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As Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta cruised through his Senate confirmation hearing last week, he said he would review proposed changes to the hours of service for truck drivers and re-examine the potential economic effect of the regulations as well as how they might promote highway safety.

Elaine Chao, President Bush’s nominee for secretary of labor, declined to say whether she would enforce, change or revoke recently imposed ergonomics rules, as she was quizzed on the topic at her Senate committee confirmation hearing Jan. 24.

Rising demand triggered by fears of refinery production cuts and the cost of natural gas pushed the retail price of diesel fuel up by nearly two pennies a gallon last week, wiping out three weeks of decline.

Freightliner President James L. Hebe warned that trucking faces a major upheaval if the glut of unsold, late-model used vehicles is not addressed — and quickly.

The Bush administration has given the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration no signals as to what it expects in an hours-of-service regulation, but the agency is continuing its efforts to develop a final rule.

A newly formed group with ties to the trucking industry wants government and the trade community to work together to make West Coast seaports more efficient and technologically up-to-date.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration fined Rush Trucking for failing to catch logbook violations by owner-operators, but the company did not falsify records, as FMCSA initially claimed in the agency’s statement to the media.

With the loss of two major postal shipping contracts and increasing competition in the heavyweight airfreight market, Emery Worldwide faces a critical test in the coming months to replace lost revenue and shore up lagging profits.