Jim Park
Jim Park was a CDL driver and owner-operator from 1978 until 1998, when he began his second career as a trucking journalist. During that career transition, he hosted an overnight radio show on a Hamilton, Ontario radio station and later went on to anchor the trucking news in SiriusXM's Road Dog Trucking channel. Jim is a regular contributor to Today's Trucking and Trucknews.com, and produces Focus On and On the Spot test drive videos.
Canadian named 35th Highway Hero
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- What does one say after saving one life and preventing severe injury to another? "I'm just happy I was in the right place at the right time," said Frank Vieira of Ancaster, Ont. -- the 35th Goodyear Highway Hero. Vieira was driving over a bridge on a rural highway near Toronto when he heard a loud crash, looked over his shoulder and noticed that a car on the other side of the road had slammed into the back of a stationary roll-off truck. The force of the impact threw the driver forcefully against the steering wheel. The steering wheel broke, with a piece of it embedding itself in the driver's neck.
Combined Savings: LCVs vs. platooning
TORONTO, Ont. -- Pulling two trailers with just a single power unit is an efficient way of moving freight. It's not quite two-for-the-price-of-one, but fuel and labor costs are lower on a per-trailer basis even if equipment acquisition and operating costs are similar.
Lab Report: What story will your oil tell?
Human beings aren't much different from the trucks they drive. Like humans, trucks can have stuff going on inside that could prove detrimental to longevity. Since we can't open a door and peer inside for a look, we rely on blood tests, blood pressure checks, cholesterol, and blood sugar tests, to name a few. Oil sampling and analysis provides a similar level of insight into the internal condition of engines.
Little engines that can: Big power from small displacements
TORONTO, ON -- Canada has always been big-bore territory: big trucks, big loads, big hills, big engines. Right? If you're one of those with feet firmly planted in the big bore camp, it might be time to re-think that position. Some of today's smaller engines are surprisingly capable. They are lighter and more fuel-efficient, and deliver performance that's nearly equal to their larger brothers.
Cyberjacked! — Trucks vulnerable to cyber threats
It's Tuesday afternoon, a little after 2 pm. You're the operations manager of a major truckload carrier. The morning rush is over, all the drivers and customers are happy, and now you're gearing up for the onslaught of late-afternoon messages from customers wondering where their trucks are and drivers alerting you that they can't load 'til tomorrow. Typical day. Then a driver calls on his mobile phone. "My engine has just shut down and I'm sitting deader than a doornail in the center lane of Highway 401 between Dufferin and Keele Street," he says.
