Posts Tagged ‘trucking industry’
Technology to Make Truck Fleets Safer and More Efficient
Monday, November 2nd, 2009
A new global study by IBM says that the implementation of new technologies will make commercial trucks more fuel efficient, environmentally friendly, and safer. The Global Truck 2020 Study, entitled “Transcending Turbulence,” was unveiled this week at CALSTART’s Hybrid Truck Users Forum National Conference in Atlanta.
“IBM’s study shows the trucking industry is eager to transform itself,” said Sanjay Rishi, vice president and global automotive industry leader for IBM. “Increasingly, fleet owners choose cleaner, more fuel efficient trucks that also have advanced systems to make transport more efficient.”
The study indicates that the trucking industry believes smart technologies will play a major role in commercial trucking as well as other applications, such as transportation systems.
“Truck transportation drives our economy; goods movement fills our stores and supplies our factories. But those benefits come with costs that are causing rapid change,” said Bill Van Amburg, senior vice president of CALSTART, an organization dedicated to clean transportation. “That’s why IBM’s study is critical. It highlights the emerging needs of truck customers, the technical and environmental challenges for the industry and lays out a roadmap for clean and profitable growth for the future.”
For a complete copy of the study, click here.
Photo courtesy of zugaldia under the Creative Commons License.
Tags: CALSTART, fleet owners, Global Truck 2020 Study, Hybrid Truck Users Forum, IBM, Transcending Turbulence, trucking industry
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DOT: Highway Safety Still Highest Priority
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009
Despite ongoing efforts by the Obama administration to distribute billions of dollars in transportation infrastructure, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood has stated that those programs will not distract the agency from going forward with its number one priority-improving highway safety.
“Safety of our transportation system is always going to be our number priority at the DOT,” he emphasized during a speech during the Dept. of Transportation’s annual “Bring Your Child to Work Day” activities. “That safety focus is across all modes of transportation – trains, buses, airplanes and trucks.”
LaHood said that he remains focused on getting $28 billion in highway infrastructure funding, $12 billion for transit systems and $8 billion to develop a national high speed rail system as soon as possible. He noted that efforts made by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) over the last nine years “should serve as an inspiring example” of how to improve highway safety where commercial vehicles are concerned.
“Since 2000, fatalities resulting from truck-car collisions decreased 13% to the lowest on record,” he said. “Today 72% of truck drivers wear their seat belts, up from 50% just five years ago, And last year FMCSA conducted 3.5-million roadside inspections – an all-time record.”
“More than 50% of the time in truck-car accidents, the passenger vehicle is the primary cause of the crash,” said Rose McMurray, FMCSA Acting Deputy Administrator, referencing FMCSA‘s own crash analysis studies that found 56% of crashes involving a large truck and a passenger vehicle are caused by to the passenger vehicle driver, with the remaining 44% the fault of the truck driver. “That’s why it’s important that we continue to highlight to the public how to drive safely around these big rigs,” she stressed.
Barbara Windsor, vice chair of ATA and chair of its safety task force, said the trucking industry is as safe as it’s ever been. She noted the large truck fatal crash rate dropped by 23% over the last decade despite a huge increase in the number of vehicle miles traveled. She also stated that more could be accomplished if motorists would simply learn to operate their vehicles in a safer manner around tractor-trailers.
“People just don’t realize how many blind spots there are around tractor-trailers, nor do they realize they can’t stop on a dime like cars – in fact, they need twice as much space and time to stop,” Windsor told FleetOwner. “Everyone knows it’s not always the truck’s fault – and the statistics back that up,” she said. “But we can’t take trucks off the highway, either. So we need to work more closely together – government and the trucking industry – to help educate the public about how to drive more safely around trucks.”
Photo courtesy of Kerosene Photography under the Creative Commons License.
Tags: Department of Transportation, DOT, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, FleetOwner, FMCSA, Obama administration, Ray LaHood, Secretary of Transportation, trucking industry
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Nitrogen Tire Inflation Becoming Available to Fleets
Friday, June 26th, 2009
Nitrogen gas is steadily overtaking standard air when it comes to inflating tires for your vehicles, and one Phoenix based company is now offering their services to companies with fleets and the trucking industry.
In an article posted on The Auto Channel, NitrogenMan just completed installation for Safeway grocery stores to fill their vehicles with nitrogen. Tests, on tires filled with nitrogen, have shown it improves handling, fuel efficiency, and up to a 40% longer tread life.
Because Nitrogen is an inert, dry gas, it allows the tire to run cooler than with normal air, which creates a more consistent tire pressure, despite the weather outside. In turn, tests show this reduces the need for maintenance and the possibility of a blowout on the road.
The Auto Channel also reports that industry studies found that “Nitrogen-inflated tires can increase fuel economy by between 4 and 10%.”
Safeway, which is one of the NitrogenMan’s first major clients, plans on completing the conversion of the grocery store’s fleet of 320 trailers and 80 tractors by August.
Nitrogen tire inflation has not only seen an increase with truck fleets, but also with auto dealers offering the service on new car purchases.
For more information on Nitrogen inflation, check out the full article here.
Tags: fleets, Nitrogen, NitrogenMan, Phoenix, Safeway, The Auto Channel, trucking industry
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