Traffic World articles from March 2008

Traffic World archives from March 2008

Strike Out.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: William B. Cassidy The pain of paying $4 plus per gallon for diesel is goading some truckers - mostly independents struggling to keep their wheels rolling, fill their fuel tanks and make monthly truck payments - into talk of a...

Lobbying Loopholes and Antitrust.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Frank N. Wilner Captive rail shippers are lobbying Congress to trim the railroads'' antitrust immunity - but oddly enough it''s through their own antitrust immunity they may lawfully collude to do so. In fact, American...

Security, Five Years Later.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Created in the aftermath of the deadliest terrorist attack ever on American soil, the Department of Homeland Security was constructed as an emblem of the nation''s determination to create a wall of defense against...

Back to School?(training mandatory for new truck drivers)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter A Bush administration proposal would for the first time make standardized, accredited training mandatory for new truck drivers nationwide. But the trucking industry worries there soon wouldn''t be many drivers to...

ATA''s Federal Fuel Blitz.(American Trucking Associations)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher The trucking industry is raising the surge in diesel fuel prices to crisis level with an all-out alert to the White House and five cabinet-level agencies. With diesel prices bumping up against $4 per gallon, the...

A Change of Duty.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter A "new interpretation" of how Customs and Border Protection calculates the duty on imported goods is raising the hackles of importers who say it means higher prices for consumers. "There is a policy change here to...

Safe at Home.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman European logistics executives, fresh off a reassuring round of annual financial and operational performance reports, are now bracing themselves for a potential tsunami of bad news from across the Atlantic. ...

Forward Move.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman What do you do if you''re a shipper of Asia-made consumer electronics goods who''s lost $18 million since opening - and posted no revenue for the first nine months of 2007 due to "lack of inventory available for...

AMB Grows in Savannah.(AMB Property Corp.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... AMB Property Corp. will erect what it claims is the first speculative industrial development in the Southeastern United States with a construction process that meets the U.S. Green Building Council''s Leadership in Energy and Environmental...

DHL Exel Lands Automotive Deal.
March 31, 2008... DHL Exel Supply Chain won a contract worth more than $200 million a year to manage plant logistics and sourced component parts of automotive brands Jaguar and Land Rover in Europe, just as Ford Motor sold those divisions to India''s Tata...

Scrambling for Advantage.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd Many believe 2008 may be another year of weak volumes, but despite a frigid economic climate the intermodal industry is starting to heat up. Big railroads and the specialty firms that funnel rail-truck shipments...

Fueling a Headache.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher Werner Enterprises can put a big tag on the record-breaking surge in fuel prices: $10 million a month. That''s how much more the Omaha, Neb.-based carrier is paying for fuel year over year compared with the...

Fueling a Freight Shift.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher Squeeze a toothpaste tube at one end, and the paste will come out the other. FedEx hopes a similar principle works with supply chains and cargo. As skyrocketing fuel prices knock shipments normally handled by...

Estes Covers 50 States.(Estes Express Lines )(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Estes Express Lines opened 13 new terminals March 3 in the Upper Midwest, giving the regional LTL 100 percent direct coverage to all 50 states, a move that will nudge competition in a freight market under increasing pressure from slack...

Trucker Goes Waterless.(Ventura Transfer Co.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Ventura Transfer is washing its trucks in a novel way - without water. Instead, the bulk trucking and transloading company is using a biodegradable, non-toxic chemical to polish its fleet. Besides saving water, the process eliminates...

CN Under Pressure.(Canadian National Railway)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd Canadian National Railway''s plan to buy a short line that skirts Chicago has stirred up so many critics and so many calls for costly mitigation steps that the carrier is warning about "overload." "There appears...

Hahs Ousted from BLET.(Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen)(Don M. Hahs )
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd Don M. Hahs was removed as national president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen over how he spent union funds, and Edward W. Rodzwicz officially took the top job at the rail union. The March...

Southern California Intermodal Shrinks.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Surging intermodal exports at the big Southern California ports are not enough to make up for lost import traffic and a plunge in the number of empty boxes returning through the ports for reloading overseas. The adjacent container ports...

