ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø

The national average price of diesel fuel rose less than a cent last week to just over $1.08 a gallon — the smallest increase in the past four weeks.

The Federal Highway Administration sent a loud and clear signal to trucking last week: Be prepared for a sea change in the way the government conducts its safety enforcement of the industry.

On a fog-filled night in September 1993, a towboat got lost in a bayou near Mobile, Ala., and collided with a railroad bridge. Five minutes later, the bridge collapsed under the weight of an onrushing Amtrak train. Forty-seven passengers and crew died in the wreck.

The truckload business has gone from JIT to XOT as shipping demands have become more stringent, and rail intermodal is finding it difficult to keep up.

Union Pacific Railroad Co. executives insisted, throughout the rail service meltdown of 1997-98, that their traffic would return once they eliminated the congestion that virtually paralyzed the railroad.

Class 8 truck sales in North America continued at a blistering pace in March, with 22,455 units sold — nearly 28% above the total in March 1998.

Shipments of complete truck trailers and chassis for the first two months of 1999 are down 10% from last year, but have shown a slight growth in orders since January.

As the Truckload Carriers Association’s focus on education gets sharper, its image of the Truckload Academy is getting clearer.

Will the truckload segment be a major source of new intermodal traffic for railroads? Don’t bet on it.

The ability to make customers out of today’s motor carrier competitors may determine the success or failure of the joint purchase and breakup of Conrail by Norfolk Southern and CSX.