Trucking news and briefs for Monday, March 25, 2024:
PrePass expands to four new weigh station bypass states, add new sites in existing states
The PrePass Safety Alliance last week announced the expansion of its PrePass weigh station bypass system in four new states and the addition of 116 new sites to the network.
PrePass-enrolled trucks will have the opportunity to bypass at more than 75 sites in Rhode Island, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. Additionally, the Alliance is deploying 40 new sites in the current PrePass states of Michigan, Texas, California, Iowa, South Carolina, Utah, Wyoming, Mississippi, and North Carolina.
With these additions, the PrePass network now spans over 550 sites in 44 states, offering fleets greater coverage and convenience.
"Our expansion into these four new states and the addition of 116 new sites underscore the Alliance mission to enhance the safe and efficient movement of freight on America’s highways," said Mark Doughty, President and CEO of PrePass Safety Alliance. "But this is only the beginning. Expect further announcements regarding new states and enhancements to our services as we strive to provide our customers with innovative solutions that streamline their operations and help them maximize their time on the road."
[Related: 'Nothing to hide, nothing to fear,' right? Get ready for Level 8 automated inspections]
PrePass weigh station bypass service rewards safe, qualified fleets with the opportunity to bypass weigh stations and ports of entry, saving them time, money, and fuel, the company said. PrePass also offers toll payment and management services, which simplify tolling for carriers, eliminating costly violations and automatically disputing max tolls while reducing administrative burdens and costs. As the only integrated bypass and electronic toll management provider, PrePass customers need just one device for both services.
To leverage the new bypass sites, fleets will need to equip their trucks with the recently updated PrePass app. The PrePass app unlocks access to over 20% more bypass locations and delivers real-time driver safety alerts, including work zones, dangerous slowdowns, hazardous weather conditions, available parking slots, and many more.
[Related: Electronic inspection technologies pose more questions than answers]
Drivewyze piloting work zone alerts in eastern Oregon
Oregon’s Umatilla County has partnered with Drivewyze to provide truck drivers with in-cab safety alerts in an effort to reduce commercial vehicle crash rates in active work zones.
The Umatilla County pilot program to improve highway safety includes a collaboration between Drivewyze and one.network, a digital work zone and road management platform provider.
The alerts, which give drivers a heads-up to upcoming work zones, have been demonstrated to improve driver behavior by reducing the occurrence of over-speeding and hard-braking events. The in-cab safety alerts are available to all truck drivers and trucking fleets at no cost through the Drivewyze Free service. Drivewyze Free can be activated through 100+ telematics service providers partnered with Drivewyze, or downloaded directly from app stores.
Umatilla County, which covers more than 3,200 square miles in eastern Oregon, borders Washington state and connects to Boise on the border of Idaho via I-84. It’s a main transportation corridor with mid-sized Oregon towns like Baker City and Pendleton along the route.
“For the first time in the United States, road crews in Umatilla work zones will be able to use our Live Link app to reach truckers with comprehensive, timely and vetted work zone information,” said Simon Topp, one.network’s chief commercial officer. “That’s important. Recent government data indicate one out of three work zone fatal crashes involves at least one large truck. Our information is shared through Drivewyze Free, assuring that freight operators have the most accurate information delivered into truck cabs at the right time and in the format they use most.”
[Related: Drivewyze unveils free safety alerts service for truckers]
Truckers Against Trafficking rebranding to celebrate 15th anniversary
TAT, formerly called Truckers Against Trafficking, turns 15 years old this month and is sporting a new look, reorganized website and shortened name to celebrate and underscore the occasion and the organization’s development since its creation.
“Since our inception in 2009, TAT has been characterized by a commitment to scaling sustainably … extending our boundaries, stepping up and stepping out to invite more organizations, agencies and associations to play a role in the fight against human trafficking,” said Esther Goetsch, TAT executive director.
“While trucking and truckers are -- and always will be -- a cornerstone of our existence,” she added, “we believe the cross-functional collaboration we’re achieving with the inclusion of multiple key industry members and agencies is serving to provide a better equipped and informed defensive force of transportation professionals in this war we wage against this insidious crime.”
Support for TAT extends beyond just trucking companies, owner-operators and drivers. Rush Truck Centers and Peterbilt Motors recently contributed a combined $750,000 to the nonprofit organization, after auction of the very last 389 ever built (the 2025 389X is now being given away in a sweepstakes). With the breadth of TAT’s growth becoming so visible in this and other ways, in 2023 TAT’s partners at Bridgestone suggested senior leadership might want to explore whether TAT’s mission and logo were accurately portraying who the organization was becoming, rather than just who TAT started out to be.
With resources and experts Bridgestone provided, including the services of advertising legend Leo Burnett, TAT’s senior leadership engaged in a series of meetings to better communicate the identity the organization -- through the support of its partners -- has achieved in the past 15 years in its efforts to transform an ever-expanding vision into reality.
The brand changes resulting from those meetings included the decision to use the shortened name TAT, and to refine the logo and mission statement to be more inclusive of all the entities TAT works with today and the reality of who TAT has become.
TAT programs will be rebranded to clearly identify them as TAT programs, so Busing on the Lookout will become TAT Motorcoach, TAT School Transportation and TAT Transit; Empower Freedom will become TAT Energy; and the trucking industry will be divided into TAT Trucking, TAT Truck Stops, TAT Local Drivers and TAT Dealerships.
Additionally, sector logos will identify information, training, materials, programs, etc., for other entities with which TAT works, such as TAT Law Enforcement, TAT Shipping & Logistics, TAT Government Agencies and TAT Organizations.
[Related: CVSA sets dates for 2024 Human Trafficking Awareness Initiative]
TA opens new Arkansas location
TravelCenters of America is continuing to expand its network of travel centers with the opening of a TA in Atkins, Arkansas.
The new travel center is a franchised site offering food, fuel, convenience items, and other services and amenities for professional truck drivers and motorists. With the opening of TA Atkins located at 100 Fish Lake Drive, Atkins, Arkansas, 72823, there are a total of five TA locations in Arkansas.
TA Atkins offers:
- Two quick service restaurants: Sbarro (opening April 1) and Charley’s Cheesesteaks (coming July 2024)
- Six diesel fueling positions with DEF
- 100 truck parking spaces
- Six showers
- Driver’s lounge
- Laundry facilities
- CAT Scale