Chemical Shippers See Yellow, Then Red.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... The American Chemistry Council sums up its economic outlook for chemical manufacturers each week with a basic color code. Instead of a green banner that reflects positive signs overall, ACC has long posted a cautionary yellow code. But its...

Fuel Flattens FedEx Profit.(Financial report)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey Rising fuel costs appear to be holding down FedEx efforts to hold steady on higher domestic rates, driving the company to look even more to the international arena for stronger yields. Even overseas, however,...

FedEx Seeks Review of NLRB Decision.(National Labor Relations Board)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Rising fuel costs and lowered financial expectations have pushed the FedEx Ground independent-driver/ contractor legal issues into the background - but not off the radar. The company still faces a number of class-action and individual...

Rocketing Fuel Slows Airlines.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey Airlines are cutting capacity, changing their fleet plans and taking a new look at mergers as the airlines try to survive a strong surge in operating costs in an environment in which jet fuel prices have doubled in...

TUI to Sell Hapag-Lloyd.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Bruce Barnard Hapag-Lloyd, the world''s fifth-largest container carrier, is officially up for grabs. Bowing to months of investor pressure, German parent company TUI AG, Europe''s biggest tourism group, said March 17 that it...

Hapag-Lloyd Cuts Through Headwinds.(revenue report)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... A strong global economy and higher freight rates helped Hapag-Lloyd achieve a turnaround in 2007, despite rising fuel costs and other difficulties. "2007 was by no means an easy year for global container shipping operations," said...

CMA CGM''s New Route.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: William Armbruster Say au revoir to Liberty Bridge. French container line CMA CGM will terminate its weekly trans-Atlantic Liberty Bridge service next month, tightening the screws on capacity for shippers in the trade route....

MSC Hitches Trans-Pacific Ride.(Mediterranean Shipping Co.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Mediterranean Shipping Co. will begin a new trans-Pacific service next month linking China with the largest West Coast U.S. container port. And it won''t add a single ship. MSC''s weekly Condor Express will link Yantian, China, and Los...

Maersk to Cut South America Ties.(Maersk Line )(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Maersk Line will sever its service linking North and South America this summer, ending a partnership with Hamburg Sud as it sails away from an unprofitable trade route. The Danish shipping giant said it would shut its NASA service, which...

People.(Panalpina)
March 31, 2008... Ventura Transfer Co., Los Angeles, transloading and bulk product distributor and transporter, added two industry veterans to its sales team. Greg Feduik was appointed sales representative for the Northeastern region of the United States....

Are Mixed Shipments Being Misrated?
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Colin Barrett Q: I audit freight bills for a company that ships various densities of plastic articles. The bills of lading are properly inscribed with the number of boxes and weight for each different density, e.g., nine...

The Back Page.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Bear Market. The very day JP Morgan was swallowing up investment firm Bear Stearns at a shocking price, we came across this comment from California fisherman Dave Bitts in The New York Times on the disappearance of Chinook salmon from the...

Scrambling for Advantage.(Industry overview)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd Many believe 2008 may be another year of weak volumes, but despite a frigid economic climate the intermodal industry is starting to heat up. Big railroads and the specialty firms that funnel rail-truck...

March 31, 2008.(Grand Central of York signed a deal with English, Welsh & Scottish Railway Ltd.)(Bear Stearns Companies Inc. acquired by JPMorgan Chase & Co.)(Steel Wheels introduces trucking video game)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Bear Market. The very day JP Morgan was swallowing up investment firm Bear Stearns at a shocking price, we came across this comment from California fisherman Dave Bitts in The New York Times on the disappearance of Chinook salmon from the...

Are Mixed Shipments Being Misrated?(Colin Barrett president at Barrett Transportation speaks about logistics services)(Interview)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Colin Barrett Q: I audit freight bills for a company that ships various densities of plastic articles. The bills of lading are properly inscribed with the number of boxes and weight for each different density, e.g., nine...

Lobbying Loopholes and Antitrust.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Frank N. Wilner Captive rail shippers are lobbying Congress to trim the railroads' antitrust immunity - but oddly enough it's through their own antitrust immunity they may lawfully collude to do so. In fact, American...

Security, Five Years Later.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Created in the aftermath of the deadliest terrorist attack ever on American soil, the Department of Homeland Security was constructed as an emblem of the nation's determination to create a wall of defense against...

