Mar 23, 2017 • Community

President Trump Discusses The Trucking Industry

President Trump met with executives from the trucking industry as well as representatives from the American Trucking Association on Thursday at the White House, including ATA President and CEO Chris Spear.

Topics of the discussion included the new health care bill which repeals the Affordable Care Act as well as infrastructure and other important topics facing the trucking industry.

“Trucking is the backbone of the nation’s economy. We employ 1 in 16 people in the U.S. Driving a truck is the top job in 29 states. Trucking moves 70% of the nation’s freight and 56% of GDP. To grow our economy, we need to take care of the people that move America forward,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear.

ATA Supports President Trump’s Healthcare Plan

The Affordable Care Act was established by the Obama Administration seven years ago to the day. A vote by the House on a new health care bill was expected today but has since been delayed.

“The Affordable Care Act is just plain unaffordable,” Spear said. “Replacing this law will help trucking employees, their families and our customers by lowering insurance costs, decrease mandates, liabilities and administrative burdens, and provide access to quality care and patient choice.”

Provisions that will remain:

Dependent coverage up to the age of 26
Pre-existing conditions are protected
No lifetime limits
Keeps cap on maximum out-of pocket expenses

New provisions:

Eliminates employer mandates
Subsidies include refundable tax credits
Medicaid would be overhauled and more responsibiities would be left to states

Trump ❤ Trucks

If he promised not to tweet anything crazy today, we told him he could wear his "I ❤Trucks" button. pic.twitter.com/zTdCxOpatK
— Trump Social Intern (@TrumPenceSocial) March 23, 2017

Misconceptions of Truck Drivers [p]The misconceptions you hear from 4-wheelers [a href="https://app.appsflyer.com/com.sixdays.truckerpath?pid=Social Facebook"]about truck drivers[/a] can be laughable and frankly, absurd. At Trucker Path, we like to refer to these misconceptions of truck drivers as “Tales of an Uninformed 4-Wheeler”. Some are so crazy that all you can do is laugh at them.[/p] [h2]Tales of an Uninformed 4-Wheeler – Volume 1[/h2] [p]Sometimes 4-wheelers just don't understand what it's like being a truck driver. Trucking requires learning an all new set of laws, regulations and the skill to drive an enormous big rig in some of the tightest spaces. It's unlike any other career.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/McD-Pay-me.jpg" alt=""] [p][b]Why do trucks pass each other on the highway?[/b][/p] [p]You hear this all the time. A 4-wheeler gets stuck behind a truck for a few seconds while the truck driver passes another big rig. There are several factors that play into this. It's partly because some trucks are governed at a certain speed (some 60 mph) and some are governed at a higher mph or not at all. Also, some trucks carry much heavier loads than others. An incline in the road can also factor into this occurrence as some trucks hauling cargo uphill struggle to even go 50 mph. Due to this, some truck drivers have no choice but to pass a slower or heavier truck but at times, can only go a certain speed to pass.[/p] [p]Now the Department of Transportation has proposed a speed limiter for all commercial trucks weighing over 26,000 pounds. If the proposed truck speed limiters mandate passes, you will see a dramatic increase in this “inconvenient truck passing”.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/Speed-limiters-traffic.jpg" alt=""] [p]Then there are some 4-wheelers who think trucks are an inconvenience on the road altogether. Not only do truck drivers deliver 80 percent of all cargo in America, but they are used for disaster relief and various other tasks to make life easier for 4-wheelers.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/snow-plow-2.jpg" alt=""] [p]Or the ones who think driving a truck is a simple job because all truck drivers have to do is sit in a chair.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/I-have-skills-TAKEN.jpg" alt=""] [p]Did we forget to mention that [a href="https://truckerpath.com/blog/trucks-delivering-cargo-in-the-usa/"]driving a truck is the deadliest job in America[/a]. In 2015, there were 745 truck driver fatalities, more than any other.[/p] [p]<iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTruckerPath%2Fvideos%2F1045972602215688%2F&show_text=1&width=560" width="560" height="463" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>[/p] [p]It's time we debunk the myths about truck drivers. Don't like trucks? Better rethink that one. Without truck drivers, shelves would be full of dust within a few days.[/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/Thank-a-Trucker-hotdogs.jpg" alt=""]

