[the48thronin]

javascript:playVideo('4415008', 'Saturday%20News%20%40%20Your%20Desk%2C%2012-26-09', 'v', 'News', '346267', 'Search%20Results', '', 'www.newschannel10.com','flv');

The arrow driver I am escorting home ( buying his fuel ) and I are meeting with a producer for Dan rather at noon...today!

[VMarcHart]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('the48thronin', 'D')o I see a black swan for trucking? Maybe tomarrow...?

[VMarcHart]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Novus', 'W')ell if just in time delivery breaks down because the truckers went bankrupt...

[frankthetank]

Drivers? We have a whole country of them...in Mexico...if we had to, we could import Chinese drivers (who speak english) and they could drive the trucks...for next to nothing...problem solved

[VMarcHart]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('frankthetank', 'D')rivers? We have a whole country of them...in Mexico...if we had to, we could import Chinese drivers (who speak english) and they could drive the trucks...for next to nothing...problem solved

[eXpat]

Is official
Trailer shipments hit 32-year low in 2009
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')ruck trailer shipments dropped to levels not seen since 1975, according to figures compiled by ACT Research Company of Columbus, Indiana.

Manufacturers in the United States shipped 80,014 complete trailers for the year, down 44% from the 142,284 that the industry shipped in 2008. And had it not been for a strong refrigerated trailer market spurred on in part by California Air Resources Board regulations, the total could have been the lowest since 1963, according to Kenny Vieth, partner and senior analyst for ACT Research.

As the year was ending, however, there were strong signs that the industry was turning around. Manufacturers had their best month of the year in December, shipping 8,296 commercial trailers. December net orders for commercial trailers were up 140% from depressed levels in December 2008, but slightly below the 2009 monthly average.

In the latest release of State of the Industry: U.S. Trailers, ACT indicated that almost every category of trailer factory shipments posted the lowest levels in 30 to 50 years, with only the reefer van sector holding up relatively well.

“Reaching a 32-year low required not only the worst economic downturn in generations, but also the impact of trailer tracking technology on trailer productivity and utilization,” said Kenny Vieth, partner and senior analyst with ACT Research. “On a more positive note, inventories reached a new four-year low, a prerequisite for improvement in production rates.”

[Graeme]

EPA to Release Draft Greenhouse Gas Emission Limits for Heavy Trucks

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he Obama administration is preparing to issue new fuel economy standards and the first-ever greenhouse gas limits for large trucks and buses.

U.S. EPA and the Transportation Department sent draft rules Friday to the White House regulatory review office that would limit heavy-duty vehicles' emissions under the Clean Air Act and boost fuel economy standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, according to a federal website that tracks new rules.

President Obama announced the latest initiative during a Rose Garden speech in May, where he directed officials at EPA and DOT to expand on a joint rulemaking finalized earlier this year for cars and light-duty trucks for model years 2012 through 2016. Obama issued a memorandum directing the agencies to expand the program to include medium- and heavy-duty trucks for model years 2014 through 2018 (Greenwire, May 21).

The first round of standards for cars and light trucks issued in April will slash carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 1 billion metric tons over the lifetime of the vehicles covered, roughly the equivalent of taking 50 million cars and trucks off the road in 2030, according to White House estimates. Vehicles purchased under the new rules will conserve an estimated 1.8 billion barrels of oil over their lifetime.

Obama also urged the agencies in May to begin the next round of fuel economy and emission standards for cars and light-duty trucks for model years 2017 through 2025. He directed EPA and DOT to issue a notice of intent to issue a proposed rule by Sept. 30.

[Tanada]

If this will get long haul semi trucks out of the cargo business then I support it, if on the other hand it is just one more tax designed for maximum revenue to the government ala Laffer curve then I am against it. It is all in how the regs are enforced and administrated.

[polka]

I'm beginning to notice a few of these putting around. They're street legal in my state, but apparently not in most of the US. Not "safe" enough to withstand some asshole in a Tahoe I suppose.



While not the most aerodynamic package, I'm reading they get about 35mpg with a little 600cc motor you'd see on an ATV. They're 4-wheel drive, and farmers seem to like em for off-road use.

Got me thinking maybe these vehicles have thrifty peak oil doomer written all over them.

