Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2020:
FMCSA opens comment period on OOIDA petition to increase broker transaction transparency
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Wednesday began accepting public comments on a petition that calls for increasing broker transparency by requiring brokers to provide carriers with an electronic copy automatically of transaction records within 48 hours of a load being completed.
The petition from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association also calls for FMCSA to prohibit brokers from including provisions in their contracts with carriers that waive carriers’ rights to access transaction records.
OOIDA said in its petition, which it filed in May when rates were suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic, that it “believes the problem is that the regulations designed to provide transparency are routinely evaded by brokers or simply not enforced by FMCSA.”
“While the current rules require brokers to keep transaction records and permit each party to a brokered transaction to review the records, many brokers implement hurdles they know will prevent a carrier from ever seeing this information,” OOIDA added in the notice.
The group said some brokers will allow carriers to access records, but only at a broker’s office during normal business hours, which OOIDA said “makes it virtually impossible” for carriers to see the records.
FMCSA is asking for public comments on requiring that brokers disclose certain financial details about transactions to carriers and whether a regulatory action would solve the problem OOIDA described. Comments can be made here through Oct. 19.
The electric Peterbilt 220EV medium-duty truck is now available for customer order.Peterbilt medium-duty electric truck available for order
The Peterbilt 220EV medium-duty truck is now available for customer orders. The truck can be configured through the company’s SmartSpec sales tool and ordered at a Peterbilt dealer, with deliveries expected to start by the end of the year.
The Class 6/7 truck has a range of up to 200 miles on a full charge. It’s powered by an electric motor, features two battery packs and an on-board charger.
When using the truck’s DC fast-charging system, the battery packs can recharge in one to two hours.
