Houston

Check Call: Cloudy with a chance of profits

Hot Takes

Image: Jim Allen/FreightWaves

At the beginning of 2020, no one could have predicted the transportation market would be where it is today. With a pandemic that shut down the world for weeks, spot market rates reached the highest they have been in years and capacity has gotten tighter than a lid on a pickle a jar.

In this industry, more so than others, you have to be ready to change your course of action at any moment. Most days aren’t the same in the freight world. You come into various...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/check-call-cloudy-with-a-chance-of-profits

Check Call: Amazon Freight of tomorrow

Hot Takes

Image: Jim Allen/FreightWaves

Last week we took a little trip down memory lane to learn just how Amazon Freight got its start. Some may be more intimately familiar with the origin story than others. Amazon Freight is primed to become the next UPS and won’t stop until it achieves that status, regardless of the cost.

Amazon Freight has around 40,000 trucks through independent contractors that do one-way trips, with the goal moving forward of getting backhauls or partnerships with...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/check-call-amazon-freight-of-tomorrow

Tropical Storm Nicholas prompts port restrictions, flood watches

Satellite animation of Tropical Storm Nicholas.

The U.S. Coast Guard began setting port restrictions over the weekend to get ahead of Tropical Storm Nicholas.

Officials issued port condition X-Ray Sunday afternoon for the Port of Corpus Christi, Texas, and all other terminals and facilities due to the expectation of sustained gale-force winds.

These ports and facilities are currently open to all commercial traffic, and all transfer operations may continue while X-Ray remains in effect. All crews of oceangoing commercial vessels and oceangoing...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/tropical-storm-nicholas-prompts-port-restrictions-flood-watches

Truck driver killed in Texas after collision with freight train

A truck driver is dead following a collision Wednesday involving a tractor-trailer and freight train just northeast of Houston, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.

The accident happened just after 7 a.m. when a Kansas City Southern train struck the vehicle, which then burst into flames. 

“It appears the truck driver was parked on the tracks, in line with other vehicles, waiting for the traffic when the train was approaching,” Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said in a . 

The driver...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-driver-killed-in-texas-after-collision-with-freight-train

FedEx rolls out Nuro autonomous delivery vehicle in Houston

FedEx testing Nuro autonomous delivery robot in Houston

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) has been testing an autonomous delivery vehicle in the Houston area since April. The vehicle, a Nuro R2 model, is delivering parcels as part of a multiyear, multiphase agreement to pilot autonomous last-mile delivery.

“We have already begun testing with FedEx in Houston, learning about their operations and getting their feedback. Our goal with this partnership is to alleviate the task of high cost and difficult deliveries from everyday delivery drivers,” a Nuro...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fedex-rolls-out-nuro-autonomous-delivery-vehicle-in-houston

Union Pacific plans to add sidings in strategic areas

A photograph of a Union Pacific train rolling down a field.

Among Union Pacific’s (NYSE: UNP) $2.8 billion in capital investments in 2021 are additions or extensions of sidings at a number of points along its network.

Sidings enable one train to meet and pass another. Adding sidings that can accommodate longer trains enables Union Pacific (UP) to improve the fluidity of the railroad, according to UP spokesperson Robynn Tysver.

According to UP’s 2020 sustainability report, UP has recently completed sidings along three routes: the Texas and Pacific route...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/union-pacific-plans-to-add-sidings-in-strategic-areas

Most dangerous highway stretches for US truckers

Damaged tractor-trailer being towed.

These are the top five most dangerous highway stretches in the U.S., based on data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (NHTSA-FARS).

Related: Scariest tunnels for truckers

US Highway 93, Arizona
U.S. Highway 93 in Mohave County, Arizona. (Google maps)

This highway covers a stretch of 200 miles in Arizona that many drivers use to travel between Las Vegas and Phoenix. More specifically, it runs from Wickenburg, Arizona, to the Hoover Dam...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/most-dangerous-highway-stretches-for-us-truckers

TAI acquired by S&B Infrastructure

New Orleans based naval architecture and marine engineering consultancy Technology Associates Inc. (TAI) has been acquired by S&B Infrastructure Ltd.

TAI will TAI will continue its operations as TAI Engineers LLC.

S&B Infrastructure Ltd., in operation since 1994, is one of the largest privately-owned engineering and construction firms in Texas. It says the move is a strategic acquisition that allows it to also position itself as a leading government and commercial engineer of world-class vessels.

“...

https://www.marinelog.com/news/tai-acquired-by-sb-infrastructure/

Las Palmas And Houston Fuel Samples Exceeds ISO8217 Limit

FOBAS tested several samples from Las Palmas and Houston whose TSP results exceeded ISO8217 limit of 0.10% m/m, says an article published in ShipandBunker.

Las Palmas and Houston fuel samples

Las Palmas

  • The Las Palmas fuel samples were all VSLFO fuels. 
  • They had TSP results ranging from 0.16% m/m to 0.39% m/m.
  • TSP results were due to precipitated asphaltenic material and extraneous dirt.

Houston

  • The Houston samples were all VSLFO fuels.
  • They had TSP results ranging from 0.17% m/m to 0.24% m/m.
  • The...

https://mfame.guru/las-palmas-and-houston-fuel-samples-exceeds-iso8217-limit/

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