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Our Forum is the all year around meeting place, where drivers and owners come for Information or discuss trucking and expediting related questions. Whether you drive a Tractor/Trailer, Expediter Straight Truck or Van, you are very welcome here in Expediter World. We bring you Expediting and Trucking News on a regular basis. Trucking Professionals as well as Newbie's enjoy our Photo Gallery and NEW Free Classifieds. You can also find the right job with our new website, please visit us at www.expediterjobsonline.com. You can also check diesel fuel prices with our National Truckstop fuel price locator. Join us in relaxing, having fun and playing games.
Bridge gives out under semi-truck on Highway 145 during Florence flooding |  | 
CHESTERFIELD, SC --
A truck driver had a close call in South Carolina as flooding from Florence continues to plague the East Coast. 150 women-owned business challenge reaches mile marker 50 with new trucking start-ups | |
The collaborative program is now one third of the way toward reaching its initial goal. Expediter Services (ES) announced that a collaborative program with the Women in Trucking Association to create 150 women-owned businesses in transportation. In welcoming its 50th entrepreneurial participant, the 150 Business Challenge further established its credentials as an effective and reliable platform that offers accessible financing as well as operational and business support for women who have an interest in a career path within the trucking industry. In using infrastructure developed through the expertise of ES, women who would like to learn more about how they can start and grow a trucking operation now have the opportunity through the 150 Business Challenge to launch their own small businesses as owner-operators and fleet owners in a trucking market that, according to the latest industry estimates, has a shortage in excess of 50,000 people behind the wheel. Participants in the 150 Business Challenge have access to competitive market-rate truck financing, a broad range of new equipment choices and fuel discounts. ES also provides participants with industry-leading support featuring a maintenance program and operational expertise as well as back-office services and business planning assistance. “The Business 150 Challenge is fast becoming the kind of impactful program that is beginning to shatter the glass ceilings that have existed for women entrepreneurs in the trucking industry,” said Ellen Voie, president and CEO of the Women In Trucking Association. “Thanks to this program being facilitated by the excellent work of Expediter Services and the ES Community, the participants in the 150 Business Challenge are truly being empowered through the access to best-in-class resources and support. The businesses being established and those that are expanding in this program are being positioned for long-term success. We are now one third of our way to reaching our stated goal of helping to launch 150 women-owned businesses in transportation, and I believe this program will continue to make a life-changing difference for entrepreneurs while creating even more momentum across the industry as we move forward.” The gross revenue generated by the 50 new businesses established through the 150 Business Challenge is certainly one of the reasons for Voie’s optimistic outlook toward the program. When placed together as a group, the operations launched as a part of the 150 Business Challenge are generating a combined revenue total well in excess of $1 million per month, according to officials at ES. “Our main mission as a service provider is to make sure the participants in our programs, the members of our ES Community, have every tool they need to achieve success in their business pursuits. We have tremendous respect for the Women In Trucking Association, and it’s been extremely rewarding for everyone at ES to see the response to the 150 Business Challenge and the results the participants in the program have realized so far,” said Jason Williams, president of Expediter Services. “The impact of the 150 Business Challenge has not just been limited to bringing women-owned trucking operations into the transportation industry. The great work of the entrepreneurs utilizing the program has created a series of ripple effects. The tight freight market is benefiting from much-needed additional capacity. This is especially important in the expedited market where the additional capacity is often called upon to make time-critical deliveries.” While the deep scope of the programs developed by ES offers independent contractors, fleet drivers and even new entrants into the industry optimal true truck ownership options, the 150 Business Challenge gives fleets a new approach to provide the kind of non-asset capacity growth that can assist in the efforts to meet customer demand in a tight freight environment. Forward Air and Panther Premium Logistics, a Service of ArcBest, are