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Officials of brake manufacturer Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems said they are wrestling with the challenge of manufacturing and distributing replacement parts for a defective valve that could cause braking problems, which prompted federal and heavy-duty truck manufacturer recalls.

The federal government’s chief truck overseer defended her agency’s controversial changes to the 34-hour restart provisions of the hours-of-service rule and vowed to continue efforts to cut the hours drivers may be behind the wheel.

Maryland’s Department of Transportation, working with the Maryland Motor Truck Association, said it has created a pilot program for truckers to use commuter park-and-ride lots to park when snowfalls exceed 6 inches.

Trucking executives said the industry could see some benefits of the recently announced U.S.-Canadian trade agreement as early as this year.

I have attended several meetings of American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council where participants have stated they simply want to know how many years a component will last.

DOT released its long-awaited final hours-of-service rule Thursday, leaving in place an 11-hour daily driving limit while cutting drivers' weekly hours. The rule was not well-received by trucking and shippers' groups.

There is every reason to believe that 2012 will be a good year for the trucking industry, based on what’s happened so far this year and on reasonably strong U.S. economic growth projections.

The truck driver shortage and related fleet capacity constraints are driving strong growth in domestic intermodal hauling as carriers and shippers try to ensure they have freight-moving options in the months ahead, industry experts said.

Beginning Jan. 1, all trucks with engine year 2006 and older will be banned from marine terminals at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, port officials said.