Traffic World articles from March 2008

Traffic World archives from March 2008

Priced Out.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Paul Page Are you ready to get back on the inflation roller coaster? A transportation world that had been on something of a steady path, at least on the cost side, hit a couple of large bumps over the past two weeks that signal a...

States Take on Transportation.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter The Bush administration handed the nation''s governors a broad and far-reaching plan last week to move responsibility for decisions on transportation planning, and raising revenue, from the federal government to states....

Rail Antitrust Gains Force.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter It may not be moving at the speed of a freight train, but legislation seeking to create stronger antitrust standards for railroads appears to be picking up steam. The latest boost comes for Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.,...

High Court Snubs Tobacco Law.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Carriers in Maine will no longer be tasked with verifying that none of the tobacco products they deliver wind up in the hands of minors. In a victory for UPS, FedEx and other home-delivery companies that could...

Teamsters Endorse Obama.(Barack Obama.)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... After months of deliberations, polling and surveys, the Teamsters have decided which presidential candidate will get the backing of their 1.4 million member union: Barack Obama. "This endorsement begins a partnership to change America,"...

U.S. Agencies Consolidate Military Logistics.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... The United States Transportation Command, Defense Logistics Agency and General Services Administration have established a formal partnership designed to improve supply chain management for the armed forces. Leaders from the three agencies...

Hungry for Complements.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman Two heads may be better than one, but will two or more logistics and technology providers teaming up to tackle one shipper''s supply chain problems do a better job than a single company? More technology and...

Juicing Freight Costs.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman When Welch Foods looked to squeeze more value from its transportation costs, it decided that sometimes it''s good to put all your eggs in one basket. In February, the company handed over its data warehousing...

USC Intermodal Leases in SoCal.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... USC Intermodal, a Southern California-based third-party logistics supplier, leased all 199,000 square feet of AMB Clipper Distribution Center, a facility renovated by AMB Property in the crowded Los Angeles port region. AMB Clipper is in...

Unilever Expands in Eastern Europe.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Consumer product manufacturer Unilever leased 295,000 square feet from ProLogis in Budapest, Hungary, to serve the shipper''s growing customer base in Hungary, Slovenia and Croatia. The transaction highlights once again surging distribution...

Braking at the Border.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter If you''re trucking freight across the U.S.-Mexican border, it pays to get there early. In El Paso, Texas, traffic can back up for hours during the afternoon at the Ysleta International Bridge, as trucks shift from the...

Delays Coming to a Boil.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Shippers who believe navigating through America''s ports of entry along the U.S.-Canada border is getting any easier might turn to Campbell Soup Co. for another view. The $7.9 billion food manufacturer, which moves...

Driving to Organize.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher By the end of 2008, UPS Freight''s biggest concern may not be how to get more freight over its docks but figuring out how to compete for the first time as a union carrier. It has taken the Teamsters union only...

S&P Cuts YRC Credit Rating.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher Standard & Poor''s lowered its credit rating on YRC Worldwide for the second time in less than two months, pushing the nation''s largest trucking company down to junk bond status due to its debt position and the...

Jury Awards Shipper $147 Million.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... A jury in Racine, Wis., on Feb. 26 awarded household products shipper SC Johnson $147 million in damages after finding its former transportation director and other employees conspired in a bribery and kickback scheme with trucking companies....

Suppliers Seek Sidetracks.(Financial report)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd The solid earnings of two important companies in the railcar supply industry offers a strong example of how the slumping freight economy is changing the way the equipment supply industry does business. Market...

Carl Icahn Boosts TCI.
March 3, 2008... Days after CSX Transportation gave dissident shareholder TCI the back of its hand in a public rebuke, TCI gained important support as investor Carl Icahn said he was building a big stake in the Eastern U.S. rail giant. If the dissidents...

Wabtec Gains Despite Soft Market.
March 3, 2008... Wabtec, a maker of locomotive brakes plus other products for the rail industry, saw fourth quarter profit rise 9 percent to $28.7 million on $365 million in sales, but looked for diversification to drive 2008 profits as the rail freight...

