Custom truck accessories manufacturer Iowa Customs announced Friday the launch of a comprehensive lineup of Peterbilt 589 products and accessories, marking a significant expansion of its offerings. The new products are designed and manufactured by Iowa Customs to enhance the aesthetic and functionality of Peterbilt’s successor to the iconic 389 model. The new lineup of Peterbilt 589 products includes, but is not limited to: Air bag covers Air cleaner panels Battery boxes and slip covers Cab and cowl panels Grille inserts OEM tank straps Sleeper panels Window trim Owners seeking to personaliz ..read more

As carriers feel the impact of the weak freight market, the possibility of bankruptcy threatens the stability of companies large and small. In recent years, a combination of factors, exacerbated by events such as the global pandemic and shifts in insurance dynamics, has impacted the market. Looking at Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration data on revocations from 2000-2024, Avery Vise, vice president of trucking at FTR Transportation Analysis, noted that revocations net of reinstatements peaked in late 2022 and early 2023. Technically, Vise noted, the first quarter of 2023 was the peak a ..read more

Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, April 25, 2024: Georgia man pleads guilty to CARES Act fraud, falsifying FMCSA records Roderick Billingslea, a Georgia-based former fleet owner, pleaded guilty on April 11 to one count of wire fraud and one count of falsification of records in a federal investigation. A Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General (OIG) and Small Business Administration OIG investigation revealed that Billingslea devised a scheme to defraud SBA by using false statements and fraudulent pretenses related to a loan/grant request for CARES Act funds. As a result ..read more

The Biden administration on Wednesday announced more than $1 billion in funding and incentives it hopes will spur the transition to zero-emission heavy-duty trucks. The White House in March laid out its plan to establish a charging and refueling infrastructure network for zero-emission commercial trucks, an initiative that seeks to maximize the impact of charging infrastructure investment by guiding development toward high-volume-priority corridors and existing freight hubs.  The plans made public Wednesday support the corridors' development and President Biden’s goals for a car ..read more

Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, April 24, 2024: Heavy-duty pickup dealership owner sentenced for ‘deleting’ emissions The owner of a New York dealership specializing in diesel pickups was fined $50,000 and sentenced to four years of probation after previously pleading guilty to Clean Air Act violations for “deleting” emissions systems. Matthew R. Talamo, 38, of New Haven, New York, was sentenced this month for actions in his operation of Southern Diesel Truck Co. and Southern Diesel and Off-Road LLC in Oswego, New York. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District ..read more

I was talking to a fed-up driver. His company left him sitting all day waiting on a load, then finally dispatched him 670 miles with a delivery time the next morning. To make matters worse, he would have to deal with Atlanta rush hour because he was dispatched so late. He was mad because he would not be paid for waiting, even though he was available for dispatch. He was fed up because his miles were consistently under 3,000 miles a week. He was fed up because the company treated him like a machine, a truck that could just be turned on and used whenever they were ready, left sitting idle when t ..read more

David "BudMan" Singh pulls a 53-foot stainless spread-axle reefer with his 2015 Kenworth T660, featuring an 86-inch Studio Sleeper. He's nicknamed the rig "Ghost." It was originally equipped with a Paccar engine, but Singh replaced that with a 12.7-liter Detroit Series 60. The truck boasts a few customizations, including a chrome and wood grain interior, RLK drop visor and window chops, and chrome around the sleeper windows. He also plans to add stacks on the back of the cab. For the trailer, Singh has added quarter fenders, a stainless rear impact guard with a custom light plate, a stainless ..read more

Trent Cameron has been running the roads across the United States of late. "I’m on the road 24/7 trying to find places for us to anchor our next Outpost," he said, making reference to the new name for a company that got its start in November 2021 as Semi-Stow. Cameron was among founders with a vision to deliver on the truck parking needs of individual owner-operators, small fleet owners and even large fleets.  He's seen the truck parking crisis up close on those runs, with operators "parked in unsecure locations, exit ramps, facilities with no security," he said. Dedicated, publicly avail ..read more

Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, April 23, 2024: New state law establishes heavy-duty towing guardrails, bans boots and other devices Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves on April 19 signed a bill into law that aims to cut down on predatory towing practices targeting commercial vehicles in the state. With the new law, Mississippi joins Maryland, Florida, and other states that have recently made similar efforts to rein in egregious rates and other predatory practices. The new law establishes a Commercial Vehicle Towing Advisory Committee within the state’s Department of Public Safety’s Public ..read more

The trucking companies left unpaid when broker Convoy went under, and then again when Flexport bought the company's technology and relaunched the app with its own brokered freight, may finally have some way to get paid -- albeit a reduced amount, months late.  Jennifer Chrestman of Tucker Albin & Associates, the debt collection firm associated with the National Owner Operators Association, recently said that Hercules Capital, the publicly traded VC bank with a $2.7 billion market cap, has been talking settlement.  Convoy's collapse famously directed carriers and their o ..read more