opened a new office in Aurora, Ill., at 2759 North Eola Road. Located within Menlo’s existing facility, the new branch office complements the company’s operations in Ann Arbor, Mich., and Portland, Ore. Con-way Multimodal arranges third-party carrier services for over-the-road, intermodal, flatbed, heavy haul and specialized transportation for freight shipments.

Currently, Con-way Multimodal’s president and vice president, as well as five brokers, work out of the space, which has the flexibility for expansion. The company plans to hire additional brokers by year’s end.

“Our new location in Aurora brings us closer to our customer base in the central U.S., and positions our business within one of the nation’s largest and most active transportation hubs,” said Tommy Barnes, president, Con-way Multimodal. “Chicago is a location we can leverage from both a talent and brokerage industry perspective. We look forward to bringing our customers the latest industry tools and technology to meet their needs, while taking advantage of synergies with Menlo Worldwide Logistics and its sister companies.”

Follow the Con-way companies on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Con_way_.

Menlo Worldwide Logistics images are available at www.con-way.com/en/about_con_way/newsroom.

About Con-way Multimodal
Con-way Multimodal, a division of Menlo Worldwide Logistics, provides expanded freight brokerage capabilities and services in the third-party logistics and multimodal freight transportation business, focusing on flexible, efficient capacity solutions for the marketplace. Con-way Multimodal complements Menlo’s best in class 3PL and 4PL services for large customers by offering leverage and personal attention to small- and medium-sized buyers of logistics. Through its network of more than 15,000 carriers, Con-way Multimodal arranges resources to meet the capacity needs of its shippers using over-the-road, intermodal, dry van, flatbed, heavy haul and specialized transportation solutions. The Portland, Ore.-based company is an operating unit of Menlo Worldwide Logistics, LLC, a subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), a $4.3 billion freight transportation and logistics company. For more information, please visit us on the Web at www.con-way.com.

Barr-Nunn Transportation to Open New Driver Terminal

2010-11-19T10:04:00.001-06:00

Barr-Nunn Transportation has announced the upcoming opening of their newest driver terminal, located in Columbus, Ohio. The terminal, which is the company’s fourth, is meant to provide Barr-Nunn with a physical presence in the Midwest, giving them a base of operations for recruiting and training new employees and contractors as well as for making old ones feel at ease. The terminal, which will open later this month, will serve mainly as an orientation facility with an additional lounge area scheduled to open in 2011. Barr-Nunn’s other terminals are located in Iowa, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

Asked what they attribute their expansion and success to, Barr-Nunn is quick to praise their employees and contractors. Now in their 28th year of service, they are more insistent than ever that a trucking company is only as good as their treatment of their drivers. Because of this belief, Barr-Nunn has made a name for itself as one of the best-managed truckload carriers in the country, offering their staff innovative pay and benefits packages and thus guaranteeing their customers timely and conscientious shipping services. For more information about Barr-Nunn Transportation visit them on line at www.barr-nunn.com.

Knight’s New Seattle Service Center

2010-11-18T11:10:00.001-06:00

Alissa Cumpston, Division Manager for Knight's Seattle Service Center is excited to bring the comforts of home to her Seattle based drivers. With an extended parking lot, snack machines, and laundry services available she expects that all of the drivers in the area will be that much more pleased with the company that prides itself on being 'Your Hometown National Carrier'. "It's really good for the employees and the company," she explains. "Good for them because they have a place to feel safe and relax a bit if they need to, and good for the company because it helps with getting in and out of ports."

These service centers are set up to cater to driver satisfaction, and the employees are certainly feeling the love. As one of the only debt-free trucking companies around, Knight visibly extends their earnings to the people who make it all possible. Driver happiness is paramount to Knight Transportation and that shows throughout the ranks. "In this business you work with a lot of different people and you really get to know them and want to help them succeed. Helping them succeed helps the company succeed," Alissa expresses. Now the Seattle drivers have one more reason to push the boundaries of their symbiotic success with Knight Transportation.

Experience the Knight difference by contacting a recruiter at 800-832-8356 about van and refrigerated opportunities.

Landes Trucking Presents,First Employee CARE Award

2010-11-17T09:16:00.001-06:00

TCA’s Highway Angel of the Year to Share,Moment In Spotlight with Motorist He Saved

2010-11-16T15:18:00.000-06:00

Armando Duenas owes his life to professional truck driver Shawn Hubbard and will be part of public recognition ceremony to take place at uDrove® Humanitarian Bowl

Alexandria, Virginia – On November 13, 2009, Shawn Hubbard, a professional truck driver with Ruan Transport Corporation, pulled Armando Duenas from almost certain death just seconds before the car he had been traveling in burst into flames. A year later, Duenas has made a full recovery and will be on hand to personally thank this courageous driver as Hubbard is named the Truckload Carriers Association's (TCA) 2010 Highway Angel of the Year during a special ceremony at the uDrove® Humanitarian Bowl.

On the morning of the accident, Duenas, now 24, and his friend Zach Headden had been playing in a band in San Diego, Calif., until 2 a.m. As they headed back to the L.A. area with Headdon in the driver's seat, Duenas remembers trying to stay awake to help his friend stay alert. Somewhere around 3:30 a.m., however, it appears that Headden fell asleep at the wheel. The car struck multiple light poles and a highway sign, then got tangled in nearly 100 yards of chain link fence. Catching on fire, it finally came to rest in a ditch against a 40-foot high embankment.

Hubbard had just made a delivery when he saw the flames from the car light up the early morning darkness. Thinking it was a simple car fire, he was surprised to find two people inside: Headden, who was dead, and Duenas, who was alive, but pinned on all sides by the crushed car. Using his own fire extinguisher and one that was thrown down to him from someone high up on the embankment, Hubbard was able to slow the flames down for a short time, but could not fully extinguish them. Then the flames intensified.

With adrenaline providing an extra boost of energy, Hubbard was able to pull the debris and collapsed roof off the car so that Duenas could escape. Screaming at him to move quickly regardless of the pain, Hubbard got the heavy-set man out and pushed him up the hill to safety, seconds before flames fully engulfed the car. Throughout the entire event, hundreds of cars passed by on the busy seven-lane highway, but – other than the truck driver who originally called 911 and the person who tossed the second fire extinguisher down the embankment to Hubbard – not a single person stopped to help.

After the accident, Duenas spent five days in the hospital with broken cheekbones, several missing teeth and deep cuts around his knee. Hubbard visited Duenas there, and Duenas tearfully told him, "I owe my life to you." The two men will be forever linked by the life-altering events of that day, and they have remained in touch.

"It will be a proud moment for the trucking industry when Hubbard's act of heroism is told to millions of viewers — both live and on TV — during the uDrove® Humanitarian Bowl," said Ralph Arthur, President Dedicated Contract Carriage, for Ruan Transport Corporation. "We think it is only fitting that Armando Duenas should be present to reunite with Hubbard for this very special occasion."

Hubbard will be the third Angel of the Year to be recognized at the uDrove® Humanitarian Bowl (formerly known as Roady's Humanitarian Bowl), a post-season, NCAA-sanctioned Division I FBS college football bowl game scheduled for December 18, 2010, at Boise State University's Bronco Stadium in Boise, Idaho.

Diesel Prices Up Third Week in Row Reaching a Two Year High

2010-11-16T14:48:00.001-06:00

The DOE's Energy Information Administration reports the average retail
price of on-highway diesel at $3.184 Monday. The highest prices were
reported on the West Coast at $3.329, the lowest in the Gulf Coast
region at $3.10. This week's per-gallon cost is the highest since it
averaged $3.288 on Oct. 27, 2008, when fuel prices were coming off of
historic highs.

The American Trucking Associations noted in its weekly Fuel Line
newsletter that a run-up in the
price of oil helped push diesel prices up. Early last week, the price of
West Texas Intermediate crude oil increased to $87.81 per barrel, which
was the highest level since the fall 2008.

On the up side to this oil hike, crude prices fell Friday and again
Monday, when they dropped below $85 per barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange.

Driver finds pride and stability with Boyd Bros. family

2010-11-16T10:18:00.001-06:00

Boyd Bros. Transportation company driver Virgil Shell has never considered working for anyone else. In his 16-year driving career, Shell knows that he is part of a trucking family that truly cares.

“I don’t know of another company that’s as family-oriented as Boyd,” says Shell. “The company makes me feel like a part of the family. They know all their drivers on a first-name basis and it makes you feel good because you know you're important.”

Shell just drove his two millionth mile with Boyd Bros. on a recent run from Connecticut to Pennsylvania.

“It hasn’t really sunk in yet. This is such a big achievement and it’s a great feeling, but it still seems surreal.” Boyd Bros., says Shell, threw a large celebration for his accomplishment where he was presented with a bonus check and trophy, as well as additional prizes from participating vendors.

Boyd Bros. was recently selected as Best Fleet for Company Drivers by the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) and CarriersEdge.

In addition to awards for drivers who provide a consistently high level of service, Boyd Bros. driver benefits include medical and life insurance plans, a referral bonus program and regular home time. The company implemented a series of pay raises throughout the year with the most recent being implemented in November and also offers a $1,000 sign-on bonus.

“During the time I’ve been able to spend at home, my wife and I have built up a strong support system with our church family,” says Shell, whose home is in Columbia, S.C. “They know every time I’m on the road and it means a lot that they’re praying for my safety.”

Shell is looking forward to completing another million miles with Boyd Bros. “I enjoy what I do and I really like working for this company. I’m planning on driving for Boyd until I can’t drive anymore.”

About Boyd Bros.

For more information, contact Boyd Bros. at 800-543-8923 or visit www.driveforboyd.com

Weather Hot Line Phone Numbers By State

2010-11-15T15:50:00.001-06:00

ALABAMA	Birmingham 205-664-3010 Huntsville 256-890-8503	Mobile 251-633-6443
ARIZONA	Flagstaff 928-774-3301 Phoenix 602-275-0073(#4)	Tucson 520-881-3333
ARKANSAS	Little Rock 501-834-0308
CALIFORNIA	Eureka 707-443-7062 Hanford 559-584-8047 Los Angeles 805-988-6610(#1)	Sacramento 916-979-3051 San Diego 858-297-2107(#1) San Francisco 831-656-1725(#1)
COLORADO	Alamosa 719-589-3232 Boulder/Denver 303-494-4221 Colorado Springs 719-573-6846	Grand Junction 970-243-0914 Pueblo 719-948-3371
CONNECTICUT	Bridgeport, New Haven, Middletown, New London 631 924-0517
DELAWARE	Wilmington/Dover/Georgetown 609-261-6600
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA	Washington Metro 703-996-2200, ext.1
FLORIDA	Jacksonville 904-741-4370 Key West 305-295-1316 Melbourne 321-255-2900	Miami 305-229-4550 (English & Spanish) Tallahassee 850-422-1212 Tampa Bay 813-645-2506
GEORGIA	Atlanta 770-632-1837	Savannah 843-744-3207
IDAHO	Boise 208-342-6569	Pocatello 208-233-0137
ILLINOIS	Chicago 815-834-0675 Peoria 309-697-8620	Rockford 815-963-8518 Springfield 217-522-0642
INDIANA	Evansville 812-425-5549 Fort Wayne 260-436-3589	Indianapolis 317-856-0664
IOWA	Des Moines 515-270-2614 Quad Cities 563-386-3976	Sioux City 712-276-3248 Waterloo 319-234-6600
KANSAS	Dodge City 620-227-3311 Goodland 785-899-7119	Topeka 785-234-2592 Wichita 316-942-3102
KENTUCKY	Jackson 606-666-8000 Lexington 859-281-8131	Louisville 502-968-6025 Paducah 270-744-6331
LOUISIANA	Lake Charles 337-439-0000 New Orleans 504-828-4000	Shreveport 318-635-7575
MAINE	Portland 207-688-3210	Northern Aroostook County, Caribou, Presque Isle, Bangor, Southern Penobscot County 207-492-0170
MARYLAND	Baltimore 703-996-2200, ext.1	Easton, Elkton 609-261-6600
MASSACHUSETTS	Boston, Ma./Providence,Rl./Hartford,Ct. 508-822-0634
MICHIGAN	Alpena 989-356-0942 Detroit 248-620-2355 Grand Rapids 616-949-4253 Houghton Lake 989-366-5392 Lansing 517-321-7576	Marquette 906-475-5212 Muskegon 231-773-5050 North Central Lower Michigan (Gaylord) 989-732-6242 Sault Ste. Marie 906-632-7751
MINNESOTA	Duluth 218-729-6697 International Falls 218-283-4615	Minneapolis 952-361-6680 Rochester 507-288-9169
MISSISSIPPI	Jackson 601-936-2189 (*after hours)
MISSOURI	Kansas City 816-540-6021 Springfield 417-863-4491	St. Louis 636-441-8467
MONTANA	Billings 406-652-1916 Glasgow 406-228-9625	Great Falls 406-453-5469 Missoula 406-721-3939
NEBRASKA	Hastings 402-462-4287 North Platte 308-532-5592	Omaha 402 359-5166
NEVADA	Elko 775-738-3018 Las Vegas 702-263-9744(#1)	Reno 775-673-8130
NEW HAMPSHIRE	Concord 603-225-5191
NEW JERSEY	Trenton/Atlantic City/Morristown 609-261-6600	Newark 631-924-0517
NEW YORK	Binghamton/Syracuse/Scranton Pa. 607-729-1597 Buffalo, Rochester, Lake Erie Marine Forecast, Lake Ontario Marine Forecast 716-565-0802	New York City/Long Island 631-924-0517
NORTH CAROLINA	Asheville, Charlotte 864-848-3859 Greensboro, Winston, Salem, High Port 919-515-8209 Morehead City 252-223-5737	Raleigh,Durham, Chapel Hill 919-515-8209 Wilmington 910-762-4289
NORTH DAKOTA	Bismarck 701-223-3700 E. North Dakota (Grand Forks) 701-795-0224	Williston 701-572-2351
OHIO	Cincinnati/Wilmington 513-241-1010 Cleveland 216-265-2370	Dayton 937-258-0777, ext. 2355
OKLAHOMA	Ft. Smith 479-785-9000 Oklahoma City/Norman 405-360-5928	Tulsa 918-743-3311
OREGON	Medford 541-779-5990 Pendleton 541-276-0103	Portland 503-261-9246
PENNSYLVANIA	Central Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, State College, Williamsport 814 231-2408 Eastern Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Allentown, Reading 609-261-6600	Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh 412-262-2170
PUERTO RICO	San Juan 787-253-0855
SOUTH CAROLINA	Charleston 843-744-3207 Columbia 803-822-8135	Greenville-Spartanburg 864-848-3859
SOUTH DAKOTA	Aberdeen 605-225-6173 Huron 605-352-2495	Rapid City 605-341-7531 Sioux Falls 605-330-4444
TENNESSEE	Knoxville/Chattanooga/Smokey Mountain/Tri-Cities/Cumberland Plateau 423-586-3771	Memphis 901-544-0399 Nashville 615-754-4633
TEXAS	Amarillo 806-354-2278 Austin/San Antonio 830-609-2029 Brownsville 956-504-1432 Corpus Christi 361-289-0753 Dallas-Ft. Worth 817-429-2631	El Paso 505-589-4088 Houston 281-337-5074/7895 Lubbock 806-748-1071 Midland/Odessa 432-563-9292 San Angelo 325-949-8586
UTAH	Salt Lake City 801-524-5133(#1)
VERMONT	Champlain Valley Region, Burlington 802-862-2475
VIRGINIA	New River Valley, Roanoke, Lynchburg 540-552-0497 Norfolk, Richmond 757-899-4200	Washington Metro 703-996-2200, ext.1
WASHINGTON	Spokane 509-244-5992
WEST VIRGINIA	Charleston 304-746-0180	Eastern Panhandle 703-260-0107
WISCONSIN	Green Bay 920-494-2363 La Crosse 608-784-7294	Madison 608-249-6645 Milwaukee 414-744-8000
WYOMING	Cheyenne 307-635-9901 Riverton 307-857-3898

Top Ten reasons to Drive Team.

2010-11-15T15:48:00.001-06:00

1. A driver will get more miles.
2. More money.
3. It's the first choice of hire for most companies. Because...
a. It maximizes the use of the truck.
b. Teams can make company more money than a solo driver.
c. Teams move freight faster.
4. Most companies will allow a driver to run team with a driver of their
choice.
5. Driver/Co-Driver always have help when they need it.
6. Your never alone.
7. If a driver gets sick their is someone to help.
8. More accurate sleep schedule.
9. Newbees can gain quality experience.
10. Truck driving is one of the only professions that will allow a
Husband and Wife work together as a team.