the participating carriers in the program, offering consistent freight opportunities to entrepreneurs in the 150 Business Challenge. “We believe that women coming into the industry will serve as a very important part of answering the challenge of the driver shortage, and it’s been great to see the response to a program in which women can become owner-operators and fleet owners,” said Nick Burch, director of recruiting for Panther Premium Logistics, a service of ArcBest. “Expediter Services does a great job of coaching and providing all of the necessary support. We have been impressed by the ability of ES to find and to work with people who have the drive to be successful. We have certainly seen that type of drive in our fleet with the participants in the 150 Business Challenge.” “The programs that ES has designed for offering truck ownership are truly inspiring, and that’s definitely the case with the 150 Business Challenge,” said Ryan Gilliam, vice president of recruiting for Forward Air. “With the exception of a life-changing event, ES has seemingly covered every possible failure point an owner-operator or fleet owner can experience in this industry. They have a passion to see the participants in their programs become successful, and the work that ES has done through this program with Women In Trucking is making a difference at Forward Air and in our industry.” In addition to serving as a platform for new women-owned businesses, the 150 Business Challenge also has provided existing women-owned fleets with the opportunity to add trucks within a strong economy that has created a heightened demand for capacity. Veteran owner-operator and fleet owner Donna Sleasman accessed the offerings within the 150 Business Challenge to bring additional trucks into her expedited fleet. “What Expediter Services is doing through the 150 Business Challenge is very important because it is allowing women to be their own boss, create their own business and grow those businesses,” said Sleasman, who has been working with ES for the past several years. “ES serves as the force behind the business owners in the program. They have been a valuable resource to me over the years. As I’ve looked at ways to expand my operation, I’ve gone to ES and they are working with me on a plan to help me move closer to the goals that I would like to reach.” Earlier this year, Nora Weston worked with the 150 Business Challenge platform to become an owner-operator. As Weston considers the future, she sees growth in the miles and years ahead, stating: “The 150 Business Challenge has been great for me in starting my business as an owner-operator. Expediter Services has given me all the support I have needed, and I am ready to grow. I would like to work with ES and the 150 Business Challenge to build a fleet.” Source of article click here : FleetOwner
Diabetic truckers with proper treatment no longer need FMCSA waiver to operate | |
FMCSA is removing the requirement for drivers with insulin-treated diabetes to obtain a waiver to drive interstate. Medical examiners will now be able to grant these drivers a one-year medical certification. Truck drivers with stable insulin regimens and properly controlled insulin-treated diabetes mellitus (ITDM) will no longer have to seek an exemption from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to drive interstate. A Final Rule to be published Wednesday in the Federal Register allows certified medical examiners to grant truckers with insulin-treated diabetes a Medical Examiner’s Certificate that’s good for one year. The rule will take effect Nov. 19. Since 2003, drivers with insulin-treated diabetes have had to apply for an exemption through FMCSA to be allowed to drive interstate. In order to grant the med cert, examiners must receive an ITDM Assessment Form from the driver’s treating clinician – the healthcare professional who manages and prescribes insulin to the driver – stating the driver maintains a stable insulin regimen and proper control of his or her diabetes. The CME then decides if the driver meets FMCSA’s physical qualification standards to operate commercial vehicles in interstate commerce. Drivers with ITDM will be required to provide their treating clinician with at least three months of blood glucose self-monitoring records to be able to receive the one-year med cert. If three months are not available, the driver can receive up to a three-month certificate until the driver has three months of records. If a diabetic trucker has a severe hypoglycemic episode, he or she is not allowed to drive a truck and must report the episode and be evaluated by their treating clinician as soon as possible. The driving prohibition lasts until the clinician determines that the episode has been addressed and the driver again has a stable insulin regimen and properly controlled ITDM. The Final Rule defines a “severe hypoglycemic episode” as one requiring the assistance of others or resulting in loss of consciousness, seizure or coma. Drivers diagnosed with severe non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy or proliferative diabetic retinopathy — both conditions when diabeties affects eyesight — are permanently disqualified from driving a commercial vehicle. FMCSA has been working on this rule since a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was published in May 2015. Following the NPRM, the agency’s Medical Review Board issued recommendations on how the agency should proceed with a rule that were published in September 2016. Then, in July 2017, FMCSA opened another comment period about changes to the original NPRM. Hours of service comment period extended to Oct. 10 | |
