Behind the Wheel of Freightliner’s Autonomous Truck

LAS VEGAS, NV -- Sometimes, trucking journalists like me do very funny things. Like getting certified to drive a truck that can pretty much drive itself. Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) took a few trucking reporters to Las Vegas earlier this week so they could drive the Freightliner Inspiration autonomous truck, introduced in North America earlier this year. The prerequisite to sit behind the self-steering wheel of the Inspiration was to hold a commercial driver's license. Fortunately, I got one a dozen years ago, otherwise, I would have missed what was waiting for me at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. There were the two trucks at the event. Jim Martin, one of the few Freightliner engineers certified to drive the autonomous truck, would certify six trucking journalists, reminding us that nobody ever passed the test before.

TEAM ONTARIO WINS AT NATIONAL TRUCK DRIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

A big shout-out to Team Ontario, which won the Team Award at the National Professional Truck Driving Championships in Regina last weekend. Our western editor Jim Bray was there and…

Team Ontario wins at National Truck Driving Championships

Grand Champion is Ken Wiebe of EBD

Date set for 2016 Shell Rotella SuperRigs competition

JOPLIN, Mo. – The date and location for the 2016 Shell Rotella SuperRigs has been confirmed. Next year’s SuperRigs is set to take place from June 9-11, 2016 at the…

Stemco names new director of aftermarket sales

LONGVIEW, Texas – Stemco announced today that it has promoted Michael R. Keller to the position of director, aftermarket sales. In his new position, he will be responsible for aftermarket…

Schneider Streamlines Cross-Border Intermodal Service

GREEN BAY, WI - The freight transporter Schneider Intermodal said this week it has streamlined the process for shipping select commodities that originate in Canada or the U.S. and move into Mexico via rail that previously required additional handling at the U.S. border.

Editor Peter Carter and Blog Finalist for Award

TORONTO - He hasn't been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize, but one writer for Today's Trucking is up for a pretty sweet honor for his blog.

Canadian Diesel Costs Head Higher, U.S. Declines

LONDON, ON and WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Average prices for diesel fuel in Canada and the U.S. moved in opposite directions over the past week. The petroleum information services provider The Kent Group reports the average Canadian price is up $0.003 from last week to $1.036 per liter. This is the second straight weekly increase since hitting its lowest level in several years the first week of the month.

Driving the Freightliner Inspiration autonomous truck

I travelled to Nevada to become certified to operate autonomous trucks in that state

CIFFA urges government to intervene in container hauler strike

TORONTO, Ont. — The Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association (CIFFA) is calling on government to order striking Toronto-area container truckers back to work. The Container Trucking Association of Ontario (CTAO)…

OTA Sets Meeting on Labor Policy, Related Issues

TORONTO -- The Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) will be hosting a meeting next month of its labor council to brief carrier members on recent trends involving labor policy and issues at both the federal and provincial levels.

Spot Market Freight Volume, Rates Continue Falling

PORTLAND, OR -- Following a common seasonal pattern, spot market freight volume declined 8.8 percent month-over-month in August, according to the DAT North American Freight Index, based in its load boards in Canada and the U.S.

Company Adds Jobs, Gets Official Thanks

ST.-JEAN-SUR-RICHELIE, QC -- It's not often politicians stop by to express their thanks for something you have done, but one did just that last week, during the Saskatchewan Oil and Gas Show in Weyburn in a meeting with a trailer manufacturing executive.

Ground Broken for Complexe Transrapide

LEVIS, QC - The trucking company Groupe Transrapide held a groundbreaking ceremony last week for its commercial building project in Quebec.

Toronto Trucking Could Get Even More Frustrating

TORONTO-If trucking through parts of Toronto gets you frustrated--especially the Gardiner or Don Valley Parking Lot-- then stop reading this story, because conditions are only going to be slower and possibly more expensive.