Arrow Trucking driver’s bad-check charges against CEO bring results

2010-11-15T11:37:00.001-06:00

Compliments of www.LandLineMag.com

"Disbelief" was the word Denny Carter used to describe his feelings when he heard the news that former Arrow Trucking CEO Doug Pielsticker had been arrested recently on a bad-check charge he had filed against his former boss.

It took a traffic stop for speeding to get Pielsticker to finally make good on Carter's bounced paycheck of $1,015.73, issued just prior to the 61-year Tulsa-based flatbed carrier's collapse.

"I am tickled to death to get this back," Carter told Land Line on Friday, Nov. 12. "It's not all that I am owed, but it's a start."

Carter credits his wife, Cindy, and his mother-in-law, Linda, for their tenacity to see this through.

He said his wife called him after she received the money order, not a personal check, from Pielsticker for just over $1,200 in the mail. Carter said Pielsticker's attorney worked out the deal through the district attorney's office in Carter's home county of Suwannee County, FL.

Trudy Meeks, felony deputy clerk for the Suwannee County Clerk of Circuit Court Barry Baker, said all charges against Pielsticker had been dismissed because he had made good on the worthless check charge.

"I am showing this is the only case he had here in this state," Meeks told Land Line on Friday.

Pielsticker spent 31 hours in a Bryan County, OK, jail before posting a $2,500 bond. Carter said he was told the officer that stopped him for speeding ran Pielsticker's information through a database and found his warrants out of Florida.

"I would have loved to be a fly on the wall to have seen him in there," he said. "It seemed like they (Pielstickers) had such a powerbase in Oklahoma for so long that you was wondering if anything would ever be done," he said.

On Dec. 22, 2009, Carter was among hundreds of drivers that were stranded in all parts of the country when Arrow Trucking collapsed. He was thousands of miles from home, in Cheyenne, WY, when he realized "it was all over."

A month later, he found a job with another flatbed carrier and has been back trucking ever since.

However, it was his prior experience as a police officer in Tennessee that convinced Carter to pursue criminal charges against Pielsticker in his new home state of Florida.

He is encouraging other former Arrow Trucking drivers who received bad paper checks and who have copies of them to check the statute of limitations in their home states and forward them to their local district attorney's offices.

"A lot of the credit goes to my wife and mother-in-law for following through on this while I was out on the road, but I hope other drivers check on this and have good luck, too," Carter said.

– By Clarissa Kell-Holland, staff writer
clarissa_kell-holland@landlinemag.com

Schneider National Makes G.I. Jobs Top 100 Military Friendly Employers List

2010-11-12T16:49:00.002-06:00

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Schneider National, Inc., a premier provider of transportation, logistics and intermodal services, announced today it has made the G.I. Jobs Top 100 Military Friendly Employers® list for the fifth consecutive year. Schneider ranked 23rd on the list (the highest of any truckload carrier), earning recognition for the programs and benefits it offers to our nation’s Reservists, National Guard members and veterans.

“Just like the military and its service members, Schneider operates according to our closely held principles and values,” said Mike Hinz, vice president of Driver Recruitment and LTC, retired, U.S. Army Reserve. “At Schneider our core principles are safety, integrity, excellence and respect. It’s no surprise that military personnel thrive here at Schneider. The significant and diverse experiences these folks have had in the military help guide them in their careers at Schneider National and help them excel during our training and quickly adjust to a new work environment.”

In addition to its employment efforts, Schneider works with the Employer Partnership Office of the Armed Forces and the Department of Labor to provide veterans, Reservists and National Guard soldiers with a continuum of careers as they leave their military roles. The company also offers specific programs to help members of the military obtain employment:

• ROTC Pays Program: Schneider has joined efforts with the Army training command, which allows college students to select an employer of their choice prior to graduation. Students who choose Schneider know that the company will grant them an interview and hire them if an open position meets their skill sets.
• The Schneider National Military Owner-Operator Program: Provides military personnel with the tools, the training and the support they need to become a successful owner-operator. One of the biggest benefits of this program is that it helps new owner-operators obtain a gently used truck through a special no-money-down, no-credit-check lease.
• Army Reserve Employer Partnership: Schneider National and the Army Reserve work together to recruit, train and employ individuals interested in both serving the nation and pursuing a career in the transportation and logistics industry.

In addition to the comprehensive benefits package Schneider extends to all associates, military personnel can expect:
• Extended benefits and differential pay for soldiers deployed 18 months
• Excused time off for weekend drill and annual training (no vacation time required)
• Quick-hire process, allowing active military to apply, interview and be accepted two months prior to separation
• Nationwide opportunities throughout Schneider’s network of offices, maintenance facilities and operating centers

“We’re pleased to honor Schneider National as a Military-Friendly Employer,” said G.I. Jobs Publisher Rich McCormack. “Schneider has been a perennial champion for veterans employment and its successful efforts are reflected in its recognition on the list of Military Friendly Employers on five separate occasions – always ranking in the top 25.”

Over the last eight years, the G.I. Jobs’ list has grown from the Top 25 to the Top 100 Military-Friendly Employers. Companies with annual revenue of at least $500 million are qualified. Of the 5,000 eligible companies, only 2 percent made this year’s list. Rankings are based on results of a survey that assesses a company’s long-term commitment to hiring former military, recruiting and hiring efforts and results, the presence of special military recruitment programs, and policies for Reserve and Guard members called to active duty.

Old Dominion Driver Named as Finalist to Serve as America's Road Team Captain

2010-11-12T16:47:00.002-06:00

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Samuel Douglas Lee, a driver for Old Dominion Freight Line Inc., has been named a finalist to become a captain on the 2011-2012 America’s Road Team.
Lee, based in Greensboro, N.C., was one of 34 professional truck drivers the American Trucking Associations (ATA) named as finalists. America’s Road Team consists of drivers with superior safety records and was created in 1986 to represent the trucking industry.

The final round of the selection process will be held Jan. 9-11, 2011, in Arlington, Va. As part of the process, a panel – comprised of trucking industry officials and trucking news media – will judge finalists on a number of criteria, including their knowledge of the trucking industry, dedication to safety, ability to communicate positive messages about trucking and overall safe driving record.

“I am humbled and honored to be named as a finalist for this year’s America’s Road Team,” Lee said. “I am looking forward to sharing my perspective of the benefits of trucking and talking about how we can continue to improve safety.”

The three-day competition culminates when the new team captains receive the signature navy blue Road Team blazer. The captains then begin a two-year term working to share the industry’s message of safety, essentiality and sustainability with the public, news media, business and community leaders, public officials and their fellow drivers nationwide.

“As a company, we are only as good as our people who help us deliver on the promises we make every day,” said Brian Stoddard, vice president of safety and personnel for Old Dominion. “We are excited that Samuel has been selected as a finalist, and we know that he will continue to represent Old Dominion and the entire trucking industry well.”

To be nominated to serve as a captain with America’s Road Team, a professional truck driver must be employed by or leased to a member of the ATA. Nominees also must have an excellent safety record and should demonstrate an ability to communicate his or her commitment to safety and passion for the industry.

America’s Road Team is sponsored by Volvo Trucks North America.

Decker Truck Line Names,October 2010 Drivers of the Month

2010-11-12T08:33:00.002-06:00

(Fort Dodge, Iowa) - Decker Truck Line, Inc. is pleased to announce that Dale Leman and Mark Jones have been chosen as the company's October 2010 Drivers of the Month.

Dale Leman was selected as Driver of the Month in the Flatbed Division. Dispatcher Sue Anderson nominated Leman, saying, "Dale returned to flatbed from reefer this year. He is, of course, a very good driver and easy to get along with. He doesn't mind getting in later on Friday or Saturday. I know he would work the weekend if necessary." Dale and his wife Lezlee have 5 children and 11 grandchildren. A 10-year Decker veteran, his hobbies include camping and working on his house.

Mark Jones was chosen as the Reefer-Van Division Driver of the Month for October. Jones works out of the Fort Dodge Terminal. His dispatcher is Michael Kehoe, who says of Jones, "Mark is a very hard worker. He understands his hours of service and pushes me to help keep him moving."

In addition to winning a Decker gift certificate, both of these drivers will now be eligible to compete for Driver/Owner-Operator of the Year. This year-end recognition of one driver from each division brings a 1-cent-per-mile pay increase for twelve months.

Decker's Drivers of the Month are selected by their dispatchers based on overall performance within all areas of the company, including operational productivity, safety record, maintenance/care of equipment, payroll, billing and customer service.

Decker Truck Line Names,October 2010 Drivers of the Month

2010-11-11T12:26:00.001-06:00

(Fort Dodge, Iowa) - Decker Truck Line, Inc. is pleased to announce that Dale Leman and Mark Jones have been chosen as the company's October 2010 Drivers of the Month.

Dale Leman was selected as Truck Driver of the Month in the Flatbed Division. Dispatcher Sue Anderson nominated Leman, saying, "Dale returned to flatbed from reefer this year. He is, of course, a very good driver and easy to get along with. He doesn't mind getting in later on Friday or Saturday. I know he would work the weekend if necessary." Dale and his wife Lezlee have 5 children and 11 grandchildren. A 10-year Decker veteran, his hobbies include camping and working on his house.

Mark Jones was chosen as the Reefer-Van Division Driver of the Month for October. Jones works out of the Fort Dodge Terminal. His dispatcher is Michael Kehoe, who says of Jones, "Mark is a very hard worker. He understands his hours of service and pushes me to help keep him moving."

In addition to winning a Decker gift certificate, both of these drivers will now be eligible to compete for Driver/Owner-Operator of the Year. This year-end recognition of one driver from each division brings a 1-cent-per-mile pay increase for twelve months.

Decker's Drivers of the Month are selected by their dispatchers based on overall performance within all areas of the company, including operational productivity, safety record, maintenance/care of equipment, payroll, billing and customer service.

Navistar Announces 17,000 trucks shipped: Offers emissions update

2010-11-10T11:42:00.001-06:00

By Jack Roberts

Published November, 04 2010

At a facility tour for media at the company’s Huntsville Engine Plant in Huntsville, AL, Navistar International Corporation announced that it has delivered approximately 17,000 vehicles to U.S. and Canadian customers in the past quarter.

During a tour of the Huntsville facility, which is the sole Navistar engine plant in North America, supplying products to seven Navistar truck plants in the U.S. and Canada, editors saw production engines being built, as well as pre-production MaxxForce 15 liter engines being assembled. The MaxxForce 15 is slated to enter full production sometime next year.

“Like our other manufacturing facilities, our Huntsville engine plant is operating in full production mode and shipping several hundred engines each week to our truck and bus assembly locations,” says Daniel Ustian, chairman, president and chief executive officer at Navistar. “To date, we have built and shipped more than 15,000 EPA-compliant 2010 vehicles and we continue to build more than 100 EPA2010 MaxxForce 13 engines every day.”

For us, this is about differentiation and leadership,” adds said Michael Cerilli, vice president, North American Truck Marketing, Navistar. “Clearly Navistar’s emissions path is different. But we’re leading this industry in a number of ways beyond simple product categories. And we see that quantified in the 28,000 EPA 2010 orders we have received, the 17,000 trucks shipped through the fourth quarter, over 10,000 orders for ProStar trucks integrated with our MaxxForce 13 engine and more than 1,000 orders for our new medium-duty TerraStar model which will begin shipping to dealers and customers this month.”

Ustian adds that despite the bickering with competitors over SCR and EGR technologies to meet EPA 2010 emissions regulations, he is pleased with how well Navistar’s EGR-only solution has been received in the marketplace. “The response has been about what we expected,” he says. “We don’t see our SCR competitors going at each other. They’re all coming after us. Because they’re worried. We have something they can’t have – not something they don’t have: Something they can’t have for a long time. So we take all of this as a compliment.”

Expanding on that theme, Ramin Younessi, Navistar group vice president, product development and strategy, noted that Navistar will soon submit technical data for the company’s next generation of low-emissions diesel engines to the EPA for certification. “We’ll be able to show better fuel economy with this technology at .02 grams of NOx,” he notes. “Naturally, we won’t put that engine into production until we have to. That will be as far out as we can make it: We don’t want to make changes until we have to. So we will wait until our credits expire: and we’ve got at least a couple of years left there. But we’re going to get everything certified soon so that everyone understands we have a solution that works and will be available when the time comes.”

“We take heat for using credits,” Ustian adds. “But the rest of the story – that gets overlooked – is that Navistar has been beating EPA standards for years. We earned those credits. And, of course, everyone is using credits. But our competitors use them to try and convince people we’re not kosher now. That’s why we sued EPA and CARB: because credits are being used as a marketing tool. And we’ve shown that you can by-pass SCR technology either by ignoring the DEF light on the dash, or get rid of it by pouring water in DEF tank – with no degradation of performance. And our position is very simple: When SCR truck is not in compliance with emissions regulations, something should happen as a result.”

Trucker Buddy Announces Qualcomm as its Newest Sponsor

2010-11-10T11:33:00.001-06:00

Trucker Buddy International is pleased to announce that Qualcomm
Incorporated has decided to support Trucker Buddy for 2010 through
financial donations and technology programs. Qualcomm's support of
Trucker Buddy will help fulfill the mission of introducing young
students to the trucking industry while providing an opportunity for
drivers to help them excel in the classroom as well as in life.

"I'm very excited about Qualcomm deciding to once again support us.
Their generous donation shows how much they care for the trucking
industry and young students alike. Leveraging Qualcomm's industry-
leading wireless technology to support Trucker Buddy makes this
partnership even more exciting. Thanks again to all the great people at
Qualcomm for helping us make Trucker Buddy even better," says Randy
Schwartzenburg, Trucker Buddy International executive director.

"It is our pleasure to support a program as worthwhile as Trucker
Buddy," noted Norm Ellis, vice president of sales, services and
marketing for Qualcomm Enterprise Services. "We strongly support Trucker
Buddy's goal of educating school children and teachers about the
importance of the trucking industry."

Trucker Buddy International, an independent, non-profit 501(c) (3)
organization, often called the number one trucking image campaign in
North America, has helped educate schoolchildren and introduce educators
to the trucking industry. This gives them the world through the eyes of
a professional truck driver. The Trucker Buddy program helps to educate
and mentor schoolchildren via a pen pal relationship between
professional truck drivers and children in grades 2-8 as supervised by
their teachers.

After an extensive screening process, the professional truck drivers are
matched with a class and as directed by the teacher, drivers share news
about their travels with their class. Students write letters and send
pictures to their drivers. Students' skills in reading, writing,
geography, mathematics, social studies, and history are enhanced and
learning is made fun.

Since 1992, Trucker Buddy International has helped educate over a
million schoolchildren and introduced them to caring, compassionate men
and women, professional truck drivers. The on-going success of the
program is due to driver volunteers, participating teachers and the
contributions of sponsors. There is no cost to the drivers or teachers
to participate in the program. The Trucker Buddy program is funded
entirely by sponsorships and donations.

Southeastern Freight Lines Named LTL Carrier of the Year by The Home Depot

2010-11-10T11:32:00.001-06:00

LEXINGTON, S.C. – Southeastern Freight Lines, a leader in regional less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation services, has been named LTL Carrier of the Year for 2010 by The Home Depot®, the nation’s largest home improvement retailer.

Southeastern led in all of The Home Depot’s performance requirements which include on-time delivery and electronic shipment status metrics. In addition, The Home Depot specifically referenced Southeastern’s continual efforts to help the company with special projects to improve their shipping system.

"Our company's dedication to quality, technology and customer support is the reason we have earned this award," said Dennis Brittain, national account manager for Southeastern Freight Lines. "We value our relationship with The Home Depot and appreciate this recognition of our people’s efforts."

The award was recently presented to Southeastern at The Home Depot’s Executive Carrier Council awards banquet.

About The Home Depot
The Home Depot is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer, with 2,244 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces, Mexico and China. In fiscal 2009, The Home Depot had sales of $66.2 billion and earnings from continuing operations of $2.6 billion. The Company employs more than 300,000 associates. The Home Depot's stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: HD) and is included in the Dow Jones industrial average and Standard & Poor's 500 index.

About Southeastern Freight Lines

Southeastern Freight Lines, a privately-owned regional less-than-truckload transportation services provider founded in 1950, specializes in next-day service in the Southeast and Southwest and operates 76 service centers in 12 states and Puerto Rico. Southeastern has a network of service partners to ensure transportation services in the remaining 38 states, Canada, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Mexico. Southeastern Freight Lines provides more than 99.35% on-time service in next day lanes. A dedication to service quality and a continuous quality improvement process that began in 1985 has been recognized by more than 300 quality awards received from customers and associations. For more information, please visit www.sefl.com.

Class certified in Swift lawsuit challenging driver pay practices

2010-11-10T08:44:00.001-06:00

Compliments of LandLineMag.com

After bouncing around the legal system for more than six years, a lawsuit accusing Swift Transportation of routinely shorting driver pay has been certified as a class action lawsuit.

