Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021:
Yellow looks to add 1,500 drivers, open new trucking schools
Yellow Corporation (CCJ Top 250, No. 5), which recently changed its name from YRC, is looking to fill 1,500 truck driver positions and open 12 driving schools across the country.
Classroom instruction and in-cab skills training at the 12 Yellow Driving Academies will be provided by Yellow’s longest serving, most experienced truckers.
“At a time when many Americans are looking to start a new career, Yellow is in hire mode. These are good jobs with competitive benefits in a community near you,” says Yellow CEO Darren Hawkins.
Yellow has identified 12 locations for driving academies, including Charlotte, North Carolina; Cleveland, Ohio; Denver, Colorado; Ft. Worth, Texas; Hagerstown, Maryland; Indianapolis, Indiana; Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee; Maybrook, New York; Portland, Oregon; Pico Rivera and Tracy, California.
The company intends to open driving academies in other states this spring and is currently evaluating several locations.
AscendTMS integrating with Uber Freight
InMotion Global, parent company of AscendTMS, announced full integration between digital freight network Uber Freight and AscendTMS.
With the partnership, carriers can now find and book live loads from Uber Freight directly in the AscendTMS software.
The company says AscendTMS can match any “soon to be empty” truck in a carrier’s fleet with an Uber Freight load currently available, including those loads with minimal deadhead and minimal wait times for the carrier’s truck drivers.
“With just one single click by the AscendTMS user, we’re able to match a carrier’s ‘soon to be empty’ trucks with the most perfect load matches from Uber Freight’s huge freight network of live and available loads,” said Tim Higham, CEO of AscendTMS. “In AscendTMS, the carrier can then choose any live Uber Freight load at the listed ‘book now’ price and immediately receive the load tender electronically into their AscendTMS account. Zero paperwork is needed by anyone, as everything is fully digital between Uber Freight and the carrier using AscendTMS, so it is extremely efficient for both parties.”
Top 250 carrier gets waiver allowing CLP holders to operate without CDL holder in front seat
Wilson Logistics (CCJ Top 250, No. 98) has received a waiver from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration allowing commercial learner’s permit holders who have passed the CDL skills test but not yet obtained their CDL to operate a truck without a CDL holder in the front seat, effectively allowing these drivers to run team.
The waiver is effective for five years through Feb. 23, 2026.
Wilson, in its request for the waiver, said the regulation requiring a CDL holder in the front seat “creates undue burdens on the company” because it requires the company to either secure public transportation for the CLP holder to return to his or her home state to pick up their CDL, or route the driving team directly to the CLP holder’s home state, often against the flow of the freight network.
Other fleets have received similar waivers, including C.R. England, which first received the waiver in 2015.
