���ϳԹ���

The National Industrial Transportation League will hold a public forum Jan. 11 on the problems of CSX Corp. and Norfolk Southern in the wake of their purchase of Conrail.

In the news this morning: FDX invests in National Transportation Exchange; Canadian trucker blasts speeding drivers; and CPR's new Expressway service already profitable.

Lawmakers broke a logjam over creation of a federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, leading the House to pass a revised version of its truck and safety bill Nov. 18 and clearing the way for Senate passage, which was imminent at press time.

Two companies with the same goal — to dominate the package delivery and logistics market worldwide — are gearing up to battle each other in the global marketplace.

The price of diesel fuel jumped 2.7 cents a gallon last week, the biggest one-week rise since April, and observers say the highest futures prices for crude oil since the Persian Gulf War foretell of more increases before year’s end.

Intermodal drivers are unhappy, ocean carriers seem unable to meet their demands, and in the middle sits Clark E. Brown, president of Bridge Terminal Transport, the nation's largest intermodal drayage firm.

Several parties in the “roadability” debate came to the third in a series of “listening sessions,” but participants used the occasion to air long-standing grievances instead, leaving some observers to think that the government might seek another avenue to deal with the matter.

As Americans prepare to consume 45 million Thanksgiving turkeys, among them will be thousands of truck drivers who will be dining with their families, thanks to creative scheduling on the operations end and co-workers who would rather be on the road during the holiday.

Faced with a stagnant membership that is unwilling to play hardball politics to win legislative changes in surface transportation policy, the National Industrial Transportation League is increasing its emphasis on outreach to carriers and increasing member services.

While a labor-related obstacle to reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Board has been removed, shipper concerns about a lack of railroad competition remain a likely sticking point when Congress tackles the issue again next year.