The legal wrangling over class certification came to an end in early November when a Maricopa County Superior Court judge certified the class.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge J. Richard Gama ruled that the class was “all persons in the United States, including those who were employed by Swift as employee drivers on or after Jan. 30, 1998, or contracted with Swift as owner-operator drivers on or after Jan. 30, 1998, who were compensated by Swift by reference to miles driven.”

The court also certified a subclass, defined as “all persons who contracted with Swift Transportation with a Contractor Agreement East Coast” as of Dec. 14, 2001.

Hagens Berman LLP of Phoenix filed the class-action lawsuit in January 2004 on behalf of the family of Patrick Piron, a former Swift driver who died before the suit was filed. The lawsuit seeks recovery for an alleged years-long practice of shortchanging drivers for the actual miles they drive.

The suit claims that Swift officials ignored reports from drivers showing the actual miles driven, and instead used an artificial calculation that credits drivers for significantly fewer miles. The mileage is calculated based on a uniform practice “conceived and implemented at Swift’s national headquarters in Phoenix,” according to allegations in the suit.

Comparing Piron’s actual miles driven to the miles paid for by Swift show the company reducing trips by up to 140 miles when paying Piron, the suit claims.

According to the complaint, Swift used this shortchanging practice for several years, and other major trucking companies may use similar methods in calculating miles and shortchanging truckers.

The suit seeks to represent all Swift Transportation drivers who were employed on or after 1998 and who were “compensated by Swift on the basis of miles driven.”

– By Jami Jones, senior editor
jami_jones@landlinemag.com

Old Dominion Announces Rate Increase

2010-11-09T10:11:00.001-06:00

THOMASVILLE, NC – Todd Polen, Vice President of Pricing for Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc., announced from the less-than-truckload carrier’s Thomasville, N.C. headquarters that the organization would be increasing its base rates effective November 15, 2010

“The general increase involves a restructure that provides for increases in our rates based on length of haul rather than the traditional across the board increases. The tariffs affected by the November 15, 2010 increase are the ODFL 559/555 and the 505 Canadian tariffs. The rate increase will also provide for a nominal increase in minimum charges in Intrastate, Interstate or cross border lanes. Although each customer will have a different financial impact based on the lanes and distance their shipments move, the overall impact of the increase is approximately 4.9 percent” stated Polen. “Similar increases will also be taken on Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Caribbean, Canada and Mexico”

Polen also said "At OD, we are committed to delivering on our promise of excellent transit service, award winning technology and best-in-class claims free delivery. As a result of that commitment, our customers have asked for more capacity and more opportunity to take advantage of the products and services OD has to offer. In order to meet that demand and deliver on the commitments we have made to the market place, we must continue to build our network and systems. However delivering on that promise is capital intensive. Therefore, the increase is necessary to offset the rising cost of new equipment, escalating insurance costs, secure new service center capacity, continue to develop state-of-the art technology, and provide for competitive wages and benefits. We believe the increase is essential in order to continue to provide our customers with an industry leading value proposition."

Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. (NASDAQ: ODFL) is a national less-than-truckload motor carrier providing one-to-five day service among six regions in the United States and next-day and second-day service within these regions. Through its four product groups, OD-Domestic, OD-Expedited, OD-Global and OD-Technology, the Company offers an array of innovative products and services that provide direct service to 48 states within the Southeast, Gulf Coast, Northeast, Midwest, Central and West regions of the country. In addition to domestic less-than-truckload services, the Company offers assembly and distribution services as well as LCL and FCL delivery services to and from all of North America, Central America, South America and the Far East. The Company also offers a broad range of expedited and logistical services for both its domestic and global markets, and for more than 75 years, Old Dominion has been helping the world keep promises.

Con-way Truckload Receives Excellence in Environmental Stewardship Award

2010-11-09T10:10:00.001-06:00

JOPLIN, Mo. — Con-way Truckload, a full truckload carrier and subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), today announced that it has received the Excellence in Environmental Stewardship Award from The Eastern Shawnee Longhouse Management Authority. This award is presented annually by the Neosho Area Chamber of Commerce to a business in the Four State Area (Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma) that has demonstrated outstanding efforts in environmental stewardship and conservation.

“Con-way Truckload’s companywide programs spur environmental awareness and action among employees, as well as the development and implementation of business practices designed to promote sustainability and minimize the company’s environmental impact,” said Rick Rogers, president of the board of directors of the Neosho Area Chamber of Commerce. “This is an organization that puts words into action to achieve tangible results. They’re deserving of this honor and we’re proud to recognize them in this way.”

Con-way Truckload launched its sustainability program in 2007, bringing together a multi-department management team to review policies and practices from building upgrades to recycling programs to fuel efficiency efforts in an effort to build sustainable practices.

Some of the key results from the initiative have included:

• Building upgrades: Con-way Truckload installed new, more efficient lighting throughout its Joplin campus, resulting in a savings of $25,000 and a reduction of 20 tons of CO2 annually. Other initiatives included automated light shutdowns, automatic screen saver deployment and automated shift to power-saving mode for PCs after 30 minutes of inactivity.
• Recycling: Con-way Truckload now recycles approximately 8,000 lbs of paper and 6,400 lbs of cardboard per month. Other recycling efforts include unused pallets, which are deployed to other company locations, recycling of PCs and monitors, and recycling of all cleaning/chemical containers on a weekly basis.
• Fuel efficiency: Con-way Truckload reduced the weight of its trucks by 670 lbs each, resulting in a fuel savings of 11,400 gallons per year and switched to fuel-efficient, single wide-base tires on all tractors for a 3.4 percent increase in fuel economy. The company also reduced the speed governors on company-operated tractors from 70 mph to 65 mph, which saves approximately 3,050,060 gallons of diesel fuel per year. Also, by reducing and/or eliminating idling time, Con-way Truckload is reducing the amount of GHG released into the atmosphere.
• Employee initiatives: Con-way Truckload launched a new program this year called “Sustainamania” that challenges employees to come up with ideas to reduce the company’s carbon footprint in four key areas: waste reduction, energy reduction, recycling and procurement. The top five ideas will be implemented companywide with the employees who submitted the ideas being recognized during a special awards ceremony.

“We are honored to receive this award recognizing the effort of both our company and our employees to be good environmental stewards,” said Bruce Stockton, vice president of maintenance and asset management for Con-way Truckload. “Our results demonstrate that sustainability programs not only improve the environment, but can also positively impact a company’s bottom line.” Stockton also serves on the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE), which works to develop efficiency-enhancing and environmentally beneficial technologies for the freight industry.

Follow the company on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Con_way_

Con-way equipment images are available at www.con-way.com/en/about_con_way/newsroom.

About Con-way Truckload
Joplin, Mo.-based Con-way Truckload is an operating company of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW) and a leading provider of expedited, time-definite full-truckload transportation services across North America. Formerly Contract Freighters, Inc. (CFI), Con-way Truckload today employs over 3,000 drivers with a fleet of more than 2,700 tractors and 8,000 trailers operating throughout the United States as well as internationally in Mexico and Canada. The company provides full-truckload transportation serving the transcontinental shipping needs of commercial and industrial businesses as well as sister company Con-way Freight. For more about Con-way Truckload, visit us on the Web at www.con-way.com/truckload or call (800) 641-4747.

YRC Worldwide Reports Third Quarter Results

2010-11-05T11:45:00.001-05:00

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. Nov. 5, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --

YRC National Tonnage up 1.2% and YRC Regional up 2.1% from Second Quarter 2010
Achieved Significant Progress on Comprehensive Recovery Plan

YRC Worldwide Inc. (Nasdaq: YRCW) today reported its third quarter 2010 results. For the third quarter ending September 30, 2010, the company announced a net loss of $62 million and a $1.33 loss per share on average outstanding diluted shares of 46.5 million. As a comparison, the company reported a net loss of $159 million and a $66.66 loss per share in the third quarter of 2009 with average outstanding diluted shares of 2.4 million. The numbers of shares and the per share amounts for all periods presented within this release reflect the 1:25 reverse stock split which was effective on October 1, 2010.

"We are pleased with the continued support of our customers and our employees who remain focused on delivering results," stated Bill Zollars, Chairman, President and CEO of YRC Worldwide. "We have achieved significant progress on our comprehensive recovery plan with the ratification of our new labor contract and the renewal of our ABS facility."

For the third quarter of 2010, the company reported positive cash flow from operating activities of $5 million which included positive adjusted EBITDA which was in excess of working capital requirements, cash interest and restructuring professional fees. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure that reflects the company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization expense, and further adjusted for letter of credit fees, equity-based compensation expense, net gains or losses on property disposals and certain other items, including restructuring professional fees and results of permitted dispositions and discontinued operations as defined in the company's credit agreement.

During the third quarter of 2010, the company issued $20.2 million in 6% notes and used the proceeds to retire approximately $20 million of 5% notes. The company repaid $25 million in borrowings under its asset-backed securitization ('ABS') facility, sold excess property of $36 million and entered into $3 million of new sale and financing leasebacks during the quarter. In addition, the company closed on the previously announced $38.7 million sale of the majority of its YRC Logistics business and used the net proceeds to pay down borrowings under the credit agreement. During 2010, the company has reduced its total debt by $73 million.

At September 30, 2010, the company reported cash and cash equivalents of $115 million, unrestricted revolver availability of $46 million and unused restricted revolver reserves of $123 million, subject to the terms of the company's credit agreement, for a total of $284 million.

"We continue to effectively manage our working capital, reduce debt and improve our cash flow, as demonstrated by the significant sequential improvement in our cash flow from operating activities from second quarter to third quarter," stated Sheila Taylor, Executive Vice President and CFO of YRC Worldwide.

As previously announced, during October 2010, the company renewed its ABS facility at $325 million through October 19, 2011. read more...

PRIME INC. HONORS DRIVERS FOR THREE MILLION MILES OF SAFE DRIVING

2010-11-05T11:22:00.000-05:00

November 5, 2010 (Springfield, Mo.) – Prime inc. recently honored driving associates Herman Knight and Steve Rowan for achieving three million miles of safe driving. The accomplishment, which takes drivers years of hard work and a strong commitment to safety, requires a driving record free of preventable accidents or incidents.

“I know that Prime has my safety in mind,” said Knight. “The company is very driver-oriented, making sure that the equipment is nice and well-kept.”

Rowan agrees. “Prime emphasizes safety continually. It’s a priority the company and I definitely share.”

Based in Springfield, Mo., Prime inc. provides top-of-the-line equipment and benefit programs to its drivers. Safety continues to be a primary focus for the company as it provides services throughout North America.

“All our trucks have state-of-the-art collision safety systems,” said Don Lacy, Prime inc. director of safety. “That’s an investment we have found well worth making because it protects not only these driving professionals but everyone on the road.”

Knight and Rowan were presented their awards at the 10-year celebration dinner for Prime employees. At the dinner, each driver received a check for $5,000, a 3-million-mile leather jacket, a decal for their truck, a lapel pin, a jacket patch, and a plaque with their name and likeness on the wall of fame in Prime’s Millennium Building.

“We are honored to have drivers like Knight and Rowan who exhibit such high levels of professionalism and dedication to safety,” said Lacy. “At Prime, we’re pleased to be their partners and to support their safe, professional work. Congratulations to both of them for their achievement.”

For information on Prime’s services or career opportunities, visit www.primeinc.com.

About Prime inc.

Founded in 1970 by Robert Low, Prime Inc. is North America’s most successful refrigerated, flatbed, tanker and logistics trucking company. Headquartered in Springfield, Mo., Prime's personnel, equipment and technology remains on the cutting edge of the transportation industry, and the company's growth remains steady and well managed.

Truck Driving School Reports Positive Feedback From New CSA 2010 Rules

2010-11-03T16:56:00.001-05:00

Truck Driver Training School announces a positive feedback from the new
CSA 2010 rules. The new rules assign points for safety violations during
inspections and crashes.

"The data shows that the truck driving industry is still a very secure
and rewarding career for many years to come" Orange Park, FL (PRWEB)
November 1, 2010

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently released a new
update on their guidelines known as CSA 2010. Under the new Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Administration rules, drivers and Trucking
Companies are assigned points for safety violations during inspections
and crashes.

The new CSA is designed to prevent commercial vehicle crashes by
implementing a new motor carrier rating system mainly based on the
characteristics and behavioral factors of drivers. These new guidelines
are aimed at addressing the negative driver behaviors and to intervene
with carriers that utilize drivers that are unfit and unsafe to be on
the roads.

"The new CSA 2010 rules make truck driving as a whole a more
professional career. At National Training, we have always promoted
safety and professionalism to our students. The new CSA 2010 rules will
make sure that everyone abides by these same standards. Thus, making our
roads safer for everyone," says a National Truck Training representative.

The main thing that the new CSA guidelines deal with are: Driver
Fitness, Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving, Controlled
Substances/Alcohol, Crash Indicator, Vehicle Maintenance, and Improper
Loading/Cargo as a few examples. These safety measures and CSA
requirements should be discussed properly in a proper CDL Training to
ensure that all future truck drivers are already equipped and
knowledgeable about all these latest guidelines in order to avoid
incurring fines, penalties, and other problems later on. Truck operators
should make sure to review and screen their drivers carefully since this
will also affect their ratings. The more reliable and well rated their
drivers are, the lesser they will pay insurance premiums and they can
also be entitled to higher shipping or handling rates.

Based on BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2010-11, job opportunities
between 2008-2018 for Truck Drivers and driver/sales workers are
anticipated to increase by 9 percent; heavy and tractor-trailer truck
drivers are anticipated to increase by 13 percent; and light or delivery
services truck drivers by 4 percent increase.

As of October 2010, the average salary for truck drivers is $34,605 -
$52,970 based on payscale.com. Truck drivers can also benefit from
working at high paying cities; for example, the #1 highest paying city
which is Anchorage, Alaska where truck drivers earn an hourly rate range
of $18.32 - $23.53; next is Seattle, Washington with truck driver's
hourly rate range of $17.22 - $24.48; and Sacramento, California with
truck driver's hourly rate range of $16.97 - $22.58.

The above data shows that the truck driving industry is still a very
secure and rewarding career for many years to come.

About National Truck Drivers School:
National Truck Drivers School is a nationally accredited career school
in Florida that has trained over 30,000 men and women since 1978. A
series of unique courses and programs teach qualified applicants to
drive big rigs in a matter of weeks, enabling them to pass their CDL
Training and get their CDL licensing from a DETC accredited, DANTES
program, and VA Approved Truck Driving School to become safe, well paid
operators of semi tractor trailers. Contact: Contact Information: David
Rose National Training http://www.truckschool.com 1-800-488-7364

Crete Carrier Featured in November Issue of Driver Health Magazine

2010-11-03T14:31:00.001-05:00

We are excited to announce that Crete Carrier is featured in the November issue of Driver Health, a monthly publication focusing on the health and wellness of truck drivers.

In addition to Ed Garrett, a company driver since 1989 and currently a road test evaluator for Crete Carrier, being pictured on the front cover, there is a featured article on our sleep apnea program and our blood pressure machines.

Tim Aschoff, Vice President of Risk Management, is interviewed in the article and asked a series of questions about Crete’s active role in their drivers’ health.

The article states that Crete Carrier Corporation was “one of the first to acknowledge that keeping drivers healthy is just as important as keeping them safe on the road, and they implemented Crete’s unique Sleep Apnea and Wellness program to make it happen.”

We are proud to be be recognized as having one of the “most effective health and wellness programs in the industry.”

You can read the entire article entitled “Getting With The Program” on the Driver Health website.

Crete Carrier – We’re on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube!

TRANSFLO Express Overwhelming Choice of Former Scan & Go Fleets

2010-11-03T14:27:00.001-05:00

Tampa, Fla. – Pegasus TransTech announced today that in one month since Scan & Go truck stop scanning was discontinued at Flying J locations, more than 85% of former Scan & Go fleets are now using TRANSFLO Express® as their document scanning solution. Scan & Go was discontinued in early October after TRANSFLO Express became available at those same locations.

With the introduction of TRANSFLO Express at the Pilot Flying J branded locations, the availability of TRANSFLO Express has expanded to almost 800 truck stops and travel centers in the United States and Canada. This is by far the most conveniently available document scanning service for drivers in North America.

Among the former Scan & Go fleets now using TRANSFLO Express are Dart Transit Company of St. Paul, Minn.; System Transport of Cheney, Wash.; Butler Transport of Kansas City, Kansas; Erb Transport of Ontario, Canada; Summitt Trucking of Clarksville, Ind.; Jordan Carriers of Natchez, Miss.; and many more.

H&M Trucking of Omaha, Neb., was one of many carriers that have switched to TRANSLO Express. “The transition went very smoothly," said Patty Rupp, accounting manager at H&M. “Our drivers are thrilled to have so many more scanning locations.”