Disembarking DHL.(Financial report)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey ABX Air thinks its central but estranged customer DHL is staying put in the United States despite the express company''s dismal financial performance and suggestions it could be scaling back its presence. But the...

Kalitta Seeks Airline Backers.
March 3, 2008... Managers of the prospective Kalitta Air cargo airline say they may have a new financing deal in the works that may allow the carrier to take off without upfront investment from forwarders. The Michigan-based operator had asked forwarders to...

Capacity Seen Absorbing Walkout.
March 3, 2008... If there is one air market that can withstand a strike by a major carrier, it has to be the trans-Atlantic trade. When pilots at British Airways threatened a walkout last month over operations at a BA subsidiary passenger startup,...

ACL''s Course Change.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey Trying to navigate the eddies and undercurrents of a weak U.S. economy, rising fuel costs and "unpredictable" weather patterns, American Commercial Lines is thinning its fleet and changing command. After...

San Diego Mulls Pollution Controls.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Southern California''s push for cleaner harbor trucks is rolling into San Diego. The San Diego Board of Port Commissioners is reviewing a draft clean-air program that would require ships to use shore power and replace or retrofit older...

New Orleans'' Chicken Run.
March 3, 2008... A poultry exporter is about to get a new nest at the Port of New Orleans. The Port of New Orleans Dock Board approved an engineering contract that covers the development of a new facility for longtime tenant New Orleans Cold Storage. ...

Maersk to ''Streamline'' U.S. Staff.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Maersk Line plans to consolidate its North American sales and customer service staff from six regional offices into five by the end of August. The company said it is making the change as part of its global "streamline" strategy to lower...

NOL Earnings Rise, Merger Rumors Persist.(Neptune Orient Lines Ltd.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Neptune Orient Lines'' fourth quarter net profit grew 292 percent to $196 million, while its full-year profit of $523 million was 44 percent higher than in 2006, on higher container traffic and tighter cost control. The Singapore-based...

People.(Breifs)
March 3, 2008... Kansas City Southern, Kansas City, Mo., appointed John E. Derry to the position of vice president of human resources. He will direct the human resource functions for The Kansas City Southern Railway Company and will advise Kansas City Southern...

Sniffing Out Liability on an Odor Claim.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Colin Barrett Q: I wanted your opinion on carrier liability related to a claim filed for odor contamination. We''re a motor carrier. The customer has a transportation contract with us, and under claims liability we have...

The Back Page.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Paid. The latest list of top paid trade association executives by CEO Update is out and transportation doesn''t come out too well. The listing, based on 2006 filings, gets to transport only at No. 25, with the Air Transport Association''s James...

March 3, 2008.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Paid. The latest list of top paid trade association executives by CEO Update is out and transportation doesn't come out too well. The listing, based on 2006 filings, gets to transport only at No. 25, with the Air Transport Association's James...

Sniffing Out Liability on an Odor Claim.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Colin Barrett Q: I wanted your opinion on carrier liability related to a claim filed for odor contamination. We're a motor carrier. The customer has a transportation contract with us, and under claims liability we have the...

States Take on Transportation.(Industry overview)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter The Bush administration handed the nation's governors a broad and far-reaching plan last week to move responsibility for decisions on transportation planning, and raising revenue, from the federal government to states....

ACL's Course Change.(American Commercial Lines L.L.C.)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey Trying to navigate the eddies and undercurrents of a weak U.S. economy, rising fuel costs and "unpredictable" weather patterns, American Commercial Lines is thinning its fleet and changing command. Click to...

Jet Fuel Cost Soars.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Jet fuel prices moved past $2.90 on world markets for the first time and airlines pushed their fuel surcharges higher to meet the new records. In Los Angeles on Friday, Feb. 22, airlines were paying $2.935...

Diesel Jumps 10.6 Cents to $3.658.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The average price for a gallon of diesel fuel jumped more than 10 cents per gallon for the third week in a row as crude oil prices remained above $100 per barrel. Diesel was selling at the highest ever...

