U.S. House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee

House panel debates ELD certification, truck weight limits

WASHINGTON — Stakeholders in the trucking industry are jockeying for position on Capitol Hill as lawmakers begin prioritizing provisions to include in the next version of highway funding legislation.

A slate of issues were raised at a hearing Wednesday of a House Transportation subcommittee, including truck parking, freight fraud, driver pay and “fly-by-night” CDL schools, but increasing truck size and weights and evaluating the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s oversight of...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/house-panel-debates-eld-certification-truck-weight-limits

Republicans push Biden to intervene if dockworkers strike

WASHINGTON — Republicans lawmakers are warning President Joe Biden to get more involved in the dispute between waterfront labor and container terminal operators at East Coast ports or risk a major supply chain disruption starting at the end of the month.

“Given the devastating economic consequences of a potential strike and the Administration’s lack of engagement to date, we urge you to give immediate attention to this matter, to aid in these negotiations, and find a reasonable resolution to...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/republicans-push-biden-to-intervene-if-dockworkers-strike

OOIDA takes truck side-guard report complaints to Congress

WASHINGTON — Truckers have told House and Senate leaders to steer clear of writing laws based on a report they say is highly flawed that recommends requiring new safety equipment on their vehicles.

In a letter to Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who chair the House Transportation & Infrastructure and Senate Commerce committees, respectively, Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer said that the recent Advisory Committee on Underride...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/ooida-takes-truck-side-guard-report-complaints-to-congress

Biden’s electric truck effort grilled on Capitol Hill

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers officially kicked off efforts to mitigate — if not derail — the Biden administration’s latest push to electrify the trucking industry during a hearing on Capitol Hill designed to spotlight challenges to powering up an electric grid capable of meeting the zero-emission timeline unveiled by federal regulators in late March.

The hearing before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s highway subcommittee on Tuesday prefaced a Congressional Review Act joint...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/bidens-electric-truck-effort-grilled-on-capitol-hill

Republicans pan truck speed limiter proposal at House hearing

WASHINGTON — House Republicans used a hearing meant to discuss implementation of President Joe Biden’s infrastructure law to push back against an upcoming proposed regulation to mandate speed limiters on trucks.

One of the biggest concerns surfacing in the three-and-a-half-hour House Transportation and Infrastructure highway subcommittee hearing on Wednesday related to the ethics of the speed limiter rulemaking process.

U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, questioned Federal Motor Carrier Safety...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/republicans-pan-truck-speed-limiter-proposal-at-house-hearing

Transportation industry representatives attack infrastructure law rollout

WASHINGTON — Transportation officials representing trucking, rail and seaports took aim at priorities touted by Democrats over the past two years — including the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) — at the opening hearing of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee on Wednesday.

They took their cue from the committee’s Republicans, who now lead the 65-member panel after Republicans took control of the House in January.

“Although I did not support the IIJA, I...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/transportation-industry-representatives-attack-infrastructure-law-rollout

Surface Transportation Board poised to enact shipper-friendly regulations

A train heads into the sunset.

The Surface Transportation Board could be poised to mandate shipper-friendly regulations aimed at incentivizing Class I railroads to improve rail service, which has deteriorated in recent months.

Mandating some form of reciprocal switching, in which shippers are granted access to a nearby competing rail network, could be something the board will act upon later this year. Reciprocal switching is one of the more contentious issues facing the board, with shippers largely in favor of the measure and...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/surface-transportation-board-poised-to-enact-shipper-friendly-regulations

Rail Roundup: Lawmakers want worker fatigue addressed

Congressional leaders want rail regulators to address worker fatigue, attendance policies

Democratic leaders with the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure are urging the Federal Railroad Administration to address worker fatigue as well as the attendance policies of the Class I railroads.

In a Wednesday letter to FRA Administrator Amit Bose, committee Chairman Peter DeFazio of Oregon and Rep. Donald Payne Jr. of New Jersey, chairman of the Subcommittee on...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/rail-roundup-lawmakers-want-worker-fatigue-addressed

Holmes-Norton eyes House T&I committee top spot

The chair of the highway subcommittee of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee wants to lead the full committee now that House T&I Chairman Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., has announced he will not seek reelection in 2022.

Holmes-Norton

Eleanor Holmes-Norton, who was elected to Congress in 1991 as the delegate to the District of Columbia, said she will run for chair or ranking member (if Republicans gain control of the House) of the T&I committee for the 118th Congress. Norton is...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/holmes-norton-eyes-house-ti-committee-top-spot

Loaded and Rolling: House hearing on driver shortage, Operation Open Roads, Class 8 used truck inflation

(Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves)
House Transportation Committee hearing on truck driver shortages

In remarks to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, MIT Professor David Correll recently outlined yearslong research conducted by the MIT Freightlab, detailing a chronic underutilization of the American truck driver. 

Below are some highlights and reporting from the event. Interestingly there was additional research regarding whether electronic logs can predict if a driver will...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/loaded-and-rolling-house-hearing-on-driver-shortage-operation-open-roads-class-8-used-truck-inflation

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