Jan 12, 2017 • Community

APU Weight Exemptions

Dec 15, 2016 • Carriers

Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Approves Plan [p]President Donald Trump and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee are focused on building what they refer to as a "21st-century infrastructure for America." Will issues addressing the [a href="https://app.appsflyer.com/com.sixdays.truckerpath?pid=Social Facebook"]trucking industry[/a] be considered?[/p] [h2]President Trump's Infrastructure Plan[/h2] [p]During his campaign, President Trump promised a $1 trillion plan to improve infrastructure. He has also outlined a project called the "Priority List: Emergency National Security Projects." President Trump's infrastructure plan is focused on rebuilding American roads, highways and railways while creating approximately 24,000 jobs over a 10-year span. In relation to truck drivers, [b]highways and bridges are proposed to be granted approximately $21.5 billion in funding for improvements and make up nearly 21 percent of jobs created within the plan.[/b][/p] [img src="https://truckerpath.com/uploads/2017/01/TrumpInfrastructureProjects-Mobile-2.jpg" alt=""] [p][i]Breakdown of President Trump’s proposed $140 billion infrastructure improvement plan.[/i][/p] [h2]Senate Democrats $1 Trillion Infrastructure Plan[/h2] [p]Last week, Senate Democrats introduced a $1 trillion [a href="http://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/3/a/3a637d02-3dcd-4c21-8477-c9911f7fb94c/DD33CA340E4E7E4ED69C704ED09092EC.a-blueprint-to-rebuild-america-s-infrastructure.pdf"]infrastructure plan[/a] that included $10 billion for [b]TIGER Grants[/b] to invest in limiting transportation congestion and create projects with a focus on freight bottlenecks and shorter commutes.[/p] [h2]TIGER Grant Impact on Truck Parking[/h2] [p]In 2015, the USDOT issued $25 million in TIGER Grant funding for the Regional Truck Parking Information and Management Systems. The grant was issued for eight states including, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin.[/p] [p]However, the USDOT was only able to fund [b]five percent[/b] of the amount requested by the states to complete proposals in the TIGER Grant program.[/p] [p]Currently, it is unclear what proposed infrastructure plan and the details associated with said plan will be passed.[/p] [h2]Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Oversight Plan[/h2] [p][i]Bill Shuster (R-PA),Chairman of Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.[/i][/p] [p]The committee has launched a [a href="http://transport.house.gov/building21/"]#buidling21[/a] campaign on social media focused on bringing awareness to its plan to rebuilt America – highlighting an infrastructure made for the 21st century. “Thanks to the hard work of our members, our committee has built a record of success over the last four years moving large, complex pieces of legislation to improve our transportation networks and our infrastructure,” said Shuster (R-PA). “This Congress, we have more work to do, and a golden opportunity to build a 21st-century infrastructure for America.”[/p] [video id="v3zZbhRLT3M"] [p]The Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, headed by Lloyd Smucker (R-PA),will focus its responsibilities on three specific implementations:[/p] [p][b]1. FAST Act Implementation[/b][/p] [p]The Fixing America's Surface Surface Transportation Act signed on December 4, 2015, authorizes $305 billion for infrastructure reform for highways, public transportation and safety improvements through the fiscal year 2020.[/p] [p][b]2. Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act Implementation[/b][/p] [p]The subcommittee will also continue oversight of [b]MAP-21[/b] which includes the principles of:[/p] [ul] [li]Raising the bar to enter the industry and operate on American roads[/li] [li]Holding motor carrier and drivers to the highest safety standards[/li] [li]Removing the highest risk drivers, vehicles and carriers from American roads[/li] [/ul] [p][b]3. Monitor Highway Trust Fund (HTF) Revenue[/b][/p] [p]The federal highway and transportation programs are financed through taxes placed on fuel and products such as heavy-duty truck tires. The revenue gathered from these taxes fund the HTF and meet the needs of future transportation investments.[/p] [button-white href="http://transportation.house.gov/uploadedfiles/2017-01-31-115th_authorization_and_oversight_plan.pdf"]Oversight Plan[/button-white]

Jan 31, 2017