Fourth Mexican carrier admitted to cross-border program

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has accepted a fourth carrier to its cross-border trucking pilot program and responded to comments over the most recent round of Mexican carriers applying for authority.

Transportes Del Valle De Guadalupe of Baja California will operate one truck and one driver beyond the commercial border zone, as have the other three program participants.

The FMCSA published a May 11 Federal Register Notice and Request for Comment on Transportes’ Pre-Authorization Safety Audit, required of Mexican carriers applying to operate beyond the border zone. The notice also provided the PASAs of Higienicos Y Desechables Del Bajio and Servicios Refrigerados Internacionales.

Read more here.

Diesel prices drop below $4 for first time in 3 months

The national average retail diesel price fell 4.8 cents to $3.956 a gallon for the week ended Monday, May 21, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration. The price has fallen 19.2 cents in the last six weeks and fell below $4 a gallon for the first time since the week ended Feb. 20 and is 4.1 cents below the same week in 2011.

Average retail prices fell in all regions, led by a 6.2-cent decrease in the New England. The nation’s cheapest diesel was $3.854 in the Midwest, while the most expensive was $4.303 in California.

Complete diesel price information is available on EIA’s Website

Should there be an age limit on driving?

Everyone has thought about it. Should the DMV take away your license at a certain age or should it be a case-by-case situation? Personally, I don’t know what’s worse, 100 year-old drivers or 16 year-old drivers who can’t put their cell phones down. I can’t say I believe that once you turn a certain age the DMV simply revokes your license, but I am in favor of some sort of continuing education in place for all drivers as there is for many professions. If every five years you had to retake a driving test, I think we’d all be better off. Personally, I like to think I’m a good driver, but that’s not the problem. It’s about the hundreds of people I pass on a daily basis that worry me…

Driving is difficult when you stop and think about it. Check the traffic ahead, the traffic around you, in your side mirrors, rearview mirrors, check for pedestrians, bikers, debris in the road, speed limits, speed limit changes, construction zones, trains, semi-trucks, motorcycles, red lights, stop-and-go traffic, turn signal-go left, turn signal-go right, head lights, parking lights, backing up, parallel parking, angled parking, straight in parking, and the list goes on and on.

My point is if every few years, everyone was required to undergo some sort of written and driving test it would only help. More jobs are created at the DMV, more drivers keep their driving knowledge fresh, and when people don’t bother doing it, the county would get more money for in tickets and fees. Yes, we ALL hate the DMV and I am no exception. But you know what I hate more than the DMV? Getting hit by someone who shouldn’t have a valid license to begin with.

Click here for a good read to add in the debate.