Crowley Expands Box Fleet.(Crowley Maritime Corp. acquired with cargo-handling units)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Crowley Maritime Corp.'s liner services group announced plans to acquire more than 1,500 new containers and related cargo-handling units in 2008. The order includes 50 45-foot containers with recycled, composite-material floors made by...

NOL Boosts Volume.(Neptune Orient Lines )(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... Neptune Orient Lines on Monday said container shipping volumes increased 17 percent for the period Dec. 29-Feb. 8. The Singapore-based parent of APL said volume totaled 289,400 FEUs, up from 247,500 FEUs from the same period in 2006-07. ...

Manufacturing Activity Contracts.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Economic activity in the manufacturing sector contracted in February, according to a national survey of supply executives. While the overall economy grew at a slow 2.3 percent pace in January and February,...

NAFTA Trade Grew in December.(North American Free Trade Agreement )(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico increased to $60.9 billion in December, an increase of 3.1 percent compared with December 2006. The year-over-year increase occurred despite a 13.4 percent drop from...

3PL Returns to St. Paul.
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman Minneapolis-based Murphy Warehouse Co. opened 120,000 square feet of distribution space in downtown St. Paul, Minn., 40 years after the third-party logistics provider closed its last major operations in the central...

Estes Covers 50 States.(Estes Express Lines Inc.)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Estes Express Lines is opening 13 terminals in six states on March 3 in the Upper Midwest. The terminals in Iowa, North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin complete a nationwide footprint for...

KCS Names Auto/Intermodal VP.(Kansas City Southern)(Vice presidents )(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Kansas City Southern appointed Brian H. Bowers senior vice president intermodal and automotive. A former senior vice president global wholesale services for Schneider National, Bowers will direct sales and...

Odyssey Opens in Europe.(Odyssey Logistics & Technology Corp.)(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Odyssey Logistics & Technology in January opened its European office in Antwerp, Belgium. The global logistics and transportation service provider for chemical and process industries started with signed...

NS Opens Ohio Terminal.(Brief article)
March 3, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Norfolk Southern on Monday opened the Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal near Columbus, Ohio. The 175 acre facility can handle more than 250,000 containers and trailers annually, NS said. With adjacent...

Allen Group Names CFO.(appointment of Ken Howell as a chief financial officer)(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Allen Group named Ken Howell chief financial officer. Howell joins the developer of logistics parks and inland ports with 20 years of experience in finance, accounting and real estate. He will oversee...

Train Accidents Decline.(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The number of train accidents in the United States declined for the third consecutive year, according to preliminary 2007 data released Tuesday by U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters. ...

Airlines Pan Air Traffic Control Proposal.(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Air Transport Association of America on Monday leveled sharp criticism at a proposal for pervasive change in air traffic control service. While granting full support for the basic technology, ATA said in...

Access Manages with RedPrairie.(Access Business Group contract with RedPrairie)(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Access Business Group selected warehouse management and workforce management systems provided by RedPrairie.  Access, a subsidiary of Alticor, uses nearly two million square feet of distribution space,...

Vessel Owners Oppose Pollution Tax.(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... Two Greek maritime associations on Monday protested plans for a pollution tax on ships, saying they were the cleanest mode of transport. The Union of Greek Shipowners based in London and the Greek Shipping Cooperation Committee issued the...

Mumbai Extends Box Concessions.(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... India's Port of Mumbai announced plans to extend concessions on container stuffing and de-stuffing charges for a further period of one year ending March 2009, following appeals from shipping lines and local agents. The port authority...

JAL Projects Flat Cargo Revenue.(Japan Airlines Company Ltd.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Hisane Masaki Japan Airlines Corp. has announced a new three-year business plan, which forecasts flat international cargo revenue of 189 billion yen ($1.83 billion) in fiscal 2010. This figure is almost unchanged from the $1.82...

NYK Shuts Panama Units.(Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha )(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Hisane Masaki Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK Line), Japan's largest ocean carrier by revenue, has decided to dissolve five of its wholly-owned subsidiaries in Panama. At a board meeting Feb. 28, the company decided to...

