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“FreightWaves has carved out a unique position in the North
American transportation industry as the data and content provider
of choice,” said TCA Chairman Josh Kaburick, who is CEO of Earl L.
Henderson Trucking Company. “The TCA Profitability Program is an
exceptionally valuable service for participating carriers. Just like any
other business, it is imperative that TPP stays relevant, and expands
its services available to carriers of all sizes.”
To learn more about the TPP, or to take advantage of the SONAR
program, contact Henry at chris@tcaingauge.com.
Refrigerated Division Meeting
It’s not too late to register for TCA’s 36th Annual Refrigerated Division
Meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, July 10 through Friday, July
12 at the Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Oregon.
The meeting kicks off with fellowship time — a registration reception
from 2 to 6 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m.
On Thursday morning there are three Trucking in the Round sessions:
“Legal Update on the Owner-Operator Model and Alternatives,”
with E. Eddie Wayland, partner, King & Ballow; “IT Malware and Ransomware
— Target Trucking,” with Sam Anderson, president and CEO,
Bay and Bay Transportation, Tom Grojean, chairman, Hirschbach Motor
Lines, and Bob Twining, senior director of information technology,
Hirschbach Motor Lines; and “Equipment Spotlight — Reefer Update,”
with Scott Bates, N.A. product manager and marketing, Thermo King
Corporation.
The Thursday morning general session will feature remarks by Refrigerated
Division Chair Wendell Erb, president and CEO of Erb Group
of Companies, and TCA Chairman and Earl L. Henderson Trucking
Company’s Josh Kaburick. The session will continue with a “Refrigerated
Industry Outlook” with John Larkin, managing director, transportation
and logistics, STIFEL Investment Banking, and conclude with an
address by Chris Stirewalt, political editor at FOX News.
There’s golf in the afternoon and a reception and dinner Thursday
evening.
The Trucking in the Round sessions will be repeated Friday at 7:15
a.m. with the general session at 8:30 a.m., beginning with the annual
business meeting followed by remarks by TCA President John Lyboldt.
The meeting will end with a panel discussion, “Building A Stronger
Supply Chain Network,” featuring Chris Kozak, director of Contract
Carriers at Tyson Foods; Greg Hancock, transportation manager at
Nestle USA; and panel moderator Jack Porter, managing director of
the TCA Profitability Program.
To register, visit truckload.org.
TCA, ATFI Continue to Advocate for
Better Solutions
The Truckload Carriers Association has partnered again this year
with the Alliance for Toll Free Interstates (ATFI), a national coalition
that includes individuals, businesses, and organizations working to
maintain the longstanding policy of protecting existing interstates
from new tolls.
As a partner, TCA is working with like-minded businesses and organizations
to push back against tolls. ATFI and TCA have been working
diligently to fight tolls in several different states.
As of May, Connecticut is undergoing a heavy battle on how to
finance its Special Transportation Fund to support its transportation
Connecticut and Maryland have recently joined the charge
when it comes to abusing tolling policy and creating harmful
transportation solutions.
system. At the start of the 2019 Connecticut General Assembly session,
Gov. Ned Lamont proposed establishing electronic tolls on Interstates
84, 91 and 95 and on the Merritt Parkway. Lamont thinks tolls
could raise $800 million annually and as much as 40% of revenues
could come from out-of-state travelers. Republican legislators have
offered a counterproposal, named Prioritize Progress, which would
steer clear of tolls. Lamont also began to push for public-private partnerships
(known as “P3s”) to help find a suitable funding solution.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan wants to expand several toll interstates
in the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area using P3s. Hogan thinks
the project would reduce congestion in the region, which has some
of the most gridlocked roads in the nation. Challengers say the governor’s
approach focuses too much on highways and not enough on
transit and other forms of transportation. Opponents tried to block the
project at the Maryland statehouse this year, but their efforts were
unsuccessful. The state is presently conducting environmental impact
studies about the project.
Rhode Island has led the charge when it comes to abusing tolling
policy and creating harmful transportation solutions. In the winter of
2016, Rhode Island passed RhodeWorks, a bill to create an entire network
of new tolls across the state. The plan exploits a federal exemption
that is meant to repair lone, ailing bridges, and instead creates a statewide
tolling system. The implementation so far has been rocky, with the
state facing both constitutional and legal hurdles, including the American
Trucking Associations filing of a federal lawsuit against the state.
Taking its lead from Rhode Island’s use of the federal bridge exemption,
Indiana began to look at tolling its highways in 2017, when
a transportation package passed by the Indiana General Assembly allowed
for the study and consideration of tolling practically all major
Indiana highways. After months of debate, in November 2018, Indiana
Governor Eric Holcomb announced he would not move forward with
adding tolls on Indiana roads. ATFI was central to pushing the antitolls
message in Indiana. Since 2017, ATFI has run NoTollsIndiana.
com and facebook.com/notollsindiana. The campaign continues to
encourage Hoosiers to oppose tolls in Indiana through emails and
social media. Their website petition has received more than 3,700
signatures and over 1,000 emails to Indiana legislators have been
generated.
During the 2019 Virginia General Assembly session, there were
several bills to toll Interstate 81. ATFI partnered with the state trucking
association, Virginia Manufacturers Association and several other
trade associations to oppose the toll proposals. After defeating that
legislation during the regular session, six weeks later when legislators
returned to consider vetoed legislation, the General Assembly
adopted a series of tax increases and higher fees to fund improvements
to I-81. This was coupled with an informal agreement that the
current administration would not seek tolls on I-81 in the future.
ATFI and TCA will continue to work together to stop tolls from
spreading across the country. For more information, visit tollfreeinterstates.com.
TCA 2019 www.Truckload.org | TRUCKLOAD AUTHORITY 45