Transport Topics

Democratic members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee unveiled a $547 billion surface transportation reauthorization bill on Friday. The majority of the funding outlined in the bill, $343 billion, would be directed to roads, bridges and safety programs. The bill proposes $250 million for commercial motor vehicle parking each year for fiscal years 2023 through 2026. It also calls for the secretary of transportation to assess the risk posed by untreated obstructive sleep apnea in truck drivers. In a joint statement, Republican committee members complained that the bill attempts to appease the most progressive members in the majority’s party instead of attempting to earn bipartisan support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As leaders from Canadian National and Kansas City Southern promote their proposed multibillion-dollar merger, some of their customers are voicing concerns. The American Chemistry Council, a trade association, has expressed concerns to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board that the deal could limit competition in an industry that operates with only a handful of larger carriers. Any regulatory decision on the proposal probably won’t come soon. Analysts have said it likely will take at least a year before CN and KCS even present their case for a merger before the Surface Transportation Board. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Tuesday, news broke that JBS SA, the world’s largest meat producer, had fallen victim to a cyberattack that hobbled its operations. Yesterday, the company announced it had made “significant progress” to resolve the cyberattack. The majority of factories had returned to operation, according to the company. That’s good news for the U.S. food supply, given that JBS’ beef plants account for almost a quarter of American supplies. JBS USA Holdings also operates the 57th largest private commercial fleet in North America, according to the Transport Topics Top 100 private carriers list. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A little more than three weeks after the cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline, the meat supply chain has been targeted. A cyberattack on JBS SA, the world’s largest meat producer, has forced the shutdown of some of the largest slaughterhouses globally, and indications are that the closures are spreading. JBS’ beef plant in Canada, one of the nation’s largest, was shut down Monday after being hacked the day before. A number of U.S. plants have been shut and shifts have been canceled, according to labor union representatives. JBS Holdings USA ranks No. 57 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

President Joe Biden on Friday unveiled a whopping $6 trillion budget proposal, which includes billions in provisions to boost transportation infrastructure. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Biden’s proposal reflects an $88 billion investment in transportation. The budget proposal outlined a discretionary request of $25.7 billion for DOT, which represents a 14.8 percent increase for the agency’s discretionary program. The budget, proposed for fiscal 2022 spending, will be considered by Congress. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The sales price for the average used Class 8 sold in April set an all-time record. It cleared $57,000, which is 50% higher than this time last year. According to ACT Research, which calculated the figure, the surge came even as demand slipped compared with the month before. The previous high was $55,000, set in 2015. Experts are predicting this year to remain a very strong one for prices. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee unanimously approved a five-year, $304 billion reauthorization of surface transportation programs yesterday. Now, committees with jurisdiction over transit, freight and tax policies will have to consider any missing components. Senators and their House counterparts are hoping to move the legislation through the markup process and over to President Joe Biden’s desk before the end of September. Provisions of the FAST Act, which is the country’s premier highway policy bill, expire on Sept. 30. A variety of stakeholders, from freight firms to labor unions, have expressed support for the Senate’s bill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A group of Senate Republicans plans to propose to the White House on Thursday an infrastructure package that will come in at nearly $1 trillion spread over eight years. The new offer still would be well short of the $1.7 trillion the White House proposed May 21. The Democrats have said the clock is ticking on getting a bipartisan deal done, and some already are saying GOP input isn’t needed and that their goal could be reached using fast-track budget procedures. Lead Republican negotiator Shelley Moore Capito said the group may request a meeting with President Joe Biden, since he seemed more open to a deal in a gathering May 20 than his staff later did. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee scheduled consideration of comprehensive highway policy legislation for tomorrow. Top Democrats and Republicans on the committee announced May 22 they reached agreement on the surface transportation reauthorization bill, which would provide $304 billion in funding for highways, roads and bridges. It’s part of an update of the 2015 FAST Act highway law, which expires at the end of September. Trucking provisions in the bill include a program designed to reduce idling and emissions at port facilities and establishing a pilot study to evaluate a nationwide vehicle-miles-traveled fee. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The White House has come down in price on its infrastructure proposal, reducing the cost from $2.25 trillion to $1.7 trillion, but it appears Senate Republicans do not find that agreeable. Biden’s counteroffer on Friday still relies on a corporate tax to pay for the package, and the GOP is unwilling to revisit tax cuts that were gained during the Trump administration. In the newest proposal, the White House reduced road and bridge spending by $39 billion, from $159 billion to $120 billion, to move closer to the GOP's proposal of $48 billion in new funds. A GOP aide said Republicans dismissed the new White House offer as disappointing, according to the Associated Press. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

