Driver health – for the industry, for the public, for yourself

I was talking last month with a trucker about the renewed focus on driver health. He described himself as an aging driver who sat on his worn-out butt most of his waking hours, legs numb from extension, blinking into the glaring asphalt, living “cheeseburger to cheeseburger.”
“The DOT wants to make sure you’re fit to drive a truck. Studies are telling us how bad our health is,” he told me. He

A cool, green way

I spent much of last week delving into the world of the California Air Resources Board and all its glory. Even drivers who make only the occasional trip into California have been hearing talk of the state’s new rules set to begin Jan. 1, 2008, including a five-minute limit on idling and a restriction for diesel-fired APUs on ’07 and newer trucks. After hours of research and writing, I got

Expanding and contracting arguments

I’m sure you’ve heard about the issue known as “hot fuel,” what with two recent congressional subcommittee hearings and a failed vote at the National Conference on Weights and Measures that could have given states some incentive to correct the problem. We’ve gotten some interesting comments by phone and e-mail relating to the issue in recent weeks. One person wrote to me to imply that “