Trucking Industry

In her agonizing daily commute from her Oceanside home to her job at Cal Poly Pomona, Donna Tillman routinely battles the 800-pound gorillas of Southern California freeways: big rigs. "I drive a Toyota, and I feel like a midget among these huge trucks," the business professor said. "You cannot see around them when you are moving from one lane to another." The 18-wheelers are not only big, but they also seem to be reproducing right on the roadways.

Back in the "Smokey and the Bandit" days of big-rig trucking, high tech was a CB radio. Breaker, breaker, times have changed. The big rig of the future comes equipped with an on-board computer, satellite navigation, a system that warns a drowsy driver if the truck wanders out of a lane, infrared night vision, e-mail, external video cameras, electronic air brake monitoring and a wireless global-positioning system that can tell the home company the exact location of a truck at any time.

A little over two weeks ago, the mission of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration seemed clear: prevent commercial vehicle accidents. On Thursday, however, more than 400 field agents hit the road with a new mandate: to check out the security of 80,000 companies that haul hazardous materials, ranging from flammable liquids and gases to medical waste.

The state has sued a Salt Lake City trucking company to pay for damage done by a company driver who slammed his big rig into the state Capitol in January. The suit seeks $13.5 million in actual damages and $100 million in punitive damages from Dick Simon Trucking Inc. Truck driver Mike Bowers, who had a history of legal and mental problems, rammed his vehicle into the Capitol's south portico.

The word is spreading at the truck stops of Kern County: CHP Officer Bill Martin has an eagle eye for big rigs. Martin can tell a 53-foot trailer from a 48-footer from 100 yards away while traveling at 55 mph. He can tell you the dimensions of cabs and hitches, the dates of obscure amendments to county codes, and, just in case you ask, the quantity of vegetables a trailer can legally hold.

The Senate rejected an initial Republican effort Wednesday to weaken proposed safety standards for Mexican trucks driven in the United States. The chamber's GOP leader accused Democrats of an anti-Latino attitude. By a 65-35 tally, senators defeated a provision by Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas), saying the United States would not "discriminate against Mexico" by imposing tougher requirements on its trucks than on Canadian or American vehicles.

CNF Inc., owner of the largest U.S. regional trucking and air-freight companies, eliminated about 400 jobs and will take a $23-million charge because a major customer shut down operations. The cuts represent 14% of the work force at CNF's Menlo Logistics unit, which managed freight shipments for HomeLife Furniture Corp., spokeswoman Nancy Colvert said. HomeLife filed for bankruptcy protection this week. Most of the charge, which amounts to 47 cents a share, will be taken in the second quarter.

Yellow Corp., operator of the nation's largest trucking company, plans to raise rates 4.9% on Aug. 1 to increase revenue during its peak shipping season. The increase applies to the Yellow Freight System trucking unit and affects customers whose shipping charges aren't set by contract, spokesman Roger Dick said. Roadway Corp. declined to comment on Yellow's increase.

The House on Tuesday threw an unexpected roadblock in front of the Bush administration's efforts to give Mexican trucks unfettered access to U.S. roads, reviving a bitter dispute over implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Democrats picked up enough Republican votes to approve an amendment that would forbid federal transportation officials from processing applications for Mexican freight haulers to operate throughout the United States.

A crackdown Thursday by the California Highway Patrol against dangerous drivers of big trucks resulted in 1,303 tickets in the first seven hours, a spokesman said. Excessive speed was the most frequent violation, producing 542 citations between 6 a.m. and 1 p.m., the CHP said. Officers also ticketed drivers of 55 passenger vehicles statewide for such offenses as cutting off trucks in traffic or tailgating, said spokesman Tom Marshall.