“We’re gratified by the overwhelming implementation of TRANSFLO Express by former Scan & Go customers,” said Bob Helms, chairman and CEO of Pegasus TransTech. “We welcome the opportunity to serve them not only at Flying J, but also at Pilot, Love’s, and many independent truck stops – almost 800 locations in all. TRANSFLO Express is everywhere professional truck drivers go.”

TRANSFLO Express provides same-day access to delivery documents, speeding cash flow for fleets and drivers. With TRANSFLO Express, documents are sent electronically to the fleet for immediate billing and payroll processing. Because TRANSFLO Express expedites document delivery, fleets and drivers get paid faster.

About Pegasus TransTech

Pegasus TransTech Corporation helps transportation companies go paperless, improve operating efficiency, speed cash flow, increase profit, and drive consistent, repeatable results by strategically creating images, electronic forms, and Enterprise Workflow Solutions. TRANSFLO® software provides the back office solutions for document management and electronic workflow. TRANSFLO Express® truck stop scanning from Pegasus TransTech provides same-day access to delivery documents, which speeds driver pay and the carrier’s billing cycle. TRANSFLO NOW!™ “Anywhere Scanning” provides in-cab, at-home, and over-the-road scanning options for drivers and agents for a convenient, easy way to electronically transmit delivery documents instantly.

For additional information, please visit www.pegasustranstech.com or call 800-783-8649. Email info2@pegasustranstech.com.

Con-way Inc. Reports Third-Quarter Results For 2010

2010-11-03T14:19:00.001-05:00

SAN MATEO, Calif. - November 02, 2010

Con-way Inc. (NYSE:CNW) today reported a net loss to common shareholders for the third quarter of 2010 of $8.2 million (15 cents per share). The results compared to third-quarter 2009 net income to common shareholders of $13.5 million (27 cents per diluted share).

On a non-GAAP basis, third-quarter earnings per diluted share were 22 cents in 2010 compared to 38 cents in 2009, excluding the following items:

2010 -- a $16.4 million goodwill-impairment charge related to the 2007 acquisition of Chic Logistics, and $5.5 million of expense for recent employee severances and the planned consolidation of Con-way’s executive offices;
2009 -- a change in the accounting estimate for revenue adjustments, which reduced revenue and operating income at Con-way Freight by $5.4 million.

Both years also included discrete tax adjustments. Additional information is provided in the attached reconciliation.

Revenue in the third quarter of 2010 was $1.27 billion, a 12.1 percent increase from last year’s third quarter. Operating income in the 2010 third quarter was $12.5 million, compared to $41.1 million in the third quarter a year ago.

The third-quarter tax provision in 2010 was $6.7 million and in 2009 was $11.5 million. There was no tax benefit in 2010 from the non-deductible goodwill impairment charge. Excluding the effect of goodwill impairment and discrete items, the third-quarter effective tax rate was 42.6 percent in 2010 compared to 37.0 percent in 2009.

Douglas W. Stotlar, Con-way’s president and CEO, noted that while corporate office consolidation and severance costs reduced current-quarter profits, key operating metrics for Con-way Freight improved as the quarter progressed.

“The lingering effects of the LTL tonnage surge from earlier this year left our LTL business with higher variable costs as we entered the quarter,” Stotlar noted. “In August, we implemented specific actions to improve performance at Con-way Freight. As a result, we’ve seen variable costs decline, pricing improve and tonnage levels moderate.”

“We came out of the quarter with positive momentum,” he added. “We have set a deliberate course for improvement and we are making steady progress which we expect will continue through the fourth quarter.”

Menlo Worldwide Logistics posted its third consecutive quarterly improvement over 2009, excluding impairment charges. “Menlo once again delivered solid growth in revenues, net revenues and operating income. Our supply chain and logistics company is executing well across all of its principal business lines,” Stotlar said.

Con-way Truckload’s results were affected by external factors which raised operating costs, and shipper demand that moderated toward the end of the quarter. “Revenue per loaded mile improved as pricing remained relatively stable. We expect results to improve as Con-way Truckload continues to focus on higher-margin opportunities and increasing asset utilization,” Stotlar concluded.

Operating results in the 2010 third quarter for Con-way’s reporting segments were as follows:

FREIGHT

For the 2010 third quarter, Con-way Freight, the company’s less-than-truckload (LTL) operation, reported:

Revenue of $797.1 million, a 13.1 percent increase over last year’s third-quarter revenue of $704.5 million.
Yield increased 3.1 percent from the previous-year third quarter. Excluding the fuel surcharge, yield increased 0.9 percent.
Weight per day increased 8.7 percent over the previous-year third quarter.
Operating income of $13.1 million, compared to $22.8 million in the year-ago period. Higher purchased transportation, temporary labor and rental equipment expense in the first half of the quarter adversely affected results. Severance and office consolidation costs and the partial reinstatement of 2009’s employee wage and benefit reductions also added $4.4 million and approximately $19 million, respectively, to operating expense. The 2009 third quarter included the $5.4 million effect of the change in accounting estimate related to revenue adjustments.
Operating ratio of 98.4 in the 2010 third quarter compared to 96.8 in the previous-year period.

LOGISTICS

For the third quarter of 2010, Menlo Worldwide Logistics, the company’s global logistics and supply chain management operation, reported:

Revenue of $370.0 million, up 6.8 percent from the prior-year third-quarter revenue of $346.4 million.
Net revenue of $140.7 million, which increased 7.2 percent from $131.3 million in the same period of last year, due primarily to an increase in revenue from warehouse management services.
Operating loss of $6.3 million, compared to operating income of $9.5 million earned in the third quarter of 2009. Excluding the $16.4 million goodwill-impairment charge, third-quarter operating income in 2010 was $10.1 million, a 6.3 percent increase from $9.5 million in 2009, due largely to the growth in net revenue.

TRUCKLOAD

For the third quarter of 2010, Con-way Truckload, the company’s full-truckload transportation operation, reported:

Revenue of $140.7 million, a 3.8 percent decline from the prior-year third-quarter revenue of $146.3 million. Lower total miles and a higher proportion of empty miles led to a decline in tractor productivity, reflecting changes in fleet composition that had fewer higher-mileage driver teams and proportionally more single drivers. Partially offsetting the decline were higher fuel surcharges and improved revenue per loaded mile (excluding fuel surcharges).
Operating income of $5.5 million, compared to $10.6 million earned in last year’s third quarter, which included a $2.3 million loss from the sale of tractors.
Operating ratio on revenue, exclusive of fuel surcharges, was 95.3 in the third quarter of 2010, compared to 91.7 in the third quarter of 2009.

Revenue and operating income also were adversely affected, to a lesser extent, by Hurricane Alex, which in July flooded the Mexico border and stranded portions of Con-way Truckload’s trailer fleet.

CON-WAY OTHER

Con-way Other includes the company’s Road Systems, Inc. trailer-manufacturing unit as well as other corporate activities. These activities produced essentially break-even results in the 2010 third quarter compared to a prior-year third-quarter operating loss of $1.8 million, which relates primarily to corporate reinsurance activities.

INVESTOR CONFERENCE CALL

Con-way will host a conference call for the investment community later today, Wednesday, November 3, beginning at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (1:00 p.m. Pacific).

The call can be accessed by dialing (866) 264-3634 or (706) 643-3632 (for international callers) and is expected to last approximately one hour. Callers are requested to dial in at least five minutes before the start of the call. The call will also be available through a live internet webcast at www.con-way.com, in the investor relations section.

An audio replay will be available for two weeks following the call dialing (800) 642-1687 or (706) 645-9291 (for international callers) and using access code 16993950. An Internet replay of the presentation will also be available at the Con-way website.

About Con-way
Con-way Inc. (NYSE:CNW) is a $4.3 billion freight transportation and logistics services company headquartered in San Mateo, Calif. A diversified transportation company, Con-way delivers industry-leading services through three primary operating companies: Con-way Freight, Con-way Truckload and Menlo Worldwide Logistics. These operating units provide high-performance, day-definite less-than-truckload and full truckload freight transportation, as well as logistics, warehousing, multimodal and supply chain management services, and trailer manufacturing. Con-way Inc. and its subsidiaries operate from more than 500 locations across North America and in 20 countries. For more information about Con-way, visit us on the Web at www.con-way.com.

Minnesota State Patrol starts fatigue enforcement again

2010-11-03T08:26:00.000-05:00

SPECIAL REPORT: Minnesota State Patrol starts fatigue enforcement again

Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2010 – Although the court has not yet ruled on OOIDA v. Minnesota State Patrol, the patrol is back on the job – with retrained officers and new policies – enforcing its regulations and policies regarding ill and/or fatigued truck drivers.

At the end of the federal trial in September in which the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and member plaintiff Stephen K. House challenged the fatigue enforcement practices of the Minnesota State Patrol, the MSP agreed to a moratorium on the fatigue impairment plan per a Sept. 2 internal order issued by the state patrol. This order halted fatigue enforcement until officers were “further trained.” The roll-out of the new enforcement program was planned for Oct. 1.

In court, OOIDA attorney Paul Cullen Sr. asked for a stay on the MSP’s fatigue enforcement program beyond that Oct. 1 roll-out. The state agreed to stay their enforcement program until the end of October.

OOIDA was informed on Nov. 1 that the moratorium was over. One week before a ruling is expected in OOIDA’s suit over the state’s fatigue enforcement practices, Minnesota Office of the Attorney General officially notified OOIDA that it would be “enforcing the applicable laws, regulations and its policies regarding ill and/or fatigued commercial vehicle drivers.”

Maj. Kent O’Grady, head of the MSP’s training project confirmed Tuesday that the training is now complete and the patrol is back in the enforcement business regarding ill and/or fatigued commercial drivers.

O’Grady is currently serving in Operations Support Services, a section of state patrol that oversees litigation and training, among other areas.

“All of our officers have undergone some increased training including constitutional rights, how to detect impairment at roadside, how to properly document that impairment,” O’Grady said. “We’ve got increased supervision in the program. Before somebody is placed out-of- service for illness or fatigue by a Minnesota State Patrol employee, that decision needs to be run past an on-duty supervisor.”

O’Grady said every North American Standards-certified inspector, including people from the commercial vehicle department and other departments, as well as MSP’s civilian counterparts – inspectors with Minnesota DOT – were included in the training. The training consisted of six different classes during October, an 11-hour course when completed.

OOIDA President and CEO Jim Johnston says the Association does not believe there is any accurate way to determine fatigue at roadside and has “clearly established this in court.” He said OOIDA is suspicious of any attempt by the Minnesota State Patrol to restart such a program.

“We want to know if drivers see an effort toward some type of illness/fatigue enforcement being carried out on Minnesota highways,” said Johnston. “Drivers can phone us 24/7.”

During business hours, Johnston said drivers can call OOIDA Business Assistance Department at 1-800-444-5791. After hours, drivers can call Land Line Now’s listener comment line, 1-800-324-6856, and press 3. Make sure to leave a name and phone number.

Johnston said he expects a ruling from the U.S. District Court in Minnesota soon.

– By Sandi Soendker, managing editor
sandi_soendker@landlinemag.com

Kenworth Ranks Highest in Customer Satisfaction

2010-10-29T10:08:00.001-05:00

KIRKLAND, Wash., – Kenworth Truck Company achieved the highest ranking in customer satisfaction among truck owners in the Medium Duty Dealer Service Segment, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Medium Duty Truck Customer Satisfaction Study(SM) released today.

“Kenworth is honored to receive the prestigious 2010 Medium Duty Dealer Service Award from J.D. Power and Associates,” said Bill Kozek, Kenworth general manager and PACCAR vice president. “This achievement is due to the commitment and dedication of Kenworth dealers and employees who take great pride in delivering the highest quality service and products to our customers.”

The 2010 J.D. Power and Associates study, which ranks customer satisfaction by evaluating manufacturer performance, is based on interviews with nearly 1,300 primary maintainers of medium duty trucks (Class 5, 6 and 7). Kenworth performed particularly well in the service facility factor, which helped lead to the award.

“It’s gratifying that customers recognize the outstanding support they receive from more than 300 Kenworth dealer locations in the U.S. and Canada and from the Kenworth PremierCare(R) Customer Center which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Kozek.

Kenworth’s medium duty product line features the Kenworth T170, T270 and T370, which offer outstanding performance, durability and low-life cycle cost for beverage and food haulers, fire departments, towing and recovery operators, propane and fuel fleets, general construction and landscape firms, and dry, refrigerated and side-curtain van operations. The T270 and T370 are also offered as diesel-electric hybrid trucks and tractors.

Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World’s Best(R) heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company’s dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, compressed and liquefied natural gas trucks, and medium duty diesel-electric hybrids. In 2009, Kenworth became the first truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. Kenworth’s Internet home page is at www.kenworth.com. Kenworth. A PACCAR Company.

Hornady Transportation Names Award Winner

2010-10-29T09:48:00.001-05:00

(Monroeville, AL) -- Hornady Transportation has named Obediah Anderson as winner of their recent "Keep 'Em Rollin" Campaign, a program designed to increase Hornady's customer base. Hornady Safety Director Jim Bobzien presented Anderson with his prizes, which included a deluxe stainless steel barbecue grill along with a $200 cash award.

"Everyone at Hornady has been extremely nice and helpful to me," said Anderson, a flatbed operator who had previously pulled vans before switching to Hornady. "I like a challenge. With vans it was always the same, now every day is different. With different loads I have different securement methods."

Anderson resides in Newnan, Georgia with his wife Anjanetta, and their daughter Cherrius.

CSA 2010 is Here and Drivers Need to Know This.....

2010-10-29T09:29:00.001-05:00

This information is provided by FMCSA used for CSA 2010. Data Qs is a system used by the FMCSA. This is where a Driver can summit a challenge to their person data. https://dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov/

The DataQs system is an electronic means for filing concerns about Federal and State data released to the public by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). Through this system, data concerns are automatically forwarded to the appropriate office for resolution. The system also allows filers to monitor the status of each filing.

Who May Register?

Any user can enter data challenges into the system including: general public users, commercial drivers, motor carriers, FMCSA/State Agency users, and FMCSA Administrative level users.

Commercial drivers may file challenges to their commercial driver data. To obtain their data, commercial drivers may request the information via the pre-employment screening program (PSP) or Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) websites.

Motor carrier users may file challenges to data found on their carrier profile, SAFER information, and SafeStat Online record.

What Data Is Subject To A Challenge?

The DataQs system is to be used to challenge data issued by FMCSA. Information disseminated by the FMCSA includes data reported to FMCSA through the requirements of Federal and State programs. Release of these data is done in the interest of information exchange and to satisfy the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act. The United States government assumes no liability for the use of the data.

With respect to crash and roadside inspection data, the MCMIS documents the occurrence and results of these events as reported by the States. Any challenges to data provided by State agencies must be resolved by the appropriate State agency. Once a State office makes a determination on the validity of a challenge, FMCSA considers that decision as the final resolution of the challenge. FMCSA cannot change State records without State consent.

How Do I Register For DataQs?

All users are required to register with the DataQs system. Click on the “Register Online” button and submit the registration form. You will return to the login page where you can enter your user name and password to access the system.

    * Commercial Drivers are required to select “Commercial Driver” under the Organization Type selection.
    * Motor Carriers are required to select “Motor Carrier” under the Organization Type selection. Motor Carrier users may 'validate' their account by entering their FMCSA provided Personal Identification Number (PIN).
    * State or Federal Agency level users must complete and submit the FMCSA Information Technology Account Request Form. This Form is available from FMCSA's Technical Support Website at http://fmcsa-ts.dot.gov. Once on this site, access the form via the Technical Support Tab.

NOTE
The DataQs system can be accessed by Netscape 6.1 or later, and Internet Explorer 5.0 or later.

WARNING:
You are accessing a U.S. Government information system. This information system, including all related equipment, networks, and network devices, is provided for U.S. Government-authorized use only. Unauthorized or improper use of this system is prohibited, and may result in civil and criminal penalties, or administrative disciplinary action. The communications and data stored or transiting this system may be, for any lawful Government purpose, monitored, recorded, and subject to audit or investigation. By using this system, you understand and consent to such terms.

