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SAN FRANCISCO — Transportation companies and freight shippers may face a wave of problems as ripple effects spread from the labor dispute between longshoremen and West Coast port operators, logistics and trucking professionals said.

ATLANTA — Technology executives at a trucking industry conference on wireless communications last week called for stepped up coordination and more government spending on truck security.

The Senate Appropriations Committee is pushing the Federal Trade Commission to open an anti-trust investigation into trucking fuel cards, spurred by truck stop operators who say concentration in the business hurts their members.

One way to combat sensory overload is to dole out information in doses the driver can handle. Some companies, for example, are working to cut off computer use when the vehicle is moving.

The cab of a Class 8 tractor increasingly resembles the cockpit of a 747 jumbo jet. Crammed into a small space are gauges, switches, buttons and display screens to operate electronic systems and deliver information to and from the driver.

Taking a bigger bite from highway trust funds for rail projects is one way Congress could relieve freight rail bottlenecks at major intermodal hubs, according to a new report by the Congressional Research Service.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Volvo unveiled a line of heavy-duty trucks here last week that company officials predicted would boost sales above their competition during the fourth quarter.

Sales of heavy-duty Class 8 trucks soared 26% in July from a year earlier, as accelerated orders from fleets trying to avoid the Oct. 1 deadline for reduced-emission engines translated into higher deliveries for the first time this year.

The Commercial Vehicle Training Association has developed an electronic credit and employment application for member driving schools designed to help students line up tuition assistance and placement with motor carriers through an online document.

(Click here for a partial transcript of the chat.)Expanding American Trucking Associations' Highway Watch program to teach truckers and dispatchers how to report potential security breaches is a low-tech way to make a quick difference in the war on terrorism, ATA security adviser Jeffrey Beatty said during an online chat with TTNews.com users.