The American Trucking Associations on Monday, Jan. 14, welcomed representatives of the China Road Transport Association as they embarked on a two-day visit with trucking executives and policy experts designed to study U.S. trucking operations.
The delegation — which includes representatives of the Highway Transportation Administration Bureau, Beijing XiangLong Assets Management and Guangxi Wuzhou Communications — will meet with ATA staff and ATA members Con-way Freight, Roadway and RoadLink on such topics as operations, truck safety regulations, driver training, federal and state tax structures, environmental regulations and a host of other issues.
“We are all part of a burgeoning global economy,” says Bill Graves, ATA president and chief executive officer. “The Chinese understand that their national economy is directly linked to freight transportation and a supporting national infrastructure.”
For its part, CRTA said it is eager to learn how trucking in the United States expanded from localized operations under a patchwork of state laws to today’s streamlined national and international logistics engine.
“Over the last year, the Chinese government has invested $100 billion on road construction,” Mingde Yao, president of the China Road Transport Association, said through an interpreter. “But the efficiency of Chinese freight transportation has a long way to go. Our main purpose is to understand how trucking in the United States has developed.”
Chinese officials included Feng Gao, vice secretary general, director of Consultancy Department and director of Working Committee for Freight Transport of CRTA; Huaming Long, director general of Highway Transportation Administration Bureau, Department of Communications of Jiangxi Province; Wenju Mi, vice general manager of Beijing XiangLong Assets Management Co.; and Ningguo Li, vice general manager of Guangxi Wuzhou Communications.
Randy Mullett, Con-way Inc.’s vice president of government relations and public affairs, underscored the importance of CRTA’s visit, saying Con-way was excited to share and learn from CRTA. “It is an honor for Con-way Freight to serve as a resource for CRTA and to help assist in the development of a strong transportation network in China,” Mullett said. “This face-to-face meeting is an invaluable way to exchange information and work together to improve freight operations on a global level.”
The group plans to meet with Tony Furst, director of the Federal Highway Administration’s Office of Freight Management and Operations, before departing on a Con-way Freight facility visit in Greencastle, Pa., as well as a Roadway facility in Carlisle, Pa.
