Well, we have a highway bill proposal. The House of Representative’s Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure is set to mark up a bill, said to be $260 billion over five years, today. But, like anything in Washington, the bill has little chance of passing. And once again, it will be because our lawmakers know not how to get American cruising down the highway, but rather only how to put up roadblocks.

In addition to differences that must be smoothed over with what the Senate will likely put forth, chief among those being that the current Senate proposal would provide $109 billion over two years, the House version will likely include a controversial oil pipeline project – the Canada to Texas Keystone XL oil pipeline - already rejected by President Barack Obama earlier this year. more

It’s time to skip the highway and hit the city streets.

OK, maybe it’s not that simple. But according to research from the University of Buffalo, driving along surface streets rather than along highways could potentially reduce carbon monoxide emissions. The research, led by UB researchers Adel Sadek and Liya Guo, is part of a larger project the duo is undertaking evaluating the likely environmental benefits of green routing in the region.

According to computer simulations of traffic in Buffalo, NY,’s Niagara region, so-called “green routing” could reduce emissions of carbon monoxide by 27% for area drivers, while increasing the length of trips by an average of just 11%. more

Estes Express Lines has gotten involved with two organizations – Give2TheTroops and Wreaths Across America – as part of its Encourage the Living, Honor the Fallen initiative to support the U.S. military and the men and women who protect this country and way of life.

Give2TheTroops is designed to encourage the delivery of care packages to active duty troops. Through the program, more than 13,000 Estes employees and their families will be able to donate items for the care packages through Dec. 2. Children will make cards and color pictures as well. more

The U.S. Tolling Coalition has called on Congress to give states more flexibility to install tolls on Interstate highways as a way to raise revenues for highway improvement projects.

Now it’s not surprising the U.S. Tolling Coalition is in favor of making it easier to install tolls, after all, the organization supports tolling as a way around Washington gridlock.

Along I-95 alone, Virginia has been given approval to place tolls. Rhode Island has asked for permission to toll 95 in that state and each year the idea of tolling 95 in Connecticut gains ground. Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, Alabama, and North Carolina are among the other states that have either started, or are looking to toll their highways. more

One of the great advantages of the Volvo I-Shift automated mechanical transmission is its ease of use. Many drivers entering the driver workforce these days no longer have the experience operating a standard transmission vehicle.

As a result, more and more fleets are finding they either have to spend valuable time training new drivers – and losing those trainees who find it too difficult to learn how to drive a manual – or purchasing a vehicle equipped with an automatic or automated transmission.

I am like many of these new drivers – no experience with a manual truck transmission. In fact, I have no experience with an automatic or automated truck transmission either. So I think I am a perfect representative to speak to how easy it is to drive one of Volvo’s trucks equipped with an I-Shift.

The answer: It’s much like driving my “little” SUV, just a little bigger.

I had the chance to test-drive a Volvo FH16 750, a 750-horsepower cabover, just introduced in Europe at the beginning of September, during a press event this week in Gothenburg, Sweden. Having never driven a big rig like this one, coupled to a semi-trailer, the I-Shift allowed me to speed right through that learning curve.

Now by no means am I a professional truck driver – in fact I barely touched 60 km on my short test-track journey, but not having to worry about getting the vehicle into the correct gear meant I could focus on the truly important chores at hand – not driving the vehicle off the edge of the road or hitting anything, or anybody, on the corners.

The transmission has a number of driver-friendly features, including a very smooth engine brake that downshifts the vehicle several gears at a time while allowing the driver to maintain the same control as under normal driving conditions.

Of course, there is a hill-start aid that gives the driver 1 ½ seconds to press the accelerator before the truck starts moving – in either direction. And the automatic gear selection skips unnecessary gears while accelerating – in all, only six of the 12 speeds are needed to reach highway speed.

Add in the fuel efficiency gains achieved with an I-Shift – as much as 1.5% - and it’s clear to see why we are starting to see a slow shift away from manual transmissions.

Even someone inexperienced like myself can see the advantages, which should only serve to open more doors to careers in truck driving for the younger generation.

According to an article in China Daily, Chinese heavy-duty truck maker Beiqi Foton Motor Co. is planning a vehicle for the U.S. and Western European market. The Auman GTL (which stands for global technology leader) was designed for the strict environmental requirements of the U.S. and Europe, the company said.

“Foton has already established a good presence in the Southeast Asian, South American and African markets, but it barely achieved anything in developed economies,” Wang Jinyu, president & CEO, told China Daily. “Now we are endeavoring to enter the mature markets including the U.S., Europe and Japan.”

According to Wang, the vehicle includes high-quality materials similar to those found in U.S. trucks and cost $266 million to develop. more

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has sued Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act for its treatment of a truck driver who self-reported a problem with alcohol.

The EEOC claims that ODFL violated the law when it removed the five-year employee from a permanent driving position. The suit, filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, seeks reinstatement to the driving position for the employee as well as monetary damages.

“The ADA mandates that persons with disabilities have an equal opportunity to achieve in the workplace. Old Dominion’s policy and practice of never returning an employee who self-reports an alcohol problem to a driving position violates that law,” said Katharine Kores, director of the EEOC’s Memphis District Office, whose jurisdiction includes Arkansas. “While the EEOC agrees that an employer’s concern regarding safety on our highways is a legitimate issue, an employer can both ensure safety and comply with the ADA.” more

The state of Rhode Island has formally asked the Federal Highway Administration for the right to toll Interstate 95 near the Connecticut border, according to the Providence Journal.

The idea is to use the money to help pay for repairs to I-95 in Providence, as well as expanding a connector road with I-95 and Route 4 that funnels traffic into the Quonset Business Park area in North Kingstown. The state estimates those two projects at $205 million. Additional revenue would be used to pay for general highway repair in the state.

The announcement of the formal application drew harsh criticism from local legislators, including Rep. Brian Patrick Kennedy (D-Hopkinton), who said the Rhode Island Dept. of Transportation (RIDOT) was merely trying to pay for road work in other parts of the state on the backs of residents in his district. more

Say goodbye to underinflated tires robbing fuel economy. That day could be coming soon if a new technology that Goodyear is testing pays off.

Goodyear is developing a technology called Air Maintenance Technology (AMT) that not only monitors the inflation pressure inside a tire, but also inflates the tire when needed. All without the external pumps and electronics that are needed by today’s automatic tire inflation systems. more

I’ve driven the long road up Mt. Washington in Pinkham Notch, NH. It’s not for the faint of heart, that’s for sure. The twists and turns along the road on the way to the top of the 6,288-ft. summit leave you perilously close to the edge at times.

Traversing this 7.6-mi. route over a road that alternates between serpentine tarmac and gravel is impressive enough. Doing it in just 8:02 is unbelievable. But that’s exactly what stunt driver Mike Ryan accomplished recently. more