Freight efficiency has always been a focus of trucking. While the fuel economy of the average heavy-duty truck has improved almost 20% since the early 1980s, the percentage of miles that carriers drive empty hasn’t changed much in the last twenty years. Referred to as “deadhead” miles, the industry average has long hovered at around… Read more »
News Briefs
Banishing Three Commonly-Held Beliefs By Truckers That Are Not True
Most of us are guilty, at one time or another, of stereotyping. Perhaps it is just a human condition that makes it easy to apply misconceptions or judgments to a group of people or things that are different from us. Certainly, misconception about truck drivers exists. The industry must constantly work to brand itself in… Read more »
Toll-Financing- A Sensible Way of Financing Upgrades Our Nation’s Highways
I doubt if I would get an argument from anyone if I say…”the condition of our highways and bridges is a mess!” The truth is, they are aging and inadequate for 21st-century trucking. What should we expect from a highway system authorized by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1956? These highways, largely built over fifty years… Read more »
Repackaging the Image of Trucking To Attract a New Generation
O.K… it’s time for some straight talk about trucking’s image among the younger generation. When high school seniors consider their professional future, I doubt if many say “I want to be a truck driver.” Let’s face it, you won’t find many guidance counselors recommending it. That’s because truck driving has a perception problem. While 80%… Read more »
Video Event Recorders – It is the Next Technology Coming to Trucking
Without a doubt, the future of trucking is going to be influenced by more use of electronic safety technology. Certainly, the recent implementation of rules requiring electronic logging devices (ELD) on trucks to monitor compliance with hours of service rules was a game-changer. At DriverSource, we support any advancing technology geared to make driving safer… Read more »
Hours of Service Rules – Its History and the Latest Proposed Changes
Any CDL truck driver is regulated in the number of hours they may drive per day as well as the total number of hours he or she may work per week. Known in the industry as the HOS rules, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), and specifically an administrative arm of the department called the… Read more »
The Technology-Driven Transformation of the Logistics Industry
Like other industries, technology is rapidly changing how the logistics industry does business. In the trucking segment, digitization has led to a fast-growing number of automated load-matching companies that connect carriers, shippers, and freight brokers efficiently in ways that were unimaginable just ten years ago. At DriverSource, we’ve seen many changes just over the last… Read more »
Autonomous truck technology
Revising Tailgating Laws to Allow for Truck Platooning Technology Autonomous truck technology is advancing rapidly. The first obvious signs of this technology on our roads may be in the form of truck platooning. At DriverSource, we have always supported new technologies in our industry that will improve efficiencies AND safety. From our viewpoint, platooning promises… Read more »
Women Drivers
Tips for Attracting More Women to Trucking Careers The trucking industry has always struggled in hiring more women to the profession. For the last several years, the ratio of women-to-men drivers has hovered around 6%. Just about every truck company today would say they could use more good drivers. And, the reality is, some of… Read more »
Is the Driver Shortage Real or Just a Myth?
It is a complaint heard often in the trucking industry … “We can’t find enough drivers!” According to the American Trucking Association, the driver shortage is real and only getting worse. They contend the shortage is driven by such factors as demographic changes and an overall tight workforce. But, wait a minute. IS there… Read more »