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The Maryland Motor Truck Association will oppose a transportation funding plan put forth by Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) that includes a new sales tax on motor fuel and a 5-cent reduction in the gasoline tax but not in the diesel tax.

Spurred by the demands of newer diesel engines, changing emissions technology and escalating competition, truck-stop operators say they have begun placing more fuels and other products where drivers can find them fast and buy them with a single swipe of a credit card.

Used Class 8 truck sales declined in December from a year earlier as vehicle prices increased and average mileage trickled lower, according to ACT Research.

With a new highway funding bill signed into law and the U.S. business community anxiously awaiting the outcome of the presidential election, American Trucking Associations President Bill Graves said the federation’s upcoming annual conference will take place during a “transitional moment” for the industry.

The ongoing pilot program that allows approved Mexican fleets into the interior of the United States suffers from lax oversight that does not sufficiently ensure compliance with the program’s requirements, a federal auditor said in a report released last week.

MINNEAPOLIS — ABF Freight System truck driver Ralph Garcia had to make a choice between being at the hospital for the birth of his first grandson or competing here in the 2012 National Truck Driving Championships.

Managers of the nation’s largest shipper-owned truck fleets are taking steps to counter the rising cost of fuel and equipment by more closely monitoring drivers and using new data collection techniques to make better routing decisions and improve compliance with safety and environmental regulations.

The American Transportation Research Institute has released its annual survey to gauge the trucking industry’s top concerns.

Truck and engine manufacturer Navistar International Corp., pressed to find a way to offer engines that comply with federal emissions regulations, said last week that it has reached an agreement to use Cummins Inc. selective catalytic reduction technology for its 13-liter engines and offer Cummins 15-liter engines in some of its International brand trucks.