November 19. 2014: Nationwide airbag recall urged; snow buries upstate NY highways; UPS and FedEx prepare for big holiday volume.
Nov. 19, 2014
Here is a look at what is happening in the world of transportation this morning:
- The U.S. Department of Transportation is calling for a far-wider national recall of faulty vehicle airbags made by Japanese firm Takata, notes Businessweek.
- The city of Buffalo and parts of upstate New York got buried in up to six feet of snow, Bloomberg reports, stranding up to 150 vehicles on area highways, according to CBS News.
- UPS and FedEx are preparing for big holiday shipment volumes, reports the Wall Street Journal, driven in part by rising e-commerce activity.
- Rural areas experiencing heavy truck volumes want thicker roads to be built to withstand the higher tonnage, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
- Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is “rethinking” the state’s proposed $751 million transportation budget that includes higher taxes and fees on drivers, according to the Wisconsin Rapids Tribune.
- A vacuum truck explodes in Santa Paula, CA, reports KABC-TV, setting fire to the city and injuring over 15 people.
- Port truckers are expanding their strike to include the rail yards serving the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, according to CBS Local.
- BBC News reports on the testing of robot trucks in the Australian outback.
- “Greener” trash trucks are being deployed in Newark, NJ, notes the Star-Ledger.
- The University of Michigan is hosting a display that celebrates the “art” of Pakistani trucks.
- Roll Call reports on the efforts of a pro-freight group to establish a dedicated revenue stream for funding large-scale cargo-focused infrastructure projects.
- Congestion at West Coast ports is “hampering” the logistics economy of the nearby Inland Empire area, according to the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.
