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On April 16, state transportation officials kicked off the department’s Connecting Arkansas Program, a $1.8 billion project that is funded through a 2012 voter-approved, half-cent sales tax set to expire in 2023. “It’s a great day for Arkansas, a great day for northwest Arkansas” Scott Bennett, director of the state Highway and Transportation Department, said. […]

Court-Approved Flashing It’s a common practice among drivers who pass through a speed trap: Flash your headlights at approaching cars as a warning to slow down. Now, a federal court judge in Missouri says penalizing drivers for the headlight flash violates their First Amendment right to free speech. U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey in

Arkansans Join Coalition to Back Keystone XL Oil Pipeline Five Democrats, including Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), joined Republicans at a Capitol news conference in February to urge President Obama to approve the Keystone XL Pipeline following a State Department report that raised no major environmental objections. The $7 billion pipeline would carry 830,000 barrels of

Freight Index Rises to Best Level on Record The amount of freight carried by the nation’s for-hire transportation industry rose 1.2 percent in November from October, rebounding from a one-month decline to reach its highest all-time level, according to a new U.S. Department of Transportation report. The November 2013 Freight Transportation Services Index level of

Fleet Failures Increase Despite Higher Freight Demand Despite improved freight demand, ongoing cost and regulatory pressures are to blame for the highest level of fleet failures in more than three years, according to Avondale Partners analyst Donald Broughton. A total of 335 fleets with 7,775 trucks failed during the fourth quarter, the highest since the

ATA Bids Farewell to Kidd After serving as president of the Arkansas Trucking Association (ATA) for 22 years, Lane Kidd announced in a joint statement with ATA, plans to leave the organization to devote his full energies to The Kidd Group, LLC, a business investment and public affairs firm he created in 2013. “I’ve wanted

Conflicting Reports Study CSA Accuracy, Fairness Days following the release of a study conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) revealed significant flaws in the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) released its own study findings to the contrary. The GAO report, “Modifying the Compliance, Safety, Accountability Program Would

Another Study, More Speculation A few days before the GAO and FMCSA released conflicting reports on CSA, the FMCSA was met with criticism for its findings following a study indicating the agency’s current hours-of-service rule is more effective at combating fatigue, a conclusion that trucking groups and several members of Congress immediately disputed. The final

Yellow Light for Green Gas Blu LNG and Clean Energy, two of the largest developers of natural gas fueling stations, have cut back on expansion efforts. Blu LNG has laid off 20 percent of its staff, ousted several senior executives and slowed development of fueling stations. The company has a network of about 25 locations,

Holy Hog It’s unknown whether Pope Francis ever rode the custom 2013 Dyna Super Glide that was a gift from Willie Davidson, a retired Harley-Davidson designer and grandson of the company’s co-founder. But an unidentified bidder agreed to pay $327,000 for the motorcycle at a Paris charity auction. The Bonhams auction house said the telephone