September 12, 2014: OSHA proposes large fine; deaths on the decline; Teamsters gear up for FedEx Freight union vote

Here is what is happening in the world of trucking today:

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is proposing over $100,000 in fines against Rock Island, IL-based trucking firm Central Transport LLC for a variety of safety violations, according to television news station WQAD 8.
• A new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates that transportation-related worker deaths declined 10% in 2013 vs. 2012.
• The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is pushing for a unionization vote at FedEx Freight’s operations in Indianapolis, IN, notes the Memphis Business Journal – part of a national unionization push focused on the LTL carrier by the Teamsters.
• Bloomberg reports that a U.S. Senate bill is in the works that will seek to ease freight rail congestion.
• Third-party logistics giant Hub Group has decided to make its drayage truck drivers full-time employees, according to DC Velocity.
• A story by the Journal of Commerce indicates BNSF will shut down its intermodal service between Fresno, CA, and Chicago.
• The Boston Daily reports that Boston’s mayor is contemplating a mandate for all trucks operating within city limits to be equipped with “side guards” after a bicyclist’s death.
• An expressway tolling plan in Dallas, TX, is being put on hold for now, according to the Dallas Morning News.
• The long emission-control journey that’s resulted in today’s cleaner diesel-fired trucks and buses is chronicled by the Orlando Sentinel.
• Jim Palmer Trucking will be helping the University of Montana transport its football team this season.