J. B. HUNT TRANSPORT SERVICES, INC. ANNOUNCES MANAGEMENT CHANGES,,ELECTION OF DIRECTOR AND DECLARATION OF THIRD QUARTER DIVIDEND

2010-10-28T16:40:00.001-05:00

Lowell, Arkansas, October 28, 2010 J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.
(NASDAQ: JBHT) announced today
that Kirk Thompson plans to step down from his role as J.B. Hunt
Transport Services' President and Chief
Executive Officer on December 31, 2010. He was elected to the position
of Chairman of the Board
effective January 1, 2011 replacing Wayne Garrison who will remain a
Director. Mr. Thompson, who has
worked with the Board on this transition for several years, has been
with the Company for 37 years and
has served as CEO since 1987.
Mr. Thompson oversaw the Company's growth from revenue of $286 million
in 1987 to a projected $3.8
billion in 2010. Over his tenure, the Company successfully transitioned
from a truckload carrier to a
multi-faceted transportation services company. The Company's market
capitalization has grown from
$500 million to over $4.4 billion during the same time frame.
"With the Company's strategic positioning well established and
operational execution at such a high level,
this is the right time for me to step back from the day-to-day
operations," Thompson said. "We have an
outstanding team of leaders that is both wide and deep. They are more
than capable of taking the
Company to even greater heights in the future. I couldn't be more
confident in both the direction of the
Company and the leadership in place."
The Board of Directors elected John N. Roberts, III, age 46, President
and Chief Executive Officer effective
January 1, 2011, and elected him to the Board effective immediately.
Roberts has been with the
Company for 21 years and currently serves as President of Dedicated
Contract Services (DCS). He has led
DCS from revenue of $150 million in 1997 to an enterprise that will soon
surpass $1.0 billion in revenues
as a separate business segment.
"John and I have worked together closely for the last 13 years after he
was drafted to lead DCS in a
'battlefield promotion.' His response to that challenge and the
challenges of growing a start-up business
to almost $1.0 billion has been nothing short of outstanding. The Board
and I are confident he will do a
similarly outstanding job as the 4th CEO in J.B. Hunt Transport
Services' history. I look forward to
continuing to be a part of this highly respected team of transportation
and logistics professionals," said
Mr. Thompson.
Mr. Garrison stated, "The Company has never been in better shape
fundamentally. With the
management team in place, I am completely confident the future will
yield even greater success."
Mr. Roberts said, "J.B. Hunt is uniquely positioned in today's dynamic
transportation services
marketplace. We owe a debt of gratitude to Kirk for his leadership and
vision which guided us here. Our
executive team is as strong as ever and we have all worked well together
for many years. We are
fortunate to have such a strong, people-centric culture. Enriching that
culture and building on our
successes through innovation will drive our priorities forward. I am
honored to have been chosen as CEO
from a short list of very qualified people. I am particularly thankful
to have Kirk staying close at hand as
our Chairman."
In addition to these changes, also effective January 1, 2011, Nick Hobbs
has been promoted to President
of DCS to assume Mr. Roberts' position. Hobbs has been with the Company
for over 26 years serving in
many capacities during that time. His most recent responsibilities were
as Senior Vice President of
operations for DCS, a role he has held for the past 12 years.
* * * * * * * *
Cash Dividend
The Board of Directors announced today the declaration of the regular
quarterly dividend on its common
stock of $.12 (twelve cents) per common share payable to stockholders of
record on November 15, 2010.
The dividend will be paid on December 2, 2010.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements, which are
based on information currently
available. Actual results may differ materially from those currently
anticipated due to a number of
factors, including, but not limited to, those discussed in Item 1A of
our Annual Report filed on Form 10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2009. We assume no obligation to update
any forward-looking
statement to the extent we become aware that it will not be achieved for
any reason. This press release
and additional information will be available immediately to interested
parties on our web site,
www.jbhunt.com.

Hornady Transportation,Names Award Winner

2010-10-28T11:33:00.001-05:00

Daimler continues along successful path: Group EBIT of more than 7.0 billion expected for 2010

2010-10-28T11:15:00.001-05:00

In the third quarter of 2010, Daimler AG (stock-exchange symbol DAI) continued its excellent performance of the first half of the year. The automotive group achieved EBIT of €2,418 million for the reporting period (Q3 2009: €470 million). This repeated positive result was aided by the worldwide recovery of automobile markets, an attractive product range and sustained efficiency improvements.

Read whole story @ www.daimler.com

Daimler Trucks increased its unit sales substantially to 94,800 vehicles, compared with 66,100 in the third quarter of last year. Revenue rose by 47% to €6.4 billion.

The division posted EBIT of €500 million, improving on the result for the prior-year period by €627 million (Q3 2009: EBIT of minus €127 million). The return on sales amounted to 7.8% (Q3 2009: minus 2.9%).

The positive earnings trend was mainly a result of the good development of unit sales in all major markets. Sustained efficiency improvements, in particular from the repositioning of the subsidiaries Daimler Trucks North America and Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, also had a positive impact on the development of EBIT. An additional factor at Daimler Trucks North America was a gain of €183 million from the adjustment of health-care and pension benefits. There were opposing effects from charges relating to the revaluation of long-term warranty and service obligations as well as an increase in research and development costs.

Truckin’ with the EPA

2010-10-28T11:10:00.001-05:00

Local reaction to mileage targets is mixed

October 28, 2010 - By Brad Bauer, bbauer@mariettatimes.com

New federal regulations proposed this week aim to cut fuel consumption and emissions on new generations of semi-trucks, school buses and other large trucks.

The U.S. EPA and Department of Transportation proposal, expected to be finalized next year, aims to reduce the nation's dependence on oil and cut greenhouse gas emissions, which are linked to global warming.

Local reaction to the proposal is mixed. Some say improved gas mileage is a plus, but initially those savings would be lessened by the increased cost of the more fuel efficient vehicles.

According to The Associated Press, the agencies estimate the new fuel and emission requirements, set to take effect between 2014 and 2018, will add $7.7 billion to the cost of heavy-duty trucks, but said the efficiency upgrade would save $49 billion over the life of those vehicles.

Large trucks represent 4 percent of the vehicle on the road in the U.S., but consume about 20 percent of the transportation fuel used each year, according to the Associated Press. The typical tractor-trailer rig can easily run 150,000 miles each year. Read more...

Shippers may be held liable in accidents

2010-10-28T10:51:00.001-05:00

Monday, October 25, 2010

By Shannon P. Duffy, The Legal Intelligencer

When a trucking accident is caused by a shift in cargo, the shipper -- not just the trucker or carrier -- may be held responsible if evidence shows that the company sending the cargo shared the duty of securing the load, a federal court has ruled.

The ruling is a victory for a truck driver who was injured in May 2005 when his tractor-trailer overturned as it rounded a bend in Hanover, York County.

In Spence v. ESAB Group Inc., the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the argument that federal trucking regulations impose a safety obligation only on the carrier, and that Pennsylvania law would not impose the same duty on the shipper.

The unanimous three-judge panel reversed a decision by U.S. District Judge Sylvia H. Rambo in Harrisburg, which granted summary judgment in favor of the shipper, on the grounds that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's regulations require of the carrier (but not the shipper) the exclusive duty to safely secure cargo to prevent shifting during transit.

The 3rd Circuit said Judge Rambo read the federal regulations too broadly, and failed to recognize that shippers may share responsibility, depending on the facts of the case.

"Those who undertake the task of loading, securing, and hauling cargo on tractor-trailers have a duty to exercise due care to protect property and persons from the risk of harm," U.S. Circuit Judge Thomas Vanaskie wrote. Judge Vanaskie, who was joined by Judges Julio M. Fuentes and Joseph F. Weis, found that the "primary duty" to assure that a load does not shift in transit "generally rests with the carrier and its driver."

But Judge Vanaskie also found that "where there is evidence that a shipper undertook to load and secure the cargo being transported by a third-party carrier, the shipper also bears an obligation to exercise reasonable care."

That's good news for plaintiff Charles Spence, the Houston truck driver who was seriously injured in a rollover accident, soon after picking up a load of welding supplies from the ESAB Group's plant in Hanover, Pa. In the suit, Mr. Spence claims that ESAB workers assured him that their method of securing the load with metal cleats on each pallet was sufficient, and that it was unnecessary to use the more complicated block-and-brace process that calls for securing each pallet in a wooden frame nailed to the floor of the truck.

ESAB's lawyers at Pepper Hamilton moved for dismissal of the suit, arguing that, as the shipper, it owed no duty to Mr. Spence, the driver. Federal regulations, the defense argued, "squarely" and "exclusively" place the duty to ensure that cargo is adequately secured on the driver, and not the shipper.

But the plaintiffs' lawyers from Connelly Baker & Wotring in Houston argued that Pennsylvania law was on their side.

They cited the 1952 decision from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in Kunkle v. Continental Transportation Lines Inc., which held that a shipper can be held to owe a duty of care in both loading and securing the cargo.

Now the 3rd Circuit has sided with the plaintiffs, agreeing that the Kunkle precedent remains good law despite predating the federal trucking regulations.

"By finding the shipper liable, the court in Kunkle necessarily recognized that the shipper had a duty to perform its undertakings [with] due care," Judge Vanaskie wrote.

The evidence could convince a jury that ESAB assumed the duty to secure the load: "There was evidence that ESAB selected the appropriate securement device, that Spence complained to ESAB concerning the way the cargo was loaded and secured, that ESAB in response stated that it never had a problem with any of its loads, and that Spence relied upon this assurance in using only load stars to prevent lateral movement of the cargo," Judge Vanaskie wrote.

Plaintiffs attorney David George of Connelly Baker said he was pleased that the 3rd Circuit decision "clarified an area of law that had become murky."

ESAB's lead lawyer, Charles S. Marion of Pepper Hamilton, said the 3rd Circuit ruling "leaves Pennsylvania in the minority" because most states have followed the 4th Circuit's Savage rule. But Mr. Marion also said that if ESAB is ultimately forced to take the case to trial, he is confident that it will prevail because even if ESAB is held to have a duty of care, the plaintiff "will not be able to show a breach of that duty."

Shannon P. Duffy: sduffy@alm.com or 215-880-3700. To read more articles like this, visit www.thelegalintelligencer.com.

Globe Carrier Co involved in NC wreck had series of violations

2010-10-28T10:47:00.001-05:00

Comments of the Chicago Tribume
10-27-2010

ASHEVILLE, N.C. —

A small Illinois trucking company involved in a gruesome crash that killed five people in North Carolina had been cited a dozen times this year for violations, including two speeding infractions.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration records show that Globe Carrier Co. of Justice, Ill., was also cited for improper lighting, brakes and other maintenance violations. Records list the company as having just one rig and two drivers.

Roumen Todorov Velkov has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after troopers say he failed to stop and slammed into a line of vehicles Sunday night on Interstate 26 near Fletcher. Authorities say a fifth person has since died and that a sixth person remains in critical condition.

Trooper Gene Williamson of the State Highway Patrol estimated that Velkov's tractor trailer was traveling at least 60 mph when he struck the line of stopped vehicles. The area was well lit, fairly straight and there was no rain on the roadway. Williamson said he saw no signs of skidmarks but that investigators were still looking at the case. More...

Kenworth PremierCare PM Delivers 15 Percent Reduction in Maintenance Costs for The Salvation Army

2010-10-28T10:12:00.001-05:00

SEATTLE, Wash., – After converting The Salvation Army’s fleet of trucks at its San Jose and Oakland locations to Kenworth PremierCare(R) Preventive Maintenance, the organization’s western territorial director of production estimates that the contract maintenance program has saved his organization about 15 percent on its maintenance costs.

For years, Henry Filoteo said his organization used a variety of dealers, service locations and on-site service providers to handle fleet maintenance and repairs. That arrangement led to inconsistent quality, higher costs and difficulties in managing the fleet.

“With Kenworth PremierCare we’re getting a full inspection every time a mechanic goes under the hood,” Filoteo said. “As just one example, we saved about 300 percent on brake jobs because the technicians at the Inland Kenworth-Fontana location replaced worn brake pads before they caused damage to the brake components.”

Kenworth PremierCare Preventative Maintenance provides fleets of any size a customized preventive maintenance (PM) solution for their trucks, regardless of manufacturer. Since maintenance is as close as the nearest participating Kenworth dealer, fleets like The Salvation Army and their drivers don’t have to rely on unfamiliar maintenance shops to complete regular PMs and other repairs. For The Salvation Army, the key to saving money is preventive maintenance – catching things before they fail or get damaged and cost more to repair, Filoteo said.

“Also, when our trucks are scheduled for their PMs, the local Kenworth dealer has all the parts waiting in its inventory before the truck goes in,” he added. “That means I’m not having to spend time going to other OEM dealers to get the parts we need.”

The Salvation Army operates a fleet of 300 Class 6 straight trucks and 20 Class 8 tractors out of 22 locations throughout its western territory, which covers an area from Colorado to Hawaii and includes California, Oregon and Washington. The count includes 54 new Kenworth T270s that The Salvation Army acquired earlier this year from NorCal Kenworth in the San Francisco Bay Area to meet emission regulations issued by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). NorCal Kenworth also set up the Kenworth PremierCare PM program for The Salvation Army. The new Kenworth trucks are a weight class higher and more durable than the trucks they replaced, which has improved driver productivity, Filoteo said.

The truck fleet picks up donations and delivers them to warehouse locations where they are sorted, cleaned and prepared for sale at The Salvation Army’s family stores. Proceeds from the sales fund the organization’s residential adult rehabilitation centers.

By the first of the year, The Salvation Army will use Kenworth PremierCare PM at 12 of its 22 locations, with plans to convert its remaining 10 locations in the following months. By converting its locations, Filoteo said The Salvation Army’s western territory will also be better prepared to meet the fleet maintenance reporting requirements of the Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010) as the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration implements them.

Filoteo said as The Salvation Army has brought more locations on board with the contract maintenance program, the savings have been consistent. The program also makes it much less likely that his organization misses a scheduled pickup. Just the thought of missing scheduled pickups makes Filoteo cringe since he also serves as business administrator for The Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Center in Seattle. Filoteo knows too well that if one of his organization’s trucks can’t pick up donations of appliances, furniture, clothing and other household items from businesses or residences, it’s likely that the organization not only doesn’t get the donation, but also develops a negative reputation that can be difficult to overcome.

“Each of our trucks makes about 30 stops each day, and we have to schedule appointments a week or more ahead of time,” Filoteo said. “If we have a truck that breaks down after the first three stops and we have to call 27 other donors and tell them ‘we’re sorry, we can’t send a truck out to pick up your donation today,’ not only is that a huge inconvenience, it’s likely we’ll lose a lot of donations. These are people who may have stayed home from work or rearranged their personal lives so that they could be at home for our drivers to come pick up their donations. They may end up telling their family and friends that you can’t count on The Salvation Army to pick up the donation when they say they would.

“We can ill afford to lose any donations because demand is up at our retail stores and donations are down,” he added. “During these troubled economic times, people are holding on to their furniture, appliances and clothing longer, so we’re getting fewer donations.”

That’s why Filoteo and The Salvation Army have come to depend increasingly on the Kenworth PremierCare Preventive Maintenance program to keep the organization’s fleet running.

“I’ve always been an advocate of preventive maintenance,” Filoteo added. Although he’s been with The Salvation Army for 14 years, Filoteo’s background is in truck maintenance. For 21 years, Filoteo worked at a truck repair facility and body shop in Bakersfield, Calif., to service oil trucks and other equipment on the oil fields. “I learned the importance of spotting things ahead of time, and that it was much cheaper to be pro-active and fix things locally than to have it break down on the road and have to tow it to another facility.”

Kenworth PremierCare Preventive Maintenance provides fleets of any size a customized PM solution for their trucks, regardless of manufacturer. The program offers several maintenance schedule choices and service levels. For more information, contact your Kenworth dealer, call 1-800-KW-ASSIST, or visit Kenworth PremierCare Services under Parts and Service at www.kenworth.com.

Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World’s Best(R) heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company’s dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, compressed and liquefied natural gas trucks, and medium duty diesel-electric hybrids. In 2009, Kenworth became the first truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. Kenworth’s Internet home page is at www.kenworth.com. Kenworth. A PACCAR Company.

Con-way Multimodal Appoints C. Thomas "Tommy" Barnes and Greg Orr to Leadership Team

2010-10-28T10:11:00.001-05:00

PORTLAND, Ore., and ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Con-way Multimodal, a division of Con-way Inc.’s (NYSE: CNW) operating unit Menlo Worldwide Logistics, today announced the appointments of C. Thomas “Tommy” Barnes and Greg Orr to the roles of president and vice president of operations, respectively. Con-way Multimodal arranges third-party carrier services for over-the-road, intermodal, flatbed, heavy haul and specialized transportation for freight shipments.

As president of Con-way Multimodal, Barnes is responsible for the strategic growth, financial and operating performance of the company. Specifically he will evaluate opportunities for global expansion and capitalize on all internal synergies with Con-way Inc.’s business units. Greg Orr is taking on an expanded role as vice president of operations managing all current operations and leading key expansion efforts.

“Tommy and Greg bring impressive industry knowledge and the proven leadership skills necessary to take Con-way Multimodal to the next level both here in the United States and globally,” said John Beckett, vice president of industry group logistics, Menlo Worldwide Logistics. “They’re both results-oriented transportation and logistics experts who have made significant contributions and enjoyed great success in their professional careers. We’re pleased to have them on board.”