Truckers wanting to weigh in on potential hours of service changes will have an extra two weeks to submit comments on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s request for feedback. The agency announced Wednesday it is extending the comment deadline from Monday, Sept. 24, to Wednesday, Oct. 10. Comments can be made here. The Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in August doesn’t propose any changes to current hours of service regulations but lists questions to gather input from drivers, owner-operators, carriers and other industry stakeholders. Specifically, FMCSA is seeking feedback on ways to overhaul hours regs in four key areas:
FMCSA says it received requests to extend the comment period from several industry organizations, including the American Trucking Associations, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the National Pork Producers Council and the National Tank Truck Carriers. More than 2,000 comments have been submitted as of Sept. 19. In addition to the comment period, FMCSA is also holding listening sessions to receive feedback from the public. The next session will be held this Saturday, Sept. 22, in Reno, Nevada. Carriers increase pay for drivers | |
Drivers for several major carriers are getting paid more these days. Super Service LLC announced recently a performance plus pay program, allowing drivers to earn up to 52 cents per mile. The program allows drivers to earn more based on safety, availability, miles per gallon and service performance. The company also announced a $15,000 sign-on bonus. Big G Express is rolling out a 2 cents per mile increase, as well as switching to a PC*Miler practical miles pay program. The PC*Miler program compensates drivers according to the driving routes and distances they’re most likely to take. The company previously used the PC*Miler short miles program, which pays driver on the shortest route possible. The 2 cents per mile increase brings starting pay to 42cents per mile with top-out pay at 52cents per mile. USA Truck boosted pay for its regional drivers, effective Sept. 9. The raise includes a cents-per-mile base pay increase, based on the driver’s region. Under the new pay structure, drivers can earn up to 52.5 cents per mile. In addition to the base pay increase, USA Truck offers drivers a chance to earn up to 6 additional cents per mile to their weekly pay based on how many miles they run during the week. Semi-truck Drops Load on Highway 231 | |
PANAMA CITY Fla. - On HWY 231, a semi-truck loses its load. The truck was heading northbound around noon on Sep. 11th. 37-year old Derrick Kenon, of Tallahassee, was driving a Shelton Trucking flat bed tractor trailer. He was driving in heavy traffic carrying a load of copper. While breaking the big rig's load shifted on the trailer and fell onto the shoulder of HWY 231. The outside northbound lane was closed while the scene was cleared. Traffic was slow moving on 231 north between Pipeline rd. and HWY 390. There were no injuries. |
Toll Road hike on truck fees could raise $1 billion | |
The Indiana Finance Authority is expected to act Thursday on a proposal that could result in about $1 billion in improvements to the state’s infrastructure over the next six years. The money would come from a deal with the Indiana Toll Road, which would provide the money in exchange for permission to hike tolls by 35 percent on commercial trucks. The operator of the Toll Road approached the state last year seeking a significant increase for all vehicles on the highway, and the two sides worked in secret over the past year crafting a deal, Gov. Eric Holcomb has said in media reports. The deal has been scrutinized by a third party to ensure it is the best deal possible for the state, the governor has explained. But area legislators were largely stunned by the secret negotiations since the 156-mile roadway cuts through their territory and their constituents are most likely to be impacted by the price hike on trucking. Holcomb has said most of the trucks using the Toll Road are pass-through users moving across the country and that the new rates are more in line with what other states are charging. But South Bend Sen. David Niezgodski and Rep. Ryan Dvorak are concerned that the negotiations were conducted in private with no input from legislators, citizens