APL Box Revenue Climbs.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Neptune Orient Lines on Monday said container shipping volumes increased 10 percent for the four-week period Feb. 9 to March 7. The Singapore-based parent of APL said volume totaled 175,300 FEUs, up from 158,600 FEUs from the same period...

FMC Wants More Info on LA-LB Plan.(Federal Maritime Commission)(Los Angeles and Long Beach)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Bill Mongelluzzo LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Implementation of the clean-trucks programs at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach could be delayed after the Federal Maritime Commission on Friday requested more information from the...

Oakland Exports Jump 29 Percent.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Stephanie Nall Containerized exports shipped through the Port of Oakland increased 28.9 percent to 80,023 TEUs in February compared to the same month in 2007. Exports also gained 6.46 percent from the January total of 75,153...

N.O. Port Traffic Falls.(Revenues at the Port of New Orleans )(Brief article)(Statistical data)
March 31, 2008... Revenues at the Port of New Orleans are expected to fall 9 percent short of earlier estimates this year on plummeting steel imports. The port's Dock Board at its monthly meeting on Thursday voted to adjust revenue figures on revised...

K+N Canada Appoints Levin President.(Kuehne & Nagel hired John Levin )(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... John Levin has been appointed president and chief executive of the Canadian Kuehne & Nagel company, headquartered in Toronto. He succeeds Ferdinand Kurt, who recently took over responsibility for Kuehne & Nagel's South America...

Japan Signs ASEAN Pact.(Association of Southeast Asian Nations)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Japan on Friday signed a free-trade agreement with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations which will eliminate tariffs on 93 percent of its imports from those countries, measured by value, within 10 years. Meanwhile, the six major...

UP Puts BulkTainer on ChemLogix.(Union Pacific Corp.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Union Pacific on Friday announced an agreement to transfer its BulkTainer intermodal service to ChemLogix, LLC, effective April 1. ChemLogix, headquartered in Blue Bell, Pa., will become the sole provider of BulkTainer, which provides...

Econocaribe Adds LCL to Asia.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... Econocaribe announced that it has added less-than-containerload direct export service from Miami to Hong Kong. The NVOCC plans to include cargo from the Southeast United States as the vessel service moves via the Panama Canal to Asia....

Estes Meets TSA Standards.(Transportation Security Administration)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Estes became one of the first major LTL carriers whose processes and training meet the Transportation Security Administration's requirements for air cargo transportation. All drivers and other key...

TSA Gets Tough on Cargo.
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Robert W. Moorman Los Angeles -- After more than a year since the law was enacted, the Transportation Security Administration is finally providing specifics on the screening of cargo aboard passenger airlines. Attendees of...

Four Soft to Merge with Take.(Four Soft International)(Take Solutions)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Take Solutions and Four Soft plan to merge, creating a global company offering supply chain management technology for both carriers and shippers, they said. Headquartered in Hyderabad, India, 4S develops...

FRA Proposes Hazmat Safety Rule.(The Federal Railroad Administration)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Federal Railroad Administration on Monday proposed tougher rail hazmat tank car safety rules. In response to serious train accidents in Minot, N.D., Macdona, Texas, and Graniteville, S.C., the U.S....

Skarka Out at YRC.(Maynard F. Skarka retiring from YRC Worldwide Inc.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher YRC Worldwide is throwing down the gauntlet at its Yellow Transportation subsidiary, challenging employees to "change the course and performance" at the LTL long-haul carrier within the next 100 days. ...

Agility Profit Slips.(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Agility boosted revenue 26 percent in 2007 to $6.2 billion. Operating profit was $652.4 million for the year, but net came in at $576 million, down 7.6 percent from the previous year. The Kuwait-based...

Diesel Drops 2.5 Cents to $3.964.(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The average retail price for diesel fuel peaked last week at $3.989 and fell this week for the first time in two months. The national average fell 2.5 cents to $3.964, according to the U.S. Energy Information...

Commonwealth Business Media Captures Bronze at 2008 Folio FAME Awards.
March 31, 2008... East Windsor, NJ - March 28 2008 - The 2007 Trans-Pacific Maritime Conference of Commonwealth Business Media's Journal of Commerce Conferences http://www.joc.com/conferences/ - has won the 2008 Bronze FAME Award (FOLIO: Awards for Magazine...

