Moving Forward Act

How a $1.25 million insurance liability hike may affect owner-operators

Owner-operator insurance costs increasing

A push by lawmakers to raise truck liability insurance for the first time in 40 years has advanced further than ever in Congress and the resulting rate increases would hit small trucking companies the hardest, according to an insurance expert.

The provision included in the Moving Forward Act, which the U.S. House of Representatives passed on July 1, raises the minimum coverage level for general freight from $750,000 per accident to $2 million. It would be adjusted every five years to account for...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/how-a-1-25-million-insurance-liability-hike-may-affect-owner-operators

Rail stakeholders: Tough road ahead for infrastructure bill

A photograph of tank cars parked at a rail yard.

The multibillion-dollar infrastructure bill passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week, but whether it can make it through the Republican-controlled Senate to President Donald Trump’s desk is less clear.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Moving Forward Act on a largely party-line vote of 233-188 last Wednesday, and the bill now is in the U.S. Senate. 

The act includes an infrastructure component that authorizes the federal government to spend nearly $500 billion over five years...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/rail-stakeholders-tough-road-ahead-for-infrastructure-bill

Putting the brakes on brakes

A close-up photograph of the wheels of a railcar.

Congress’ infrastructure bill is no stranger to controversial issues, including train crew sizes, the prospect of shipping liquefied natural gas via rail, and government studies on precision scheduled railroading and demurrage and accessorial charges.

Add one other item to the list: federal regulation on air brakes.

Part of the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s (T&I) INVEST in America Act, which has been folded into the Moving Forward Act, is an item pertaining to DB-60...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/putting-the-brakes-on-brakes

Breaking News: House approves trucking insurance increase and hours-of-service delay

A major infrastructure package that includes provisions to hike truckers’ insurance coverage to $2 million and delay the September 29 start date for new federal hours of service (HOS) changes was approved today by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The $1.5 trillion Moving Forward Act, which passed the Democrat-controlled House largely along party lines by a vote of 233 to 188, was derided by Republicans in the chamber as a “wish list” partisan bill heavy on climate-change related proposals that...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/breaking-news-house-approves-trucking-insurance-increase-and-hours-of-service-delay

Highway-rail grade crossings get attention in infrastructure bill

A photograph of a highway-rail grade crossing. There is a train with boxcars and tank cars crossing the intersection.

The latest iteration of the surface transportation and infrastructure bill has additional provisions for highway-rail grade crossings amid constituent and emergency responders’ concerns about long wait times at blocked crossings.

The new provisions spelled out in the INVEST in America Act include a comprehensive review of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) national highway-rail crossing inventory, which would verify inventory data using mapping technologies and other means. 

Another...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/highway-rail-grade-crossings-get-attention-in-infrastructure-bill

Rail groups gear up for infrastructure bill fight

A photograph of a tank car by a rail crossing.

Rail groups are considering their next steps as a major, multi-billion dollar infrastructure bill becomes part of a wider trillion-dollar package that also addresses education, housing and renewable energy infrastructure. 

Last week, the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed the Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation in America (INVEST in America) Act, keeping in the bill’s contents some items that the freight rail industry considers...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/rail-groups-gear-up-for-infrastructure-bill-fight