Barnes joined Menlo Worldwide in 2000 as transportation project manager and subsequently served as a senior logistics manager and in other operational and account-facing roles prior to his most recent position as director of transportation procurement. Prior to Menlo, he was Newell Rubbermaid’s director of transportation for North America and Europe. Barnes began his career with GATX Logistics as transportation manager for the company’s Chicago operations. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business logistics and transportation from the University of Tennessee.

Prior to his new role, Orr was vice president/general manager at Con-way Multimodal’s Portland, Ore., operation where he was responsible for all profit and loss-related activity. He also managed the creation and implementation of overall strategy, with key objectives emphasizing customer/carrier and employee satisfaction, revenue growth and margin maximization.

Orr joined Con-way Multimodal from Greatwide Dedicated Transport in Dallas, where he was vice president of operations overseeing 16 locations across the United States. Prior to that, he was vice president/account general manager at Schneider Logistics. Orr had previously spent nine years in various management roles at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern Indiana.

Follow the Con-way companies on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Con_way_.

Menlo Worldwide Logistics images are available at www.con-way.com/en/about_con_way/newsroom.

About Con-way Multimodal
Con-way Multimodal, a division of Menlo Worldwide Logistics, provides expanded freight brokerage capabilities and services in the third-party logistics and multimodal freight transportation business, focusing on flexible, efficient capacity solutions for the marketplace. Con-way Multimodal complements Menlo’s best in class 3PL and 4PL services for large customers by offering leverage and personal attention to small- and medium-sized buyers of logistics. Through its network of more than 15,000 carriers, Con-way Multimodal arranges resources to meet the capacity needs of its shippers using over-the-road, intermodal, dry van, flatbed, heavy haul and specialized transportation solutions. The Portland, Ore.-based company is an operating unit of Menlo Worldwide Logistics, LLC, a subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), a $4.3 billion freight transportation and logistics company. For more information, please visit us on the Web at www.con-way.com.

Better Health Begins With Laughter

2010-10-28T08:10:00.001-05:00

"Thanks, I needed that"

A Happy Trucker is a Healthy Trucker!

It is easy to bring more laughter to your life. "The average adult laughs 17 times daily. Keep track for a few days -- and if you’re not laughing at least that often, make a conscious effort to increase your opportunities to laugh," suggested Katherine Puckett, PhD, national director of mind-body medicine at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America facility in Zion, Illinois, who has extensive experience applying therapeutic laughter. Look for humor around you even in difficult situations."

Another option is to consciously do laughter exercises with friends, family or coworkers. If you feel self-conscious at first, remind yourselves that you’re laughing with each other, not at each other, and that your intention is to have good-natured fun. "At first, the laughter is simulated -- but in short order, it becomes real," Dr. Puckett said. As often as you like, try...

Laughter chant. As you clap in rhythm, repeatedly say, "Ho-ho ha-ha-ha, ho-ho ha-ha-ha."

Roller coaster. Lift your arms, sway, jiggle and scream as if you were on a coaster. (This is easiest while seated.)

Snowball fight. Lean over and scoop up some imaginary snow, pack it into a snowball and throw it at another person. Everyone naturally laughs while throwing or being "hit." Try putting some pretend snow down someone’s back, which may make you both laugh even harder.

Sing with laughter. Even if no one is having a birthday, sing Happy Birthday to You to each other, substituting "hee hee" or "ha ha" or "ho ho" for each word. You can swap this laughter vocabulary for the words in many songs -- and before you even finish singing, you’ll be feeling happier and more energized.

Source: Katherine Puckett, PhD, is the national director of mind-body medicine at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America facility at Midwestern Regional Medical Center in Zion, Illinois. She is a licensed clinical social worker and certified laughter leader.

Wholesale Truck and Finance

2010-10-27T16:05:00.001-05:00

Is a direct lender specializing in commercial truck financing for owner operators with bruised or damaged credit. We also have programs available for drivers with good credit with competitive rates starting at 7.25%. We provide financing directly to the owner operator. Through our network of wholesale dealers, fleet lease distributors, and auctions, we will help you locate semi trucks for sale at the wholesale price, and then lease the truck back to you at terms better than what our competition is offering.

Be sure to check out our extensive inventory of used semi trucks, including late model Peterbilt, Kenworth, Volvo, and Freightliner trucks. Our goal is to be your one-stop commercial truck financing solution. Check them out on www.everytruckjob.com

Celadon Group Reports First Fiscal Quarter Financial Results

2010-10-27T15:22:00.001-05:00

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct 26, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) --

Celadon Group Inc. (NYSE: CGI) today reported its financial and operating results for the three months ended September 30, 2010, the first fiscal quarter of the Company's fiscal year ending June 30, 2011.

Revenue for the quarter increased 9.8% to $140.3 million in the 2010 quarter from $127.8 million in the 2009 quarter. Revenue before fuel surcharge increased 8.0% to $119.5 million in the 2010 quarter from $110.7 million in the 2009 quarter. Net income increased to $4.4 million in the 2010 quarter from $0.6 million for the same quarter last year. Earnings per diluted share increased to $0.20 in the 2010 quarter from $0.03 for the same quarter last year.

Chairman and CEO Steve Russell commentedon the results of the September 2010 quarter. "Earnings per share of twenty cents in the quarter compared with three cents in the September 2009 quarter. Our average rate per mile improved to $1.47, up about six cents per mile from the September 2009 level, or 4.5%, and about eight cents below the peak level of December 2006. Cost controls also continued to positively impact results. We have continued to improve our operating efficiency which has resulted in the reduction of 455 trailers and 159 tractors in our quarter end numbers, while maintaining approximately the same number of total miles for both quarters. As we continue to focus on expanding our margins and improving our returns on invested capital, we have also increased our non-asset based business revenues over 20% in the current quarter, compared with the prior year. These improvements and enhancements to our operating model resulted in a reduction in our operating ratio to 93.2, or 430 basis points compared with the 97.5 level achieved in the September 2009 quarter."

"Our balance sheet remains solid and we retain significant liquidity to support the growth of our business. At September 30, 2010, we had $159.6 million of stockholders' equity, $10.9 million in cash and $27.7 million of total balance sheet borrowing with no outstanding bank borrowings."More...

October 31st Deadline Approaches for Best Fleets to Drive For Nominations

2010-10-27T15:09:00.001-05:00

Alexandria, Virginia – What’s important about October 31st besides Halloween? It’s no “trick” that this is also the last day nominations will be accepted for the Truckload Carriers Association’s (TCA) 2011 Best Fleets to Drive For contest and survey.

Best Fleets is an annual evaluation of the best employers in the trucking industry. Company drivers and owner-operators may nominate their trucking companies by completing an application form on www.BestFleetsToDriveFor.com.

Why would you want to nominate your company? The contest tells the world about the positives of trucking, showcasing our best business practices and enhancing the overall image of our industry. It gives other trucking companies something to aspire to, which in turn improves the industry as a whole. Plus, it’s a terrific way to let your company know they are doing a good job for their drivers and that their efforts have not gone unnoticed.

CarriersEdge, the leading provider of online driver quality improvement solutions, will be conducting the survey for TCA. As part of the survey process, the company expects to discover many carrier success stories in areas such as benefits, professional development, driver and community support, safety record, and company culture. This information will be compiled and distributed to TCA members and other interested parties so that all may learn from the innovative ideas.

“Don’t miss out on this opportunity to have your company considered for Best Fleets status,” said John Kaburick, chairman of TCA and president of Earl L. Henderson Trucking Company, Salem, Illinois. “Being selected is a positive publicity opportunity for not only the companies themselves, but also for the drivers who work for them and the trucking industry in general.”

The survey is open to all for-hire trucking companies with 10 trucks or more, whether TCA members or not. These will be evaluated against a broad range of criteria reflecting current HR best practices. Nominations must originate from one or more company drivers and/or owner-operators affiliated with the carrier. Initial information provided by the nominator will be further corroborated through interviews with the company’s management and an additional random sampling of the company’s drivers. Top finishers (exact number varies from year to year) will be identified as Best Fleets to Drive For, and the highest scoring fleets in each of the Company Driver and Owner-Operator categories will be named that category’s overall winner.

To view best practices from last year’s survey as well as profiles of the overall winners, visit www.BestFleetsToDriveFor.com.

OLD DOMINION FREIGHT LINE REPORTS 132.3% INCREASE IN,THIRD-QUARTER NET INCOME ON 22.7% INCREASE IN REVENUE

2010-10-27T11:14:00.001-05:00

J. Wes Frye
Senior Vice President, Finance and
Chief Financial Officer
(336) 822-5305

THOMASVILLE, N.C. ─ (October 27, 2010) ─ Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:
ODFL) today announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010. Revenue
increased 22.7% for the quarter to $396.0 million from $322.8 million for the third quarter of 2009.
Net income increased 132.3% to $24.4 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, for the quarter compared
with $10.5 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, for the third quarter of 2009. Old Dominion’s
operating ratio improved to 89.0% for the third quarter from 93.8% for the third quarter last year.
All prior-period share and per share data in this release have been adjusted to reflect the Company’s
three-for-two stock split effective in August 2010.
For the first nine months of 2010, revenue increased 15.8% to $1.08 billion from $934.1
million for the comparable period in 2009. Net income was $53.6 million, or $0.96 per diluted
share, compared with $25.2 million, or $0.45 per diluted share, for the first nine months of 2009.
The Company’s operating ratio improved to 90.8% for the first nine months of 2010 from 94.5% for
the same period in the prior year. The Company’s results for the third quarter and first nine months
of 2010 reflect lower depreciation expense resulting from changes to the estimated useful lives and
salvage values for its equipment that became effective January 1, 2010. The impact of these changes
is generally on pace with the estimates provided in the Company’s first quarter 2010 earnings
release.
“Old Dominion’s growth accelerated during the third quarter as a 21.5% increase in tonnage
drove strong operating leverage and a triple-digit increase in earnings per diluted share for the
second consecutive quarter,” remarked David S. Congdon, President and Chief Executive Officer of
Old Dominion. “Our tonnage in the third quarter also increased 6.4% over the second quarter of
2010, which is significantly greater than the 1.5% average sequential increase between the second
and third quarters over the past 10 years. While aggregate LTL industry results for the third quarter
are not yet available, we are confident our tonnage growth will indicate that we continued to gain
market share in the quarter. More...

Texting ban goes into effect Oct. 27

2010-10-27T09:03:00.001-05:00

Complements of Land Line Magazine

A federal rule that bans texting while driving a commercial vehicle takes effect Wednesday, Oct. 27. The fines associated with the enforcement part of the rule are steep, up to $2,750 for the driver and up to $11,000 for the carrier.

While OOIDA supports efforts a ban on texting while driving for all vehicle operators, the Association was instrumental in shaping the final rule as a matter of fairness to small-business truckers.

For example, in comments to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration during the rulemaking process, OOIDA leadership urged that the use of GPS functions on smart phones and laptops not be considered texting. OOIDA asked for other distinctions as well, and the FMCSA incorporated a number of distinctions into the final rule.

The following is a list of what the FMCSA does not consider to be texting:

“Reading, selecting, or entering a telephone number, an extension number, or voicemail retrieval codes and commands into an electronic device for the purpose of initiating or receiving a phone call or using voice commands to initiate or receive a telephone call; inputting, selecting or reading information on a global positioning system or navigation system; or using a device capable of performing multiple functions (e.g. fleet management systems, dispatching devices, smart phones, citizens band radios, music players, etc.) for a purpose that is not otherwise prohibited in this part.”

Under the rule, texting while driving for CMV operators does become part of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s list of serious violations that count against a driver’s CDL. In addition, texting while driving carries a 10-point severity weight rating and is a driver responsible offense in CSA 2010.

A separate federal regulatory action seeks to restrict the use of cell phones while driving a commercial vehicle. That regulatory action, a notice of proposed rulemaking, has cleared a few hurdles but is not yet a final rule.

Another NPRM is aimed at prohibiting intrastate hazmat haulers from texting while driving. It is different from the interstate CMV texting ban because it targets hazmat haulers who don’t cross state lines.

Additional regulatory actions are being sought to restrict the use of cell phones while driving for intrastate hazmat haulers.

Land Line and Land Line Now will have updates on these and other regulatory actions as they arise.

– By David Tanner, associate editor
david_tanner@landlinemag.com

Knight’s El Paso Service Center Gets a New Look.

2010-10-26T12:22:00.001-05:00

Drivers at the newly renovated El Paso service center really
appreciate what Knight
Transportation has done for them, and Knight certainly appreciates what
the drivers do for them.
The level of comfort and amenities for the drivers has greatly improved.
These enhancements
coupled with a stable and debt free company, plenty of miles and a
steady income make it a great
team work environment.
Theresa Ruiz, Recruiting Manger for the newly renovated El Paso location
is very pleased with
the response she has gotten from the drivers. "Our drivers know we care
about them, and they
really appreciate all of the improvements at our service center. They
especially like having
shower facilities along with a nice drivers lounge equipped with hot
coffee, plenty of vending
machine choices, a large screen TV, comfortable lounging furniture and a
nice parking area."
These are just some of the reasons why Knight is truly 'Your Hometown
National Carrier' while on
the road.
To become part of the Knight family, call a recruiter at 800-832-8356.
Stop by and visit our new
service center at 1101 Southview Drive, El Paso, TX 79928.

Top Ten reasons to Drive Team.

2010-10-26T11:26:00.001-05:00

Nomination Deadline Nears for Goodyear's North American Highway Hero Program

2010-10-25T14:17:00.001-05:00

AKRON, Ohio, – Do you know a truck driver who has performed an heroic deed? Don’t miss the deadline to recognize drivers who put themselves in harm’s way to save someone else. Nominations for Goodyear’s 28th annual North America Highway Hero program will be accepted until Nov. 30, 2010.

“The Highway Hero program was created by The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company to recognize professional truck drivers and the life-saving rescues and roadside assistance they provide as their jobs take them across North America,” said Joseph Copeland, Goodyear’s vice president, commercial tire systems. “Through this program, we’ve heard hundreds of stories of bravery and selflessness. We believe the public should hear about these acts of heroism as well.”

Nomination forms and program details can be obtained by calling the Goodyear Highway Hero Hotline at 330-796-8183. The nomination form also is available on the program’s web site at http://www.goodyear.com/truck/news/hero.html. For award consideration, the following necessary criteria are met:

The nominee must be a full-time truck driver;
The nominee must reside in the United States or Canada;
The incident must have occurred in the United States or Canada;
The nominee must have been on the job or on the way to or from work, and in his/her rig at the time of the incident;
The nominee’s truck at the time of the incident must have 14 wheels or more;
The incident must have occurred between Nov. 16, 2009 and Nov. 15, 2010, to qualify for this year’s program.

After the nomination period is closed, the list will be pared down to four finalists, with one individual selected by a trucking industry panel of judges to serve as the annual ambassador for the program.

Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems offer complete products and services to the trucking and bus industries, including a full range of original equipment and replacement tires. This includes the 24/7 fleetHQ Solution Center, national programs, tire management tools, online information access and business problem-solving for tomorrow's trucking and bus fleets. For more information on Goodyear’s commercial tires, go to www.goodyear.com/truck.

US Xpress is it the right company for you?

2010-10-25T11:14:00.001-05:00

As the nation’s sixth-largest truckload carrier, U.S. Xpress has plenty of freight to get you rolling. And, we’ve been steadily growing since we started in 1986, so we have the stability to keep you rolling. Plus, our fleet is one of the newest around, with features like auto-shift and our Driver Tech on-board computer with spoken, truck-specific GPS. Most importantly, we treat all of our drivers with the respect they deserve. Find out More...

The miles, pay, equipment and company you’ve always wanted together in one job—that’s our goal. You can be sure we’re working hard every day to deliver:

Great pay on lots of RELIABLE miles. Solos starting at up to 39.5 cents per mile. Teams start at up to 48 cents per mile (split).
Some of the best trucks on the road, including auto-shift, side-tracker cameras and spoken, truck-specific GPS navigation
Excellent benefits, including health, vision and dental insurance… plus 401k
Lease/purchase program available
Recent CDL Grads welcome

QuikTrip Chooses Kenworth T370s For Fresh Approach to Food Delivery in Arizona

2010-10-25T11:09:00.001-05:00

TOLLESON, Ariz. – Given the bite that gasoline can take out of a household budget, more drivers are looking for value whenever they fill up. Enter QuikTrip, the Tulsa-based gas station chain where customers will stop – and stop again – for the convenience of getting fuel and good eats in one place.

By “good eats,” we’re not talking about typical gas station fare. QuikTrip prepares fresh sandwiches, wraps, salads, fruit, pastries, and other food at company-owned kitchens and delivers them to each store daily. “Customers can buy fuel anywhere, but they’ll choose QuikTrip because they like the food,” said Manny Rubio, who manages QuikTrip’s food distribution operation in Arizona, one of the company’s top growth markets. “You’d be hard-pressed to find a fuel retailer that puts as much emphasis on consistency and quality.”