NAFTA Trade Grows to $65B.(North American Free Trade Agreement)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement partners, Canada and Mexico, was 7.4 percent higher in January 2008 than in January 2007, the Bureau of...

Aloha Stops Passenger Operations.(Aloha Airlines Inc.)(Brief article)
March 31, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Aloha Airlines will shut down its interisland and transpacific passenger operations after Monday, March 31. Aloha's air cargo and aviation services units will continue to operate as usual while the U.S....

Freightliner's Cascadia Designated SmartWay-Certified.
March 31, 2008... LOUISVILLE, Ky. - March 27, 2008 - Freightliner Trucks today announced that the Cascadia has been designated as SmartWay-certified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Cascadia marks the third Freightliner Class 8 truck - along with...

First Quarter Earnings, 2008.
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Updated Daily Categories: * Logistics & Technology * Rail & Intermodal * Air & Express * Trucking * Maritime Logistics & Technology Rail & Intermodal Air & Express FedEx Trucking Maritime

Crude Oil Price Climbs.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Crude oil futures started climbing again on Wednesday following a government report of declining inventories. The price of West Texas intermediate for May delivery closed Monday at a low for the month of...

Eastern Connection Adds Cutting-Edge Digital Scanners.
March 28, 2008... "New Technology is More Advanced Than National Carriers" Woburn, MA-Eastern Connection (EC) in Woburn, Mass.- the largest regional parcel carrier serving the East Coast -recently added digital scanners as part of a major investment in...

Schneider Logistics Joins Forces with Chinese University to Foster Industry Professionals.
March 28, 2008... Several top students at Tsinghua University in Beijing to benefit from Schneider's new scholarship program GREEN BAY, Wis.-March 27, 2008-Schneider Logistics, Inc., a leading international logistics provider and part of the Schneider...

National Air Cargo Pleads Guilty.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher National Air Cargo negotiated a guilty plea and agreed to pay $28 million to settle charges of overbilling the federal government for logistics operations in Iraq. Under terms of the agreement with...

Firms Launch Joint China Venture.(HellmannWorldwide Logistics)(ProLogis)(Ehrhardt and Partner)(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Six logistics companies this week launched a partnership to offer comprehensive consultation for the Chinese market. Representatives of Deloitte, Ehrhardt + Partner, ProLogis, Dr. Schmidt & collagen, SGS...

EU-U.S. Open Skies Starts Sunday.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Air Transport Agreement between the European Union and the United States will take effect on Sunday, March 30. For the first time, European airlines will be able to fly without restrictions from any...

Short Line Traffic Falls.(Brief article)(Statistical data)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Short line traffic was down 0.9 percent in the week ending March 15, according to the latest RMI RailConnect Index Report, which was released March 28. The week showed some improvement over previous weeks...

Highway Bill Could Cost $500B.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Highway reauthorization season has officially begun, and the next bill is likely to top out at $500 billion, a highly placed insider with the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee said Friday. "It's...

Covenant Expects 1Q Loss.(Covenant Transport Inc.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Covenant Transportation Group said first quarter losses would likely be between 40 and 50 cents per share. The truckload carrier's loss will be greater than previously expected due to "the unprecedented...

CMA CGM, Maersk Ink Trans-Pac Deal.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... On Thursday CMA CGM announced that it had signed a cooperation agreement with Maersk Line on the Danish carrier's new service between North Asia and the United States West Coast. The French operator said that for the first time, it will...

WWL Opens N.-South Amer. Route.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics announced it will begin offering ocean transportation to automakers in its North America/South America trade. Beginning April 28, WWL will add two Pure Car Truck Carriers (PCTCs) to its existing...

Court OKs Summit Sale.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on March 26 approved the sale of Summit Global Logistics assets to TriDec Acquisition Co. Some of the founders of Summit's supply chain management...

PennDOT to Put $10M in Rails.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell on Wednesday announced the investment of $10.2 million in rail freight infrastructure. His effort to help create and maintain jobs at expanding businesses throughout the...

