Michigan Approves Higher Truck Speed Limit

Photo via Michigan DOT

Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) has signed new legislation that could eventually increase speed limits on certain roadways and also includes an increase from 60 to 65 mph for commercial trucks.

The bills, HBs 4423-2227, will allow the speed limit to be raised to 75 mph on 600 miles of freeways and up to 65 mph on at least 900 miles of non-freeway “M” roads. The bills also increase the maximum speed limit for trucks from 60 mph to 65 mph.

However, the speed limit increases will take effect only after the state conducts studies to ensure safety is not affected.

The increases will be approved if safety and engineering studies show that the 85th percentile of speeds currently driven on those roads allow for it. The bill will also adjust measures used by insurers to determine eligibility for auto insurance.

“Ensuring that all Michiganders are safe while operating vehicles on our state's roadways is critically important, and these bills allow for appropriately increased speed limits on certain roadways after safety studies are conducted,” said Snyder.

Related: Need for Speed?

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Could Trump Scuttle GHG Phase 2 Rule?

Photo: Jim Park

As the final days of the Obama administration tick away, those opposed to some of the president's environmental initiatives are looking at ways to undermine the intent of the rules, or even to strike them from the books.

With Republicans in charge of the House, the Senate and the White House, you could say the stars are uniquely aligned for just this sort of action.

President-elect Trump has already made it clear that he opposes and intends to undo some of those rules. Could Phase 2 of the Greenhouse Gas rules be on that list?

"This has big potential for those who would like to strike any carbon regulation or fuel efficiency standards from the trucking industry," said American Trucking Associations Vice President, Energy and Environmental Counsel Glen Kedzie, in remarks he made during a GHG Phase 2 webinar hosted by ATA's Technology and Maintenance Council on Jan. 5.

Kedzie suggested there are three options open to the new administration: a legal challenge, an executive order from the president, or working through the Congressional Review Act to roll back the rule.

"Legal challenges would have had to have been filed by December 25, and we are unaware if anyone has filed a formal legal challenge on the Phase 2 rule," he said. "And with the new administration coming, we're not quite certain whether Mr. Trump will exercise any of his executive order authority to get rid of some of these greenhouse gas regulations, whether they're from power plants or automobiles."

The Congressional Review Act is the other and possibly more likely approach.

"In simple terms, it's the nuclear option," Kedzie said, adding, "If they are struck down, they will be struck down forever because a regulation cannot be promulgated in the future that resembles in any way, ...Read the rest of this story

Bridgestone Developing SuperTire for Cummins/Peterbilt SuperTruck II Project

Super-low-rolling-resistance tires will still have to meet customer expectations for mileage and retreadability.

Photo by Jim Park

Engineers at Bridgestone are working to develop super-low-rolling-resistance tires for the next Cummins/Peterbilt SuperTruck project. The goal is a tire with a 30% reduction in RRC (rolling-resistance coefficient), which equates to a 6% improvement in fuel economy, that still meets industry expectations for wear and retreadability.

"That's a stretch target from our perspective, but we feel we can get half to two-thirds of the way there with our current tool box," says Steve Charles, vice president of product development for Bridgestone Americas. "At the same time we have to balance the wear and traction characteristics because the ultimate boss -- the consumer -- won't tolerate just a fuel economy improvement without good wear characteristics."

As in the first round of the SuperTruck project, Cummins is the lead on this one too. Cummins will partner again with Peterbilt, Eaton, Great Dane and others. But this time, rather than using an available tire, Bridgestone has been brought onboard as a funded partner and is charged with developing a tire specifically for the project.

"It's hard for us in the business world to allocate these kinds of dollars because we're always trying to be business oriented and value-proposition based for the consumer," Charles said. "The Department of Energy is helping with this research project by letting us take a clean sheet of paper and say, what if ..."

The project offers opportunities to design the tires working as part of a cross-functional team. Tire engineers will be working beside suspension and engine makers, for example, and looking at many different interactions such as the impact of suspension function or torque on a tire.

Charles told HDT this is a clean-sheet project, with everything open to consideration, including such fundamentals as casing ...Read the rest of this story

Swift Transportation Company Announces Timing of Fourth Quarter and Year End 2016 Earnings Release and Conference Call

Norm Ellis named president of EROAD

EROAD today announced that Norm Ellis has been named to the position of president. Reporting to EROAD CEO Steven Newman, Ellis will lead the EROAD North American senior management team as the business gears up to meet opportunities created by the 2017 FMCSA electronic logging device (ELD) mandate in the U.S.

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Clip-On Ammeter Detects Parasitic Load

Purkeys' Milliamp Clip-On Ammeter is designed to detect parasitic loads by accurately measuring low current in electrical systems without disconnecting cords from the power source.

The ammeter precisely measures the magnetic field generated by current flowing through the conductor by clamping its interlocking jaws around a wire.

The clip-on ammeter allows for accurate and quick diagnosis of electrical systems and is able to accurately measure low current down to a milliamp. By finding parasitic loads, a technician can address the issue and reduce battery depletion and damage.

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Kyocera Offers Rugged Smartphone

The Kyocera DuraForce Pro is a ruggedized smartphone designed to withstand tough conditions in the field.

The DuraForce Pro features a Sapphire Shield 5-inch display, available exclusively through Verizon. The durable display is made of pure sapphire crystal which is rated second only to diamonds in mineral hardness, making the display highly resistant to scratches.

The smartphone is also waterproof and can withstand depths of up to 6 ½ feet for as long as 30 minutes. The phone can even detect when its underwater and automatically switches to Underwater Mode, moving the camera controls from the touchscreen to the phone's physical buttons.

For security, the smartphone has a biometric fingerprint scanner. It is certified for use in hazardous conditions for job sites where concentrations of flammable gas, vapors or mists are not normally present in explosive concentration but may exist.

The phone is running the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow operating system and features 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage that can be expanded to 128GB with an external microSD. The DuraForce Pro has a 13-megapixel rear camera and a 5-megapixel front camera.

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