That commitment extends to its trucks. QuikTrip uses Kenworth medium duty trucks to deliver fresh food from its kitchen commissary in Tolleson, Ariz., to more than 75 convenience stores and gas stations in metropolitan Phoenix and Tucson.

With the Arizona retail network expanding, the Arizona operation added three Class 7 Kenworth T370s with PACCAR PX-6 engines this year, joining a fleet of eight Kenworth medium duty trucks purchased in 2006.

“What stands out about the Kenworth T370 is that it fits both our image as a company and our everyday needs as a distribution operation,” Rubio said. “It’s a great-looking truck and we’re proud to have our name on it, plus it provides the low operating costs and driver comfort we expect.”

QuikTrip trucks make 10 to 12 deliveries on routes ranging from 75 to 250 miles. The Kenworth T370’s combination of 220-horsepower PACCAR PX6 engine, automatic transmission, and a load that starts out light and diminishes with each stop can deliver impressive fuel economy and reduce the physical strain on drivers.

“We promote our drivers from within the distribution operation. It’s more effective to train someone from our QuikTrip family to operate a truck than it is to train a truck driver to meet our high standards,” Rubio said. New drivers adapt so well to the Kenworth T370 that they can earn a CDL and be productive in a matter of weeks instead of months. “That’s huge for us,” Rubio said. “They feel comfortable in the truck quickly, especially with the automatic transmission. We can spend more time preparing drivers for other aspects of the job.”

The Kenworth T370 cab is a big part of the equation. QuikTrip drivers have a demanding job working around fuel islands, unloading food, stocking shelves, and staying on schedule – all during an evening shift. At a busy gas lot, the Kenworth T370’s sight-lines and maneuverability can reduce the risk of scrapes and dings.

“With other makes and models of box trucks, they look pretty beat up after just a short time in service,” Rubio said. “We have Kenworths nearing the end of their depreciation program that look and perform exceptionally well.”

QuikTrip manages its own maintenance schedule and its truck dealer, Inland Kenworth in Phoenix, handles nearly all preventive maintenance and repairs. The arrangement helps QuikTrip improve utilization and focus on distributing fresh food instead of running a big shop.

“Other dealers have approached us about other makes of truck,” Rubio said, adding that QuikTrip also has a Kenworth T660 day cab for weekly inventory delivery to its Arizona stores. “But there’s a lot of value in being consistent. Our Kenworth T370s help us control our operating costs and keep our drivers happy every day. As a Class 7 truck, it also gives us the versatility we’ll need as more stores and more products come on board. It’s a great fit now and in the future.”

Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World’s Best(R) heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company’s dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, compressed and liquefied natural gas trucks, and medium duty diesel-electric hybrids. In 2009, Kenworth became the first truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. Kenworth’s Internet home page is at www.kenworth.com. Kenworth. A PACCAR Company.

Truckers challenge EOBR regulation

2010-10-25T11:07:00.001-05:00

(Grain Valley, Mo., Oct. 22, 2010) – The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) filed a petition seeking review of the final rule established by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) mandating electronic on-board recorders for motor carriers with chronic noncompliance with hours-of-service regulations.

The Association’s core argument against mandating “black boxes” is that there is no proof the devices can accurately and automatically record a driver’s hours of service and duty status. An EOBR can only track the movement and location of a truck, and it also requires human interaction to record any change of duty status.

OOIDA illustrates this by reviewing the processes of loading and unloading – time that should typically be logged as on-duty, not driving. However, without interaction from drivers indicating to the device that they are on-duty, the device is incapable of determining the actual duty status of drivers.

OOIDA also contends that FMCSA ignored a federal statute to ensure that EOBRs will not be used to harass vehicle operators.

“Not one word appears in the EOBR rulemaking record identifying regulations containing safeguards to ‘ensure that the devices are not used to harass vehicle operators,’ ” the brief states. “For this reason alone, the rules must be found to be arbitrary and capricious for the agency’s failure to heed the specific statutory mandate.”

A Regulatory Impact Analysis by FMCSA noted that “companies use EOBRs to enforce company policies and monitor drivers’ behavior in other ways.” OOIDA says this type of monitoring can be used to harass and improperly pressure drivers.

“Carrier harassment includes the use of technology to interrupt a driver during an off-duty rest period. Carriers can contact the driver and pressure him to get back on the road to maximize his on duty-time. Such power usurps the driver’s discretion to get rest, take a break or sleep when he believes it is necessary even when he or she has time left on the clock to drive or work,” the brief states.

Another argument against the use of the electronic on-board tracking devices centers on the Fourth Amendment.

“The real-time, government mandated, 24-hour electronic surveillance of a driver’s location and movements contemplated by the (notice of proposed rulemaking) is an unjustified and dangerous intrusion on drivers’ right of privacy,” the brief states.

The constitutional argument states that the constant monitoring constitutes a search of the driver within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment.

While warrantless searches have been granted in the workplace, numerous court decisions have prevented them on a citizen’s home or private dwelling. Given the unique nature of the trucking industry and the fact that many drivers utilize their tractors as their “home away from home,” the Association argues that “a driver has such a reasonable expectation of privacy in his truck when he is not working.”

“The mandated use of EOBRs subjects perfectly legal, private activity to public scrutiny, and potential sanction,” the brief states.

OOIDA and the member plaintiffs are asking the court to vacate the rule and send it back to the agency for further consideration consistent with the court's findings.

The court has given FMCSA until Nov. 4 to file its reply briefs.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is the largest national trade association representing the interests of small-business trucking professionals and professional truck drivers. The Association currently has more than 154,000 members nationwide. OOIDA was established in 1973 and is headquartered in the greater Kansas City, Mo., area.

WTI Transport was Built on Family Values

2010-10-22T15:37:00.000-05:00

Founded in 1989, WTI calls Tuscaloosa, Alabama home. Located 55 miles Southwest of Birmingham, Tuscaloosa is a vibrant city home to many of the nation's leading manufacturing companies. A center for commerce, culture and the University of Alabama, the city maintains a sense of community. Tuscaloosa has kept up with the changing economy and continues to provide for our citizens an environment for growth and stability to our area.

WTI is a flatbed carrier servicing primarily the Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and East Coast. Our main shipments consist of roofing, building materials, and all types of iron and steel products. WTI is proud to be a major carrier in the flatbed industry. Our focus is on making sure our customers are taken care of by providing the "Absolute Best Service."

For over 21 years, WTI has fostered long standing relationships with many of the nation's leading manufactures. Those relationships have been built on "Doing What We Say We'll Do" and delivering freight safely and on time. All accomplished with a driver force that is professional and understands the importance of customer service.

Dedicated to top-flight service and professionalism, WTI Transport has been rewarded by its commitments. The company has grown from a small 40-truck operation in the 1980s to over 275 power units today. WTI has thrived much like the city it is proud to call home.

Shaffer Trucking offeres 3 cpm Pay Increase

2010-10-22T15:34:00.001-05:00

Shaffer Trucking, a division of Crete Carrier Corporation, is an irregular route truckload carrier of general commodities. Shaffer operates with both common and contract authority, between all points in the contiguous United States. Our mission here at Shaffer is to be the nation's premiere temperature control carrier, meeting or exceeding customer expectations through vision, leadership and a commitment to the process of continuous improvement. While we specialize in the transportation of temperature sensitive products, including those requiring temperatures as low as -20 degrees Fahrenheit, we also transport many other commodities.

Apply Online at http://www.shaffertrucking.com/driver_shaffer/appentry/appentry.htm

The company offers one of the most comprehensive pay packages in the truckload industry for its qualified drivers. National Divers with one or two years verifiable OTR experience start at $.40 per mile. Drivers with at least 5 years experience and a stable work record can qualify for $.43 per mile. In addition, drivers are eligible for a one cent ($.01) per mile annual pay increase. Maximum base pay in the National and other Long Haul Fleets is $.48 cents per mile. Shaffer Trucking pays PRACTICAL ROUTE miles instead of short route miles.

PGT Trucking Ranks Among Top USA Trucking Companies

2010-10-22T15:30:00.001-05:00

An estimate of 16 million trucks operate in America. Almost 2 million are tractor trailers.There are over 3.3 million truck drivers in the U.S. About 330,000 are independent owner operators.

Of the approximately 360,000 trucking companies in the U.S., 96% operate 28 or fewer trucks. With over 1000 power units operating in 30 terminals strategically located throughout the Eastern half of the United States, , PGT Trucking ranks in the top 4% of all trucking companies in the USA.

Check them out PGT Owner Operator Division

Frito-Lay All-Electric Delivery Trucks Hit The Streets of Columbus

2010-10-22T15:16:00.000-05:00

October 21, 2010

PLANO, Texas - PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay North America division began rolling out some of its fully electric delivery trucks in Columbus today. These ten electric delivery trucks will ultimately be part of the largest planned fleet of commercial all-electric trucks in North America. This year, Columbus is one of three cities in the U.S., along with New York City and Ft. Worth, Texas, to receive its favorite snacks in fully-electric delivery trucks.

Electric trucks reduce fuel consumption, noise pollution and CO2 emissions, compared to traditional delivery trucks. In total, Frito-Lay will be deploying 21 electric trucks this year in the U.S. and Canada. The company projects it will roll out 155 additional trucks in 2011, making Frito-Lay the largest commercial fleet of all-electric trucks in North America.

“The electric vehicle program builds on a long-standing commitment by Frito-Lay North America and its parent company PepsiCo to environmental sustainability,” said Mike O’Connell, director of fleet for Frito Lay North America. “With the seventh largest privately owned fleet in the U.S., we have set a goal of becoming the most fuel efficient fleet in the country, and these vehicles give us an opportunity to use the latest advances in transportation technology as a significant way to reduce our environmental impact.”

The trucks, designed by Smith Electric Vehicles, generate zero tailpipe emissions and operate for up to 100 miles on a single charge. The initial rollout in Columbus was facilitated through a partnership with Clean Fuels Ohio, a statewide non-profit organization working to advance Ohio’s energy, economic and environmental security. The U.S. Department of Energy awarded Clean Fuels Ohio $11 million for alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and infrastructure projects. Frito-Lay is receiving a portion of this funding. Frito-Lay’s fleet program aligns with Mayor Michael B. Coleman’s Get Green Columbus environmental initiatives.

“The Ohio Advanced Transportation Partnership will bring more than 340 alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles and 16 refueling and charging stations to Ohio,” said Sam Spofforth, executive director of Clean Fuels Ohio. “We are proud to have Frito-Lay as a partner. These all-electric trucks are a great example of Frito-Lay’s overall industry leadership in sustainable, fuel efficient fleet best practices.”

Once the planned 176 electric trucks are deployed, Frito-Lay will eliminate the need for 500,000 gallons of fuel annually. Each truck emits 75% less greenhouse gases than a conventional diesel truck.

Frito-Lay is working with Smith Electric Vehicles, the nation’s top manufacturer of battery-electric commercial trucks. Smith Electric is a leader in the development of commercial electric trucks designed to operate at peak effectiveness in urban environments. Smith Electric produces the Newton, which is the only medium duty (class 4 - 7) all-electric commercial truck on the market.

“The manufacturing and introduction of this technology is important to the U.S. market because it impacts many of the issues we face today: from the need for ‘green’ jobs to reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to alternatives to fossil fuels,” said Bryan Hansel, CEO of Smith Electric Vehicles. “Frito-Lay’s truck program is a significant step forward in the advancement of electric vehicles.”

Specific benefits associated with Smith’s all-electric trucks include:

• Can run up to 100 miles on a single charge
• Zero tailpipe emissions
• Emits 75 percent less greenhouse gases than diesel
• Operates virtually silently, eliminating noise pollution
• Provides a long term economically viable solution

Clean Fuels Ohio works extensively throughout Ohio to increase the availability of cleaner, non-petroleum fuels, more efficient and advanced vehicle technologies and alternative fuel and charging infrastructure. The Ohio Advanced Transportation Partnership (OATP), of which Frito-Lay is a member, was developed by Clean Fuels Ohio and represents more than a $30 million investment in alternative fuel vehicles and infrastructure projects from 29 partners across the state. OATP partners include representatives from government, private and non-profit fleets. The projects included in OATP—the purchase and conversion of vehicles, construction of refueling and charging facilities, and public education campaigns—represent significant investments in Ohio’s transportation future.

Frito-Lay North America is the $13 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY. Learn more about Frito-Lay at the corporate Web site, http://www.fritolay.com/, the Snack Chat blog, http://www.snacks.com/ and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/fritolay.

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that each generates more than $1 billion in annual retail sales. Our main businesses - Frito-Lay, Quaker, Pepsi-Cola, Tropicana and Gatorade - also make hundreds of other nourishing, tasty foods and drinks that bring joy to our consumers in more than 200 countries. With annualized revenues of nearly $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth, called Performance with Purpose. By dedicating ourselves to offering a broad array of choices for healthy, convenient and fun nourishment, reducing our environmental impact, and fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace culture, PepsiCo balances strong financial returns with giving back to our communities worldwide. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

ATA Supports Fuel Economy Standards as Preferred Method of Reducing Carbon Emissions

2010-10-22T15:02:00.001-05:00

ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 22

ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Building on its progressive sustainability platform, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) this week adopted a carbon emissions control policy supporting a national fuel economy standard for trucks, rather than government actions to increase fuel prices or alternative fuel mandates. The policy states that "carbon emission reductions achieved through national truck fuel economy standards are preferable to government actions that increase fuel prices in an effort to discourage petroleum-based diesel fuel consumption or mandate the use of alternative fuels."

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100129/ATALOGO)

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100129/ATALOGO)

While any federally mandated carbon control program applied to transportation fuels likely will increase the cost of fossil fuels, discussions of carbon control programs should be premised on fundamental principles designed to minimize disruptions to the transportation of goods and to protect the viability of the trucking industry. ATA's new energy policy outlines a framework for evaluating carbon control initiatives and specifies that an effective carbon control program for the trucking industry must address the following provisions:

Produce cost-effective, verifiable carbon reductions;
Ensure that revenue generated from motor carriers and other highway transportation consumers benefits highway users;
Ensure that any increased costs are reasonable, predictable and do not increase the volatility of fuel prices;
Avoid diesel fuel supply disruptions and ensure that only on-road diesel fuel that meets the ASTM standard for which trucks were designed to run on is sold in the marketplace;
Maintain a level playing field among freight transportation modes; and
Provides incentives for improved fuel efficiency and availability of alternative technologies.

"Diesel fuel remains the most viable option for powering the trucking industry," said ATA Vice President Rich Moskowitz. "ATA's carbon emission reduction policy acknowledges the need to look toward alternative technologies while ensuring that the industry can continue to efficiently move the consumer goods we rely on daily."

The carbon emissions policies were approved by the ATA Board of Directors at the association's annual Management Conference & Exhibition, held Oct. 16-19 in Phoenix.

In the release of its sustainability plan more than two years ago, ATA announced its support of technologically feasible national fuel economy standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks that reduce fuel consumption. Other components of the plan to lower trucking's carbon footprint include:

Federal laws requiring trucks to have speed governors set at 65 mph or below, and a national speed limit of 65 mph for all vehicles;
Allowing more productive truck weights and combinations, which safely improve fuel economy;
Expansion of the EPA SmartWay Transportation program, which works to reduce greenhouse gases and save fuel;
Reducing idling by updating the interstate system and reducing traffic congestion; and
Using new technologies to reduce other engine idling.

Visit www.trucksdeliver.org for more information about ATA's sustainability recommendations.

The American Trucking Associations (www.truckline.com) is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of other trucking groups, industry-related conferences, and its 50 affiliated state trucking associations, ATA represents more than 37,000 members covering every type of motor carrier in the United States. Follow ATA on Twitter @TruckingMatters (www.twitter.com/truckingmatters), or become a fan on Facebook (http://tinyurl.com/y4qwp6h).'

SOURCE American Trucking Associations

Driver Fatigue the Major Cause of 2009 Fatal Truck Accident,,,Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/142773#ixzz137Ts7MPZ

2010-10-22T14:59:00.000-05:00

On-board data recorders would decrease truck accidents caused by driver fatigue, according to the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation on a 2009 fatal tractor trailer crash.

October 22, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Fifteen specific safety recommendations were issued by the National Transportation Safety Board to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently, following its investigation into a fatal July 2009 tractor-trailer crash in which six vehicles were involved.The NTSB determined that the accident was caused by the truck driver's fatigue, which was caused in turn by recent and acute sleep loss, disruption of his circadian rhythms due to the driver's shift schedule and mild sleep apnea. Truck driver fatigue is one of the most common causes of truck accidents on United States highways.

