ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø

Striking owner-operators at the Port of Vancouver are standing fast in their demand to be paid an hourly wage, despite several alternative proposals from trucking company negotiators and Vancouver Port Authority officials.

A federal tax court ruling could cost United Parcel Service, the nation’s largest motor carrier, hundreds of millions of dollars in back taxes and penalties.

In an exclusive interview with Transport Topics, George Reagle, the former head of the Office of Motor Carriers, responded publicly for the first time to the criticism lodged against him earlier this year over his administration of the safety agency.

While legislation in both houses of Congress creating a separate motor carrier administration is a dream come true for many in trucking, the proposals carry a myriad of other provisions.

Sen. John Breaux wants to improve truck and bus safety by requiring all commercial vehicle inspectors to be certified to uniform standards and proficiency levels.

Deregulation of the Mexican trucking industry over the last 10 years has lowered freight rates and expanded volume. But a Paris-based think tank says the nation’s improving international competitiveness will depend in part on the United States’ willingness to open the border.

It looks like freight rates will be going up again this fall. But one motor carrier rate bureau is floating a proposal for a smaller increase in return for a pledge from shippers not to seek additional discounts.

The merger of Sweden’s Volvo and Scania could be the catalyst for new consolidations among truck-makers – in the United States as well as abroad – some analysts believe.

With the clock ticking on her tenure, Surface Transportation Board Chairman Linda Morgan was nominated by President Clinton on Aug. 6 to a second term as head of the independent agency.