(Forgive me if this has been discussed. I can't seem to find a useable search function on this forum)

[Pacoloco]

I've always thought these little trucks made the most sense. They are all over the Philippines and in many Asian countries. I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

[Pops]

Looks like a great little delivery truck, I'd guess the 4wd would be good for snow/ice but it wouldn't get too far on soft ground.

In countries with high fuel prices, is there much of a demand for small package couriers? I'm thinking high fuel prices = public transit not private cars = demand for little delivery trucks?

[PrestonSturges]

I'm not feeling it.

If someone made the old Toyota mini pickup of 25 years ago, it would sell well. Who didn't move at least once using one of these?

The VW Rabbit FWD pickup was never marketed seriously.

A pickup truck based on the VW Fox sedan with FWD and a 4 speed would have lots of torque and be unstoppable in the snow.

This market has been ignored for 20 years, and if China or India started making these vehicles, they could sell plenty of them in the US.

[Pops]

BTW, the best search right now is to click "Active Discussions" on the sidebar and when the new page comes up, right under "view active topics" click the link that says "Return to Advanced Search"

[Plantagenet]

The little trucks were all over China. There is a guy who sells used DVDs and CDs here in my town in Alaska who has four of them
sitting outside in his parking lot so I guess they are for sale here too.

[Sixstrings]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '(')Reuters) - The Obama administration on Thursday proposed a new inspection and monitoring regime to permit long-haul trucks from Mexico on U.S. highways after years of delays over safety concerns and political wrangling.

The Transportation Department's compromise seeks to revive efforts to fulfill a key provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which is highly unpopular with labor but supported by many businesses as a cost advantage.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE7056AQ20110106

[bratticus]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Fair Fuel UK
The rising price of fuel is hurting the economy. All road users are suffering – the road freight companies, general businesses and motorists. Businesses are being ruined and people are struggling.

[bratticus]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Hauliers threaten action over petrol prices
Jan 14, 2011
By Gill Plimmer - Financial Times

... Ian Jarman, company spokesman, said: “The rise in April could put the final nail in the coffin in the haulage industry. We’re having to pass the rise in fuel duty onto customers, and given we carry everything from steel to consumer goods this will have a massive effect on shoppers on the high street. “ ...

[bratticus]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Farmers consider major fuel protest
Farmers Guardian
Jan 17, 2011

FARMERS and hauliers are considering fuel price protests similar to those that brought parts of the country to a standstill in 2000 when petrol pumps ran dry.

Both industries are furious at the planned one penny rise in fuel duty for April at a time when pump prices are already rising steeply.

... Andrew Spence from the People’s Fuel Lobby said protests were unavoidable without ‘cast iron assurances’ to tackle fuel prices.

[dolanbaker]

I remember it well, cut about 1/3 off the journey time as I was fortunate enough to have filled up just before the strike had started and travelled about four days after that.
By that time many commuters had run out, were using alternative transport or using up leave, the motorways were almost empty, 5pm was as busy as 5am would have been on a normal day. Most of the public supported the reason for the strike as well, so there was little disturbance.

Will be interesting to see if this strike gets the same level of support as the first one did.

There were a number of smaller strikes after the first one, but these quickly failled due to lack of support.

[bratticus]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Oil tops $100 mark amid fears that Egypt crisis will lead to the closure of the Suez Canal
Feb 1, 2011
By James Chapman - Mail Online

Yesterday the Prime Minister went far further than he had previously by insisting that the Treasury must find a way to reform the tax system so that fuel duty goes down when oil prices go up and vice versa.

He said he wanted a system where ‘we share the difficulty of that with the motorist’. ‘I think that’s fair,’ he added. ‘That’s what we are going to try to do.’

Mr Cameron’s comments are the strongest signal yet that a fuel stabiliser will be unveiled in the Budget, due in March.

The Prime Minister has now voiced support for it on so many occasions that it will be a major embarrassment if Chancellor George Osborne fails to produce one.

Last month Robert Chote, head of the office of Budget Responsibility, described the system as unworkable.

However, ministers recognise that they must respond to public disquiet about soaring petrol prices and head off threatened fuel protests by hauliers.

Currently, fuel duty is planned to rise every year by at least the rate of inflation, regardless of what happens to the price of oil.