LAN Cargo Names COO.
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher LAN Cargo appointed Federico Germani as its chief operating officer. Based at LAN Cargo headquarters at Miami International Airport, Germani will be responsible for managing cargo-related airport...

JPMorgan's New Freight Payment And Audit Solution Brings Greater Control, Visibility and Cost Savings to Global Transport Operations.(JPMorgan Chase & Co.)
March 4, 2008... New Supply Chain Solution Leverages JPMorgan's Trade Expertise, Payment Options and Extensive Global Banking Network NEW YORK - March 4, 2008 - JPMorgan today announced its new Freight Payment and Audit Solution, an electronic payment and...

CSCMP Announces ProLogis as 2008 Annual Global Conference Premier Sponsor.(Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals)(Conference news)
March 4, 2008... Event to Be Held in Denver, October 5-8 Lombard, Illinois USA (March 3, 2008)-The Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) announced that ProLogis will be the premier sponsor of its annual global conference, scheduled for...

ASTAR Pilots Ratify Contract.(Astar Air Cargo Inc.)(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Crew members represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, International ratified a four-year amendment and extension to the union's contract with ASTAR Air Cargo. "We are extremely pleased with the...

Ryder Honored for Environmental Excellence in Brazil.(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... MIAMI, March 3, 2008   Ryder System, Inc. (NYSE: R), a global leader in supply chain, warehousing and transportation management solutions, today announced it has been honored with the "Top Ambiental" award by ADBV, the Brazilian...

Deutsche Post to Split Logistics Unit.(Deutsche Post World Net)(Brief article)
March 4, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman Deutsche Post World Net, the biggest postal service provider in Europe, split its logistics unit into two businesses. Deutsche Post and its subsidiaries, including DHL, have been rocked by both internal and...

ABX Names Board Member.(appointment of Jeffrey A. Dominick at ABX Air Inc.)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey ABX Air elected Jeffrey A. Dominick, a financial investment professional with an extensive background in the airline, transportation and logistics industry, to its board of directors. Dominick will complete the...

ATA Fights Long Beach Truck Plan.
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Long Beach clean truck plan on Monday ran into just the kind of trouble the city was trying to avoid. In an attempt to avoid litigation, Long Beach on Feb. 15 broke away from planning partner Los Angeles...

Bulk Cargos Lift Short Lines.(Survey)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: John D. Boyd The RailConnect short line traffic index showed small railroads increasing their volume by 1.85 percent in the first seven weeks of 2008, with gains in chemicals, grain and even scrap hauls and ore traffic offsetting a...

Senate Dems Boost Infrastructure Spending.(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Ari Natter Infrastructure investment will make up a key component of the budget Senate Democrats are to unveil Wednesday. The budget resolution outlined by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., would boost...

FFE Loses Money.(Frozen Food Express Industries Inc.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: John Gallagher Slow freight and excess capacity turned into a net loss for reefer carrier Frozen Food Express. In the fourth quarter, FFE lost $3.5 million after taxes compared with profits of $4.3 million during the same period a...

Manufacturers' Orders Fall.(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher New orders for manufactured goods in January were down, but not as low as earlier estimates for durable goods suggested, according to a report released Wednesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. Shipments,...

Order Logistics Opens Tech Center.(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Order Logistics opened a "customer solutions center" to house its technology development and to serve as a central facility for parent 3PL company Janel World Trade to interact with customers. The facility...

Texans to Join Teamsters.(International Brotherhood of Teamsters)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The largest group yet of UPS Freight workers signed cards to authorize their membership in the Teamsters. A majority of 720 UPS Freight workers at ten terminals in Texas expressed a desire to join local...

OOIL Profits Soar on Terminal Sale.(Orient Overseas International Ltd.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... Orient Overseas (International) Ltd. on Wednesday reported profits in 2007 of $2.55 billion, up from $580.6 million the previous year. That total included a gain of $1.99 billion from the sale of its terminals division. Absent the gain,...

Customs Seizes Smuggled Apparel.(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Alan Field The Department of Homeland Security announced on March 3 that it seized more than $67 million worth of clothing that was illegally imported as part of what is believed to be the largest commercial fraud scheme ever...

