Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/856429
August 2017 | Overdrive | 15 DASEKE INC., a consolidator and owner of North American flatbed and specialized transportation and logistics providers, announced a merger that added The Steelman Companies. It's Daseke's third merger in two months. Steelman, which generated $46 million in revenue in 2016, includes flatbed and heavy-haul provider Steelman Transportation and specialty hauler Group One. Daseke now comprises 12 companies with over 3,600 trucks and over 7,500 flatbed and specialized trailers. THE PENNSYLVANIA Turnpike Commission approved a 6 percent increase for E-ZPass and cash cus- tomers effective Jan. 7. The increase will see the most common toll for a Class 8 truck increase from $23.60 to $25.01 for E-ZPass and from $33.10 to $35.08 for cash. The annual increases of 3 to 6 percent for the Turnpike are expected to continue through 2044. THREE STATES – North and South Dakota and Montana – waived hours of service restrictions for commercial vehicle drivers transporting hay, water and animals to help livestock producers facing severe drought con- ditions. Also, weight limits were eased for those hauling hay and water to ranchers. RYDER SYSTEM launched a preven- tive maintenance program for its Pre- Owned Vehicle purchasers, providing added flexibility to finance or prepay for the preventive maintenance ser- vice program that they select when they purchase a used Ryder truck. HELP INC. DEPLOYED its PrePass truck pre-clearance and weigh station bypass services at 10 additional North Carolina locations on Interstates 26, 40, 77, 85 and 95. DRUG AND ALCOHOL SCREENER Jo Carol White of Georgia pled guilty to falsification of records for not conducting proper U.S. Department of Transportation-required drug testing and medical exams on commercial driver's license applicants. The U.S. Department of Transportation has signaled it will not continue to pursue a rulemaking to mandate the use of speed limiters in the trucking indus- try, at least any time soon. In its latest biannual update to its regulatory calendar, DOT has moved the speed limiter mandate, which was issued as a proposed rulemaking last Septem- ber, to a long-term agenda item, away from the active rulemakings list. Given the erosion of industry support for a speed limiter rule over the past year and the Trump administration's reluctance to implement new regulations, industry stakeholders assumed the Trump DOT would drop or stall the speed limiter rulemaking. July's update to the DOT calendar confirmed those expec- tations. The DOT report also marked the ongoing sleep apnea screening rulemaking as withdrawn in June. The rule would establish protocol for which truck drivers would be required to be tested for obstructive sleep apnea during the medical certification process. DOT did not indicate when it would attempt to pursue such a rule, if at all. – James Jaillet Despite hot action in recent years on a speed limiter mandate, DOT has moved the rulemaking to a long-term agenda item. Speed limiters, apnea put on DOT back burner Nearly 2,000 trucks across the United States and Canada were placed out- of-service during the Commercial Ve- hicle Safety Alliance's unannounced Brake Safety Day on May 3. CVSA inspectors in 33 U.S. states and 10 Canadian provinces con- ducted 9,524 inspections during the enforcement blitz. Of the 1,989 trucks placed out of service, 1,146 were parked for brake-related violations. The group said the goal of the unannounced blitz each year is to conduct roadside inspections and remove trucks with "critical brake violations" from the roadways. CVSA also said it was looking to evaluate how well antilock braking systems are maintained. During the event, 4,635 trucks were identified as requiring ABS, and 8 percent (or 391) had ABS violations. The next Brake Safety Day event will be held Sept. 7 throughout North America. – Matt Cole Brake inspection blitz sidelines nearly 2,000 trucks