or businesses near the highway. They were joined by fellow South Bend Rep. Pat Bauer in questioning the deal. “It was a little disturbing, no doubt about it,” said Niezgodski. “I think it would have been a courtesy to at least provide some prior knowledge that it was in the works.” Dvorak said one of the many reasons he opposed the original Toll Road deal is that it allowed the Finance Authority to negotiate any changes in the lease deal without oversight from the legislature. That was accomplished by the governor, but Dvorak questions whether the governor also has the authority to earmark where the money is going without approval from the General Assembly. It will be interesting to see if the GOP-dominated legislature allows the governor to take away the legislature’s authority to appropriate money or whether they’ll allow him to have an “old-fashioned slush fund that will help him in his re-election campaign for 2020.” Jeff Rea, president and CEO of the South Bend Regional Chamber of Commerce, said he hasn’t heard a whole lot of complaining about the hike, and Toll Road officials have told him it won’t create a huge stream of trucks moving on side roads to avoid the tolls. “It seems like an innovative solution to solve some budgetary needs,” Rea said. “Some of our priorities are being funded as part of it — including badly needed projects along U.S. 31, 20 and 30.” Though no one likes the idea of fee hikes and more taxes, the alternative is waiting many years and perhaps decades for projects to move forward, Rea explained. But the hike in tolls for trucks is following a large increase in state fuel taxes that went into effect last year, and we’re now among the highest in the nation, said Gary Langston, president of the Indiana Motor Truck Association. The combination of tolls and fuel taxes hurts truckers and it will ultimately hurt consumers and businesses since nearly all products get to Indiana via trucks, he said. And he predicted there will be a much greater diversion of trucks off the Toll Road “than anyone imagines,” resulting in more congestion on toll-free highways and the possibility of more accidents. If the money is so badly needed for roads, Langston also questioned why the governor wants to spend $100 million to expand broadband into rural areas of the state, $90 million for hiking, biking and riding trails and $20 million to attract international flights to Indianapolis, among other things. Though Indiana is known as the “Crossroads of America,” Langston also questioned whether the toll on trucking will ultimately hurt the state when it comes to seeking additional distribution centers. “If the governor can do this on a whim, why wouldn’t everyone be concerned about it,” he asked. Trucking firm growing, creating jobs at Springfield site | |
A trucking firm with a growing presence in Springfield is planning to add close to 70 new jobs after securing a contract with GM as the sole firm to haul new medium-duty trucks being produced at Navistar’s Springfield facility. Wheeler Trucking, based in Flushing, Mich., opened a new location in Springfield last year after securing a deal with GM, which manufactures a cutaway van as part of a joint agreement with Navistar. Wheeler Trucking loads and ships the vans to customers across the U.S. and Canada. GM’s decision to award the new contract to the firm means Wheeler is the sole hauler for both GM vehicles produced in Springfield, said Rex Wheeler, the company’s owner. The company started with 18 employees, but said last year it planned to employ more than 100 workers in Springfield. The new contract will allow the company to hire about 56 drivers, as well as two mechanics and eight additional employees, Wheeler said. He said the firm will work with the Chamber of Greater Springfield and Ohio Means Jobs Clark County to recruit new employees. Wheeler also said he previously purchased the former Shoemaker Ford site in Springfield in 2016 and has plans to invest as much as $6 million in the property as his business grows. Wheeler Trucking is also building a new maintenance shop on the property, he said. The former Springfield Ford dealership was at 5600 Urbana Road and closed in December 2008 at the beginning of an economic recession and at a time when the auto industry was in trouble. The former dealership owner sold the rights back to Ford in May 2008 and ultimately closed when leaders at the company said it wanted to have a smaller dealership presence. Information from the Clark County Auditor’s Office shows the company has also purchased property at 5532 Urbana Road, 5522 Urbana Road and 5520 Urbana Road. The expansion will allow Wheeler not only to haul trucks being built at Navistar, but also to store vehicles on the property. The News-Sun has previously reported the new Class 4, 5 and 6 chassis cab trucks will be aimed at fleet and commercial customers. Workers in Springfield have long been preparing for the joint venture with GM to build the trucks. Wheeler said his