Ga. Ports Complete TWIC Enrollment.(Transportation Worker Identification Credential)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... The Georgia Ports Authority on Wednesday said it has completed the initial employee enrollment process for the Transportation Worker Identification Credential program.  The Transportation Security Administration opened the TWIC...

Summit Postpones Auction.(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman Summit Global Logistics postponed its bankruptcy auction from March 13 to March 19 to see whether anyone else wants to bid for its assets. Insiders, including CEO Robert Agresti, offered to assume about $192...

AAR Names New VP.(appointment of John T. Gray at Association of American Railroads)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Association of American Railroads appointed John T. Gray as vice president of policy and economics. Gray replaces Craig F. Rockey, who retired after 30 years with the rail organization and 11 as head of the...

Truckers Balk at TWIC Demands.(Transportation Worker Identification Cards)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... Truckers who haul dangerous goods say some shippers are requiring they get the new federal Transportation Worker Identification Cards, a sharp expansion of TWIC card use that many say they cannot meet. The dispute between truckers and...

NAM Hires Ambassador.(National Association of Manufacturers)(appointment of Shaun Donnelly )(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The current Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Europe and the Middle East will join the National Association of Manufacturers as the senior director for international business policy.   ...

CEVA Earnings Pick Up.(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 5, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman CEVA Group credited its acquisition last year of Eagle Global Logistics for a 4.5 percent nudge in gross revenue, to $9.6 billion, and a 56.1 percent boost in gross profit, to $434.5 million, for the fiscal year...

Crude Hits Record $104.52.(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The price of crude oil hit an all time high Wednesday, closing up $5 at $104.52 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Even adjusted for inflation, the record price is higher than the $38 per barrel...

Railroad industry honored by leading suicide prevention advocacy group.(Association of American Railroads)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... WASHINGTON, March 5, 2008 ? The Association of American Railroads and its members were honored recently at a ceremony on Capitol Hill for their work on suicide prevention, receiving an "Allies for Action" award from the Suicide Prevention...

Descartes Earnings Surge.(Descartes Systems Group Inc.)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: William Hoffman Canadian supply chain software-as-a-service provider Descartes Systems Group overcame the effects of the sinking U.S. dollar to post a 13 percent gain in gross revenue, to $59 million, for its fiscal year.  ...

Deutsche Post Income Dives.(DHL Express)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Michael Fabey Analysts are predicting a substantial overhaul in DHL Express operations in the United States in the wake of a poor quarterly report Thursday by European parent Deutsche Post. Deutsche Post reported a net income...

Jaxport Stems Losses.(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The Jacksonville Port Authority generated record revenue, but declining cargo tonnage led to an operating loss for fiscal year 2007. Jaxport earned $39.9 million in operating revenue in fiscal year 2007, the...

Dynamex Earnings Slip.(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Dynamex earned $3.4 million profit in its second fiscal quarter, ending Jan. 31. Net income was down 8 percent compared with last year's $3.7 million, when interest and foreign exchange gains provided a $1...

KCS Names Second Sr. VP.(Michael W. Upchurch appointed as senior vice president)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher Kansas City Southern appointed Michael W. Upchurch as senior vice president for financial management and purchasing. Upchurch joins KCS less than a week after the appointment of Brian H. Bowers as senior...

AAA Reports Cost of Crashes.(American Automobile Association)(Report)(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Thomas L. Gallagher The total cost to the economy of highway crashes is a staggering $164.2 billion annually, according to a report released March 5 by the American Automobile Association.  That figure includes medical,...

Tideworks Installs System in Poland.(Brief article)
March 6, 2008... Tideworks Technology completed the installation of container terminal management and planning systems at the Baltic Container Terminal in Gdynia, Poland.   Tideworks, a Carrix unit and sister company of SSA Marine based in Seattle, said...

Court Favors Canada.(Industry overview)
March 6, 2008... BYLINE: Alan Field Canada this week claimed a victory in its long-running lumber dispute with the United States, after a London court ruled that most exports to the U.S. did not violate a 2006 trade agreement. The London Court of...