Economy

The Impact of Truck Driver Wellness Programs

It's logical to think that helping drivers improve their physical health and general well-being will make a dent in the runaway turnover rates now endemic at many motor carriers. Yet when executives at several large and respected long-haul fleets talk about why they rolled out driver health and wellness programs and why they keep investing in those initiatives, it's apparent they seek to achieve something more altruistic than merely quelling driver churn.

Highway 401 Section of the New Parkway Now Open

WINDSOR, ON -- The final stretch of the new Rt. Hon. Herb Gray Parkway opened to traffic on Saturday, eventually connecting with the Gordie Howe International Bridge, linking Windsor to Detroit.

B.C. Port Trucking Commissioner Orders Back Pay for Drivers

VANCOUVER, B.C. - The Office of the British Columbia Port Trucking Commissioner on Friday released a series of rulings that truck drivers are owned more than $150,000 in back wages as part of an agreement that ended a 2014 strike at the Port of Metro Vancouver.

B.C., Ontario Poised to Drive Canadian Economy in 2016

TORONTO, ON -- A changing of the guard in Canadian growth is well underway, with British Columbia and Ontario poised to be the biggest drivers in a still-sluggish Canadian economy next year, according to new report from the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), and that could force some trucking companies to rethink how they are doing business.

Trailer Backlog to Continue Momentum for Months to Come

BLOOMINGTON, IN- March trailer orders dropped 25 percent year-over-year to 22,000 units, but manufacturers are working with such a huge backlog that they’re still hard at…

Daimler Trucks to Make New Medium Duty Engines in Detroit

DETROIT, MI -- Daimler Trucks on Friday announced it is making a big financial investment to enable production of the new Detroit DD5 and DD8 medium duty engines at Detroit's headquarters and manufacturing facility in Redford, MI. Joined by Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, and nearly 2,000 United Auto Workers employees, the company celebrated the announcement of the new lines of DD5 and DD8 medium duty engines and officially launched production of the company's Detroit DT12 automated manual transmission, previously manufactured in Germany. The new engines, first announced at the 2014 American Trucking Associations annual conference, will be available in select Daimler Truck North America vehicles by the end of 2016.

B.C. Truck Parking Project Runs into Opposition

SURREY, BC - There is increasing opposition to a plan to build a facility to allow hundreds of trucks to park in a part of British Columbia. Local groups and residents are lining up against the company GG Metro Holdings, which wants to construct the facility in Surrey on nearly 80 acres on three parcels of land near 16th Avenue, according to The Vancouver Sun newspaper.

Canadian Spot Market Freight Volume Declines

TORONTO, ON -- Spot market freight volume fell in October from the month before and year earlier, according to new figures released by Transcore Link Logistics, based on its Loadlink load boards.

Mack Celebrates 40 Years in the Lehigh Valley

GREENSBORO, NC - It was 40 years ago the first on-highway rig rolled off Mack Trucks Lehigh Valley Operations manufacturing facility located in Lower Macungie Township, PA and on Thursday the company paused to remember the occasion.

P.E.I. Ending Truck Disinfection Program at Year’s End

CHARLOTTETOWN, PE -- Truckers hauling potatoes on Prince Edward Island will have one less matter to contend with following a recent decision by officials in the province to close the truck disinfection station in the town of Borden-Carleton and remove mobile units by Dec. 31. According to CBC News, under the program, trucks carrying potatoes are sprayed to help prevent bacterial ring rot. However, in an interview with www.todaystrucking.com an official with the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association (APTA) says the program is no longer needed because potatoes aren't at risk of disease anymore, only the seed loads are potentially at risk.

Titanium Third Quarter Business Jumps 40 Percent

WOODBRIDGE, ON - A trucking operations that bills itself as one of the fastest growing in Canada lived up to its claim in the third quarter of the year with big increases in profitability and revenue.

Diesel Prices Reverse Course, Down from Last Week

LONDON, ON and WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Diesel prices in both Canada and the U.S. retreated this week after turning higher and hitting some of their highest levels in many weeks.

Want to Keep Your Drivers? Make Sure They’re Treated Well

TORONTO, ON - How your truck drivers are treated by customers can have a big impact as to whether they want to stay or find another job, but there is a solution. That's the conclusion of a six-month study recently completed by the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA), called Operation Upgrade, to find out how truck drivers are treated at shipping and receiving facilities and measure their level of satisfaction with their carriers' customers. Specifically, the study found drivers complained about how little attention is paid by bad customers in honoring appointments and turnaround times. Delays and wasted time eats up drivers' allowable working hours, costs them money and keeps them away from their families longer, according to the study. Worse, many drivers report maltreatment and even discrimination at more than a few of the worst-offending facilities. OTA says the truck driving profession is facing a shortage crisis in Canada. "With freight demand increasing across North America and capacity tightening, buying power is swinging in truck drivers' favor - giving them not only more choice of who they work for, but also which customers they want to serve."

Canadians Taking Over U.S. Tollway in US$2.8 Billion Deal

TORONTO, ON - Three Canadian groups will be taking over a U.S. tollway for nearly the next century under terms of a new deal that's been signed.

GAIN Clean Fuel Opens its First Public CNG Station in Quebec

COTEAU-DU-LAC, QC -- Representatives from C.A.T., U.S. Venture Gain Fuel Canada, and Gaz Métro, along with local and regional dignitaries, celebrated on Friday the grand opening of the first GAIN Clean Fuel compressed natural gas (CNG) public station in Quebec.