company will begin shipping the new product to customers across the U.S. and Canada as early as December. Those trucks will be available in both the International and GM brands, and will be produced with engineering input from both manufacturers. Another report from this news organization states near-record demand for heavy trucks is boosting revenue for manufacturers like Navistar and benefiting suppliers and others tied to the industry. Demand from trucking companies for new vehicles led Navistar to a solid third quarter and company officials said earlier this month they expect strong financial results to continue into next year. Navistar reported net income of $170 million for the third quarter this year, compared to $37 million during the same period in 2017. U.S. 95 at I-15 in Las Vegas set for overnight closures this week | |
Truck drivers planning to go through the Las Vegas area overnight this week should plan for detours as the north and southbound lanes of U.S. Highway 95 at I-15 in downtown Vegas will be closed for construction. The overnight closures are set for Sept. 18-20 and Sept. 24 and 26 from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. I-15 and the “Spaghetti Bowl” interchange ramps will remain open during the closures. However, the I-15 north and southbound ramps to Martin Luther King Boulevard and the U.S. 95 northbound ramp to MLK Boulevard will be closed during those nights from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. The Nevada Department of Transportation says the closures are needed for construction of a new I-15 northbound bridge over U.S. 95. The recommended U.S. 95 northbound detour is Las Vegas Boulevard to Bonanza Road to MLK Boulevard to re-enter the freeway. Southbound traffic is advised to take MLK to Bonneville Avenue to Grand Central Parkway Source of article click here : Overdrive
New Boss Shop opens off I-380 in Iowa | |
Bosselman Boss Truck Shops, Inc. recently opened a new location in Elk Run Heights, Iowa, at Interstate 380, Exit 68. It’s located next to a Road Ranger Pilot. The Grand Island, Nebraska-based company now has 45 Boss Shops in 22 states. “Boss Shops is truly pleased with the addition of the Elk Run Heights location to our network of shops,” said Charlie Bosselman, president of the Bosselman Companies and Boss Truck Shops, Inc. “Boss Shops promise to offer the same hometown service experience in a location convenient for over the road truckers.” The shop offers three service bays with a dedicated lube bay, full mechanical services, JPro Engine Diagnostics, Bridgestone, Firestone, Michelin, BF Goodrich, Goodyear, Kelly, Yokohama, and Ironman tires, as well as Bandag, Michelin and Goodyear retreads. The Shop is open 8 am to 5 pm, offering mechanical services, and 24-hour roadside service is available. Box truck rolls over in Enfield | |
A box truck rolled over in Enfield on Tuesday morning. Officials said a car swerved to avoid the truck and hit a pole on Elm Street. Both drivers were said to be ok. It happened around 4 a.m. The box truck ended up on its side at Elm Street's intersection with Palomba Drive. The truck driver told Channel 3 that he was heading to Massachusetts from New York. He was hauling bread, bagels, buns, cakes and cupcakes. He said he swerved as well. Police said the other car was coming down the road and it appeared that the car driver tried to get out of the way. The car driver hit the pole and the vehicle needed to be towed from the scene. Elm Street from Freshwater Boulevard to Spring Garden Road was blocked off. The area has since reopened. Trucking company in Port Allen hit by bizarre burglary | |
PORT ALLEN - Surveillance footage captured a bizarre burglary on camera, and a trucking company is now warning others to be aware of the long-hauler heists. 81-year old Clayton Clark is the owner and operator of C and M Freight Line in Port Allen. He says his company was ripped off by some professional thieves last week. Two thieves took off with computer systems from five of his ten 18-wheelers. "It hurt me, it hurt me real bad," Clark told News 2. "Three-thousand dollars for each one. That's fifteen-thousand dollars it has cost me for foolishness." The burglars were caught on the company's video security system. "They knew exactly what they were doing," Clark said. "They had a little canvas tool bag. They had the special tools that they need. They were professional at what they doing." And Clark's trucking yard may not have been the only victims of these big rig burglaries. The night before the C and M Freight Line was hit by thieves, several computers were stolen out of 18-wheelers at Diesel Driving Academy on Airline Highway in Baton Rouge. Police say they are investigating thefts of vehicle parts at the driving school, as well as a trucking yard in Scott, Louisiana, which was also hit by the big rig computer thieves. "These are criminals, they know exactly where the are doing." |
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