U.S. House Republicans have unveiled new legislation that would authorize $400 billion over five years for surface transportation programs. The proposed bill — the Surface Transportation Advanced Through Reform, Technology and Efficient Review Act 2.0 — would update a 2015 highway law that expires in September. It would extend or create programs related to highway funding, autonomous vehicles and the trucking workforce, among other provisions. It would also look to streamline parts of the federal environmental permitting process. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A contract has been awarded for emergency repair of the Interstate 40 bridge, but the span will likely remain closed for months. The bridge carries I-40 across the Mississippi River and links Memphis, Tenn., and West Memphis, Ark. The bridge was closed to vehicular and marine traffic May 11 after a mechanical fracture was discovered during a routine inspection. In the meantime, traffic is being diverted to the Memphis and Arkansas Bridge, which is located about three miles south of the I-40 bridge. On May 14, waterway restrictions for vessels moving beneath the bridge were lifted. Arkansas Trucking Association President Shannon Newton estimated the closure is costing the trucking industry about $2.4 million each day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Truck tonnage in April increased a seasonally adjusted 6.9% compared with year-ago levels, according to American Trucking Associations' For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index. When measured against this past March, April tonnage declined 0.3%. Trucking represents 72.5% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods, according to ATA. Trucks hauled 11.84 billion tons of freight in 2019, and motor carriers collected $791.7 billion, or 80.4%, of total revenue earned by all transport modes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, President Joe Biden plans to visit a Ford site in Dearborn, Mich., that will build the carmaker’s new electric F-150 pickup truck. The F-150 has been the country’s best-selling vehicle for decades, and the electric version will be unveiled May 19 during a livestreamed event. Biden is expected to tour the facility, view the new truck, receive a technical rundown from Ford engineers and offer remarks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Canadian National Railway appears to be the front-runner to acquire Kansas City Southern Railroad after the KCS board of directors said CN has presented a “superior proposal” to an earlier offer from Canadian Pacific to purchase the U.S.-based railway. The CN proposal totals $33.6 billion and includes assumption of nearly $3.8 billion in KCS debt. Canadian National also is offering to pay a $700 million breakup fee for which KCS would be liable for terminating its March 24 deal with Canadian Pacific. Canadian Pacific’s agreement was worth nearly $29 billion, including debt. Kansas City Southern’s board said it will break the deal with CP and enter into a new agreement with CN, but CP still has a few days to respond. Canadian Pacific has long insisted that its offer — even at a lower price — is superior since it stands a better chance of winning approval from regulators in Canada and Mexico, as well as the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Louisiana House has passed a bill that would make staging an accident with a car or truck a serious crime. HR 15, which passed the House this week by a vote of 100 to 0, now moves on to the state Senate. If passed there, it would enact a penalty of five years in prison or a fine of $5,000 — or both — for those convicted of the crime. The legislation follows a multiyear FBI investigation into more than 100 staged accidents in the New Orleans area. Those accidents have been pursued as a criminal scheme to defraud motor carriers and insurance companies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Class 8 retail sales jumped 52.8% in April compared with a year earlier to 19,312, WardsAuto.com reported. In the 2020 period, sales were 12,637, according to Wards. That month saw a severe drop-off in freight, the accelerating spread of the novel coronavirus and temporary shutdowns at truck plants across various weeks. Meanwhile, year-to-date sales rose 22.1% to 73,534 compared with 60,219 a year earlier. All truck makers posted double-digit gains except for the smallest, Western Star, which saw sales fall by 27 trucks year-over-year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The adoption of legislation designed to improve connectivity across commercial corridors and ensure long-term funding for highway programs would benefit the country’s freight supply chain. That was the assessment American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear gave during a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing yesterday. Spear called on lawmakers to adopt highway policy legislation and related measures that would facilitate how agencies and industries manage the flow of freight at distribution centers. Doing so, he said, would result in robust, well-functioning commercial corridors that promote economic competitiveness and prosperity. Spear said, “America’s supply chain yields tremendous potential. It’s a catalyst for economic growth, beyond that of any other nation.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Sunday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued an emergency declaration for carriers assisting petroleum supply chains after the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline. The declaration eases hours-of-service rules for drivers assisting with emergency relief in 17 states and Washington, D.C. The shutdown, which was sparked by a cyberattack, is a still-developing story. Head over to ttnews.com for the latest updates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Lion Electric Co. will build a 900,000-square-foot electric-vehicle manufacturing facility in Joliet, Ill., that it says will represent the largest dedicated production site for zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles in the U.S. The Montreal-based company has committed to an initial investment of at least $70 million over a three-year period. Lion expects to add a minimum of 750 jobs and have an annual capacity of 20,000 trucks and buses. It anticipates the first vehicles will roll off the production line in the second half of 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices