ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø

The U.S. economy’s service sector expanded in August, though its pace of growth slowed, the Institute for Supply Management said Friday.

American Trucking Associations asked a federal appeals court to reject the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s request to put on hold a lawsuit that would require the agency to publish rules stating what evidence fleets must retain to verify their drivers’ logbooks.

The Transportation Intermediaries Association is pressing the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to shut down more companies that fail to provide adequate funds to reimburse fleets when brokers fail to pay carriers.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is eyeing an even more expansive mandate for electronic onboard recorders than it indicated earlier this year, sources told Transport Topics.

Several trade groups told federal regulators that requiring more detailed information on applications for special permits to haul hazardous materials will not increase hazmat safety and will increase the paperwork burden on applicants.

Several trucking industry officials met with the Obama administration Sept. 1 to push for incentives for fleets to buy new equipment, arguing that sales are lagging because of high truck prices caused by federal emissions rules.

Intermodal fleets expect a tough financial and operational transition period as ocean carriers move the responsibility for chassis onto carriers that make international cargo deliveries, according to several carrier officials.

Intermodal freight continued to surge during August, topping pre-recession levels and reaching the highest point this year, driven by a combination of domestic and international growth, experts said.

Trucking executives, fuel vendors and manufacturers of aftermarket engine technology said it is easier to get an alternative-fuel vehicle onto a motor carrier’s lot than it is to get a viable alternative fuel into a truck’s tank.