Saltchuk Offers to Buy Aloha Unit.(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher A Seattle-based company offered to buy the cargo business of bankrupt Aloha Airlines, which carries mail for the U.S. Postal Service and other cargo for FedEx and UPS. Aloha Airlines filed for bankruptcy...

FRA to Issue Standards March 31.(The Federal Railroad Administration )(Brief article)
March 28, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter The Federal Railroad Administration will issue its new proposed standards for railroad tank cars March 31, according to the agency. The new federal regulations aim to "significantly improve the safety of railroad...

Truck Tonnage Flat in February.(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher The pulse of the nation's trucking economy showed signs of life despite zero tonnage growth in February and soaring diesel fuel prices. The American Trucking Associations' advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire...

Yellow Launches Expedited Ocean Service.(Yellow Transportation )(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Yellow Transportation launched expedited ocean service for shipments from China to the United States. The subsidiary of YRC Worldwide is offering guaranteed on-time delivery of less-than-container-load...

Schneider Logistics Joins Forces with Chinese University to Foster Industry Professionals.
March 27, 2008... Several top students at Tsinghua University in Beijing to benefit from Schneider's new scholarship program GREEN BAY, Wis.-March 27, 2008-Schneider Logistics, Inc., a leading international logistics provider and part of the Schneider...

Toyota Recognizes Norfolk Southern with Logistics Awards.(Toyota Logistics Services )
March 27, 2008... NORFOLK, VA. - Toyota Logistics Services has awarded Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) the 2007 President's Award for overall logistics excellence among rail carriers, its highest award given to a logistics provider. The award is...

Ryder Receives Top Award from Toyota - Recognized for Value Improvement.(Ryder Supply Chain Solutions)
March 27, 2008... MIAMI, March 26, 2008 -- Ryder Supply Chain Solutions, a supplier of transportation and logistics services, received a Superior Award in the area of Value Improvement from Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc. (TEMA)...

UPS Deploys 167 'Green' Trucks.(United Parcel Service of America Inc.)
March 27, 2008... Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Vehicles Hit the Streets in California, Texas and Georgia ATLANTA, March 27, 2008 -- UPS (NYSE: UPS) today announced the deployment of 167 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) delivery vehicles in Texas, Georgia and...

NYK Net to Rise 17 Percent.(revenue report)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... Japan's largest shipping line by revenue, NYK Group, forecast profits to increase 17 percent in the next fiscal year on higher cargo volumes. The company said it will add vessels as pre-tax profit at its container unit is expected to...

Hutchison Profit Jumps 23 Percent.(Financial report)
March 27, 2008... Hutchison Whampoa Ltd., parent of the world's largest marine terminal operator, on Thursday reported pre-tax earnings from port operations totaled $1.66 billion in 2007, up 23 percent from $1.46 billion the previous year on revenue of $4.87...

Mexico Trade Gap Widens.(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Alan Field Mexico posted a trade deficit of $1.997 billion in February, nearly three times bigger than expected, the Mexican government announced on Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by Reuters had forecast the deficit at $696...

WTSA Carriers Raise Surcharges.( Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement)
March 27, 2008... The Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement on Wednesday announced a schedule of recommended quarterly increases in member carriers' bunker fuel surcharges, aimed at restoring their existing bunker fuel surcharges to guideline levels...

LA/LB Ports to Coordinate Two Truck Plans.(ports of Los Angeles)(ports of Long Beach)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Bill Mongelluzzo LOS ANGELES -- Although they comprise a single harbor complex, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach can operate under two separate clean-truck programs, the presidents of the two harbor commissions said...

Rail Traffic Slowed by Weather.(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Freight traffic on U.S. railroads dropped significantly during the week ending March 22, partly due to severe weather and flooding in some parts of the country, according to a report from the Association of...

Teamsters Sign UPS Freight Workers.(United Parcel Service of America Inc.)(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher So far this week, a majority of the workers at nine UPS Freight terminals in six states signed authorization cards to become Teamsters. Drivers and dockworkers in Alabama, Georgia, New York, Missouri, Ohio...

GAC Group Buys OBC.(Brief article)
March 27, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The GAC Group acquired UK-based shipping and logistics group OBC, effective March 31. The rebranded GAC-OBC handles vessels in ports throughout the UK, The Netherlands and the U.S. Gulf Coast where OBC has...