Implementing Safety Recommendations Would Decrease the Number of Truck Accidents The NTSB's crash investigation report categorically states that implementation of specific new safety rules and technologies would decrease accidents involving heavy commercial trucks. Among the NTSB's 15 safety recommendations to the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration:

Require all heavy commercial trucks to install video event recorders
Improve the administration's fatigue educational materials
Require all truck companies to adopt a fatigue management program based on the North American Fatigue Management Program

The crash investigation team also urged the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to require all heavy commercial trucks to carry electronic onboard data recorders, a recommendation the NTSB has made repeatedly since 1977.

The Effect of Failure to Use Recommended Safety Technologies If all trucking companies did require installation of both electronic data recorders and video event recorders, then truck accident victims would have additional evidence to use when making liability claims after an accident. There is also a belief that these recording devices will have a deterrent effect, forcing drivers to follow the rules of the road for fear of being caught.

As it stands, some trucks carry event recorders and others do not. This inconsistency makes it critically important for injury victims to retain personal injury attorneys who have extensive experience litigating injury claims against commercial trucking companies. Attorneys who have investigated and litigated many truck accident lawsuits across the country know where to look for evidence to prove liability -- even in accident cases where the truck in question did not carry any data recorders. An experienced truck accident lawyer can evaluate your case, explain your legal rights, and take legal action to help you recover compensation for injuries or the loss of a loved one in a truck accident. Article provided by Greenberg & Stone, P.A. Visit us at www.truckaccident.sgglaw.com

TSC GROUP, LLC TO ACQUIRE BARJAN, LLC

2010-10-22T14:48:00.001-05:00

Charlotte, NC – TSC Group, LLC, a leading company in the sales, marketing, and distribution of consumer brand products to America’s top retailers, travel centers, and truck stops, announced today the execution of definitive agreements to acquire Barjan, LLC (“Barjan”), a premiere distributor of consumer products to travel centers, truck stops, and convenience stores. Barjan, LLC is a portfolio company of Monomoy Capital Partners of New York, NY.

For over 30 years TSC Group, LLC and its affiliated companies, (“TSC”), have provided products and services to America’s top national and regional retailers. TSC’s unique approach to improving sell through and overall profitability for its retail partners is the combination of a best in class national in-store field service support organization, a business development strategy focusing on the introduction of early lifecycle products, and compelling merchandising, presentation standards and in-store promotional materials. To top it off, TCS’s patented software, (Kogenysis), greatly simplifies the aggregation of categories and products delivered by TSC as a single provider.

TSC’s acquisition of Barjan additionally includes the recent purchase of ETW, (Eastern Tool Warehouse), a leading national distributor of specialty tools for the automotive and heavy duty truck industries. “TSC now provides comprehensive retail services through a very unique strategic business model. Retailers will now have a strong advantage with TSC’s supply chain expertise, product selection and in-store execution for optimizing category success and profitability,” said John J. Wiesehan, Jr, President and CEO. “We are extremely excited to welcome the employees and operations of Barjan and ETW to the TSC family of companies. The combination of TSC’s unmatched product portfolio and commitment to customer service and Barjan’s best-in-class distribution capabilities will allow TSC to provide its customers with the strongest value proposition in the industry.”

The transaction completes TSC’s strategy of becoming the only full service distributor to the travel center industry with a nationwide field merchandising organization providing critical in-store merchandising and support. “We believe the synergies of this transaction will deliver substantial future growth under the leadership of TSC’s highly experienced senior team,” added John Wiesehan.

Christopher Hannum, a partner with Culp, Elliott & Carpenter represented TSC in the acquisition. Richard J. Battle and Scott A. Henderson of Elliott Davis provided TSC with tax and professional advice.

About TSC Group

TSC is a leader in the sales, marketing, and distribution of consumer brand products to America's top retailers. TSC has earned the respect and confidence of today’s national retailers by successfully introducing innovative, profit-driven products and by facilitating and streamlining the factory-to-shelf process. TSC’s product experience includes not only general merchandise products, but also fresh, high growth categories such as prepaid products, financial services, and subscriber services. TSC also provides additional retail solutions services, including category management, proprietary billing and invoicing technology, in-store service and merchandising, and pricing and promotional execution. TSC is headquartered in Charlotte, NC with offices in Atlanta, Knoxville, Miami, Richmond, Denver and Dallas/Ft. Worth. For additional information on TSC, please visit www.tscgrp.com or call 1.800.647.1718.

About Barjan

With a centralized distribution center in Rock Island, Illinois, Barjan is a major distributor of general merchandise to truck stops and travel centers across America. The Company sources and distributes over 8,000 individual products, including automotive and truck tools, automotive accessories, chemicals and additives, consumer electronics, tools, books, videos, and music. In addition to sourced products, Barjan is the owner of many leading aftermarket brands servicing the professional truck driver including: Astatic, Wilson and Francis. Barjan is the principal supplier to both leading national travel center chains and thousands of regional and local travel centers across North America. For additional information on Barjan, please visit www.barjan.com.

About Monomoy Capital Partners, L.P.

With over $640 million in assets under management, Monomoy Capital Partners is a family of private equity funds that makes controlling investments in middle market companies. The Fund has completed 29 transactions in the smaller end of the middle market over the past four years and currently owns 11 businesses that collectively employ more than 6,000 people. Monomoy implements customized business improvement programs in all portfolio companies that reduce operating expenses, increase profitability and encourage profitable growth. For additional information on Monomoy and its portfolio companies, please visit www.mcpfunds.com.

Everytruckjob.com has added New Company Job Post

2010-10-22T14:44:00.001-05:00

Just click on the link to view new driver openings.

ABCO Transportation

Walker Trucking

Franks Trucking

Freightbuzz

Scholastic Book Fairs

McGillion Transport

Driver Carrier Services

Oakland port logistics Inc

RayTrans Trucking

TEXAS STAR EXPRESS OFFERS LEASE PURCHASE PROGRAM

2010-10-21T15:25:00.002-05:00

Texas Star Express introduced a lease purchase plan that included 2009
Internationals, Freightliners, and Volvos. The response was
overwhelming; all forty-three trucks in the initial program were sold
within ten weeks. The plan included numerous optional perks, including
fixed fuel costs and guaranteed maintenance programs. With low weekly
payments and a one-dollar buyout, drivers were eager to sign up and the
trucks went fast!
Due to the major success of our program, Texas Starâ€™s lease program
continues to evolve. Today, we are offering 2007 Freightliner Century
Class tractors. Not only do these tractors come with 13 speed 60-series
Detroit engines, they also have a three year / 300,000 mile warranty
with it.
2007 Freightliner60series Detroit engine, 13 speed
No credit check
Down payment assistance
$395.00 for 130 weeks
$1.00 buyout
3 year / 300,000 mile warranty
1 year / 100,000 select extra warranty
6 month / 50,000 Texas Star warranty
First tank of fuel FREE
Excellent mileage pay - loaded and empty
Fuel surcharge paid - loaded and empty
Fuel discounts passed through
What are you waiting for? CALL NOW! 1-800-888-0203
Check them out on www.everytruckjob.com

USA Truck Announces Improved Third Quarter Earnings

2010-10-21T15:17:00.002-05:00

USA Truck, Inc. (NASDAQ: USAK) today announced base revenue of $100.8 million for the quarter ended September
30, 2010, an increase of 22.4% from $82.3 million for the same quarter of 2009. Net income was $0.6 million for the
quarter ended September 30, 2010, compared to a net loss of $1.6 million for the same quarter of 2009. Diluted
earnings per share were $0.06 for the quarter ended September 30, 2010, compared to a loss per share of $0.16 for the
same quarter of 2009.
Base revenue increased 15.6% to $284.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2010 from $246.4 million for
the same period of 2009. We incurred a net loss of $1.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2010,
compared to a net loss of $4.7 million for the same period of 2009. For the nine months ended September 30, 2010, we
incurred a loss per share of $0.15 compared to a loss per share of $0.46 for the same period of 2009.
In comparing the financial results of the quarter ended September 30, 2010 to the comparable period of 2009, Clifton R.
Beckham, President and CEO of the Company, made the following statement:
“Our business model is beginning to take the form we envisioned when we began executing our VEVA (Vision
for Economic Value Added) strategic plan two years ago.
“Our asset-light service offerings of SCS (Strategic Capacity Solutions) and Intermodal now represent
approximately 13.0% of our total revenue, and are on pace to produce annualized revenue in excess of $60
million. Both asset-light services are profitable and grew rapidly in response to our customers’ evolving needs.
In fact, 84% of our largest 25 customers utilized various combinations of our Trucking and asset-light services
during the quarter. We also began taking delivery of private intermodal containers during the quarter, which we
expect to accelerate our asset-light revenue growth throughout 2011.
“Our Trucking services are steadily improving as they conform to our Spider Web freight network design.
Nearly 48% of our freight moved in Spider Web lanes during the quarter compared to just 39% a year ago. That
improved network compliance enabled us to simultaneously drive down our length-of-haul by 5.4% to 546 miles,
reduce our empty miles to 10.3%, improve our miles per tractor per week by 2.5% to 2,007 and raise our revenue
per total mile by 9.2% to $1.42. Spider Web lane prices averaged $0.27 per mile more than our legacy lane
prices, but that was not the only catalyst for our improved pricing. Freight rates in the truckload industry fell to
unsustainably low levels at the trough of the economic recession, so we proactively increased pricing on many of
our underperforming lanes during the third quarter in response to tighter capacity relative to demand early in the
quarter.
“Our people are gaining experience operating within the Spider Web and their ability to execute was evident in
our revenue growth, our safety performance and driver management, as follows:
• Trucking base revenue grew by 14.5%, but only 2.3% of the increase came from growth in the tractor
fleet (primarily from additions to our owner-operator ranks). The balance of the increase resulted from
higher base revenue per tractor per week.
• We reduced our Department of Transportation recordable accident frequency by 20.8% to its lowest
level in the past four years, which led to an approximate 140 basis point improvement in insurance and
claims costs.
• We also reduced our driver turnover rate by approximately 18 percentage points, which allowed us to
man our fleet with drivers, reduce recruiting costs as a percent of revenue and hold the line on other
driver-related costs despite a tightening driver labor pool.
“For the quarter, the additional cash flow from operations (+70.3% to $9.4 million) produced by our improved
performance strengthened our balance sheet. Overall, we generated $9.9 million in free cash flow (net cash flow
from operations plus net cash provided by investing activities), which we used to reduce our balance sheet debt
to pre-2010 levels and to 41.1% of total capitalization.
“Freight demand and truck capacity in the truckload marketplace seem to be near equilibrium with pockets of
strength and softness in particular geographic regions around the country. Demand has moderated recently and
we have yet to see a strong fall peak shipping season, so we expect the overall market to remain near equilibrium
USA Truck, Inc.
Page 2 of 5
until Thanksgiving with demand outstripping capacity in certain parts of the country. We believe capacity will
exceed demand during the seasonally weak winter months, but we anticipate further tightening of capacity as
next spring approaches. We expect elevated fuel costs, continued tight credit, an aging tractor fleet and
implementation of the Department of Transportation’s Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (a wide-ranging
performance-based safety initiative) in November to create a more significant shortage of trucks in 2011 than the
industry has experienced during 2010.
“While we are optimistic about the industry’s prospects as 2011 and beyond unfolds, we are bracing for what is
likely to be two challenging quarters between now and next spring. We have improved our model considerably
over the past year and those improvements will serve us well for the next six months, but we are also facing
some near-term headwinds.
• Our fuel cost per gallon rose steadily throughout the quarter, averaging 11.9% more than the
comparable quarter. The steady increase in fuel prices prevented our fuel surcharge program from
keeping pace with the rising costs. Thus, we purchased more fuel gallons at a higher price with less fuel
surcharge recoveries. The result was approximately 170 basis points of additional operating margin
consumed by fuel costs, or approximately $0.10 per share.
• Our tractor and trailer fleets are older than what we specify in our business model; 28 and 66 months,
respectively, compared to our model of 22 and 42 months. As a result, we incurred approximately 180
basis points of additional operating margin for maintenance costs, or approximately $0.11 per share.
We have placed approximately 400 new tractors in service during 2010 and we have contracted to
purchase an additional 500 tractors with delivery throughout 2011. The new tractors are more fuel
efficient and require far less maintenance than the tractors we are taking out of service. This month, we
will also begin taking delivery of some of the 400 new trailers that we have purchased, with final
delivery scheduled to take place during the first quarter of 2011. However, it will take a few quarters
for the financial impact of the new equipment to appear, particularly during the winter months when
cold and wintery weather typically increases fuel and maintenance costs.
“We are pleased with our strategic progress, and we believe our model is well-positioned to capitalize on future
economic recovery. In the near-term, we will work to build greater Spider Web density in our freight network,
expand our asset-light services and update our tractor fleet.” See Reports...
Check them out on www.everytruckjob.com

Heartland Express, Inc. Reports Revenues and Earnings for the Third Quarter of 2010

2010-10-21T15:13:00.002-05:00

NORTH LIBERTY, IOWA - October 20, 2010- Heartland Express, Inc. (Nasdaq: HTLD) announced today financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2010. Operating revenues for the quarter increased 12.2% to $127.2 million from $113.4 million in the third quarter of 2009. Net income was $18.3 million compared to $14.5 million in the 2009 period, a 26.1% increase. Earnings per share increased 25.0% to $0.20 from $0.16 reported in the third quarter of 2009. For the quarter, Heartland Express, Inc. (the “Company”) posted an operating ratio (operating expenses as a percentage of operating revenues) of 77.2% and a 14.4% net margin (net income as a percentage of operating revenues).

Operating revenues for the nine month period increased 7.2%to $370.3 million from $345.3 million in the 2009 period. Net income was $46.8 million compared to $46.3 million in the 2009 period, a 1.2% increase. Earnings per share increased 2.0% to $0.52 from $0.51 reported in the first nine months of 2009. Net income decreased by $0.07 per share due to a decrease in gains on disposal of property and equipment and increased depreciation expense primarily attributable to the purchase of new tractors during the latter half of 2009. For the nine month period, the Company posted an operating ratio of 81.9% and a 12.6% net margin.

Operating revenues continue to improve as a result of tighter industry capacity. However, the increase in freight demand has leveled off in comparison to the second quarter of 2010 and continues to lag dramatically behind that experienced in 2007 prior to the recent recession. Freight rates have increased this year since reaching bottom in the third quarter of 2009 and appear to be stabilizing. The Company continues to focus on improving utilization and cost controls as is reflected in our third quarter and year-to-date operating ratio and net margin. The industry continues to be challenged by driver recruitment and retention. This challenge is expected to amplify with the implementation of the stringent safety requirements of CSA 2010 (Comprehensive Safety Analysis) and the potential impacts on the carriers in the industry and the number of qualified drivers. The Company has begun the installation of PeopleNet® electronic on-board recorders and is currently transitioning to paperless logs. This on-board computing and communications system is expected to improve safety, equipment utilization, and customer service.
Read More...
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UPS 3Q Earnings Climb 69 Percent on Revenue Growth of 9 Percent

2010-10-21T15:02:00.002-05:00

Strong Growth Across all Segments; UPS Raises Annual Guidance

UPS (NYSE:UPS) today announced adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.93 for the third quarter of 2010, a 69% improvement over the prior-year period. Global revenue grew 9.3%, generating $1.5 billion in adjusted operating profit, a 62% increase.

On a reported basis, diluted earnings per share were $0.99, an 80% increase over the $0.55 in the same period last year. During the quarter, UPS recorded an after-tax benefit of $61 million on the sale of real estate.

"UPS once again exceeded expectations due to superior execution across all business units and our ability to provide solutions that create value for our customers," said Scott Davis, UPS chairman and CEO. "We continue to deliver significant earnings growth and margin expansion in the current economic environment. This is a true testament to what can be accomplished when you have excellent people, superior service and an unmatched global portfolio."

Based on the company's performance, UPS has increased its guidance for 2010 adjusted diluted earnings to a range of $3.48 to $3.54 per share, a 51%-to-53% increase over last year.

Read More...

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D.E. Jones, Inc. of Arkansas is a great Company to work for...

2010-10-21T13:31:00.002-05:00

IF you're looking for a Company that cares.

Take a Look at D.E. Jones...They operate all flatbeds staying mainly in the Midwest region of the U.S. Our drivers are home every weekend and Company drivers are eligible to purchase health insurance through our group plan. We pay mileage and extra for tarp, and extra stops. When looking at driver qualifications, They look for at least 2 yrs over the road experience and 6+ months of flatbed experience. They are a small company with 13 trucks.

I thought this company should at least have a look/see for any one wanting home time and miles. I have worked with this company and the staff tops. If you are looking for more info check them out on www.everytruckjob.com