A Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study indicates further research of dynamic and static alignment could result in differently designed suspensions, alignment mechanism and truck frames. According to the study, Tractor-Trailer Dynamic Alignment and Research, research might lead to equipment that would allow for real-time changes in alignment settings in response to varying speed and loads.
Colorado’s Legislature recently enacted a law increasing the penalty for violating any out-of-service order, whether federal, state or local or under Canadian or Mexican law. A driver found in violation first is issued a citation; he then faces a mandatory fine ranging from $100 to $1,000 and/or jail time from 10 days to 12 months. A conviction also means suspension of the driver’s CDL. Hazmat haulers and drivers with endorsements to transport more than 16 passengers face suspensions double the regular amount.
Celadon Trucking Services said it had trained 100 percent of its drivers in the Highway Watch anti-terrorism and safety program administered by the American Trucking Associations under an agreement with the Department of Homeland Security. Celadon said it was the second among the industry’s top 100 companies to reach the milestone.
J. J. Keller & Associates (www.jjkeller.com) is now a third-party administrator for drug and alcohol testing. The move adds collection site management, appointment scheduling, laboratory and MRO services, test result processing and invoice consolidation to the company’s service.
Tractor-trailer driver John Doe, who was northbound on two-way, two-lane Shady Highway with a reefer load of Cousin Cool’s Ice Cream in tow, couldn’t help but reflect on how fast his umpteenth year on the highway was passing by. “Man, it’s already July,” thought a sweltering Doe, who was reaching over to crank the air conditioner up another notch, while at the same time fiddling with the satellite radio to find a station he liked. “I wish I could grab one of them cartons of vanilla behind me.”
Posted at 35 mph, Shady Highway was a tree-lined rural road running smack-dab through the State Game Lands near Greensboro, N.C. It also was a heavily-traveled truck route, hosting a steady stream of tall trailers. Just as Doe glanced down to tune the receiver to the trucking network
