Omnitracs Partners with PrePass Safety Alliance to Provide Integrated Solution that Improves Driver Experience
Omnitracs, LLC, a Solera company, today announced that it has entered into a partnership with PrePass Safety Alliance to provide PrePass on its Omnitracs One platform.
Fleets that access the PrePass application will be able to bypass weigh stations – improving driver satisfaction with fewer inspection stops and exceeding customer expectations with faster load delivery, while reducing bottom-line costs associated with idling time and fuel usage.
Directly integrated into Omnitracs One, weigh station bypass information will be available with all other fleet activity, on a converged platform.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill is Good for EVs, Bad for the Climate
If it’s approved, the bipartisan infrastructure deal announced this week will make it easier for Americans to buy and own an electric car. But it won’t help meet President Joe Biden’s ambitious goal to cut carbon emissions in half by 2030.
The money authorized for a nationwide network of EV chargers would have a measurable impact on Americans’ car-buying choices. The $1 trillion deal ($550 billion of which is new spending) includes $7.5 billion to fund Biden’s plan to build half a million EV chargers across the country, which will help mend the mostly fractured, occasionally broken system we currently have. A more dependable charging network will likely help juice EV sales in the US over the next decade.
But it won’t help to steer people away from cars and toward more environmental modes of transportation, which many experts believe is necessary to reduce carbon emissions and fight climate change. Our highway system is likely to expand at a much greater rate than our transit infrastructure. Wider roads typically lead to more car traffic — which, in turn, generates more planet-warming emissions.
Read the article at The Verge.
Most Crash Deaths In The U.S. Were Unbelted Passengers Or Drivers
Seat belt use is at around 90 percent, according to the NHTSA, which is surprising or not depending on your view of humanity. Still, that means many who don’t use them, and, of crash deaths last year, over half of them were unbelted, The Wall Street Journal reports.
Across the U.S. last year, fatalities in which vehicle occupants were ejected rose 20% compared to 2019, and such deaths were higher among young men than other demographic groups
Sgt. Dan Silvia, who heads the traffic unit at the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office in metro Denver, said he heard different excuses as he handed drivers $75 citations. “It’s usually, ‘I forgot,’” he said. But he said some drivers complained about the government telling them what to do, and one man vowed he would never wear a seat belt.
Read the article at MSN.
These New EV Chargers Are Flat and Flush With the Sidewalk
Electric vehicle chargers that are embedded into and flush with the sidewalk are now officially live for testing in the London Borough of Brent. The chargers have no permanent raised street furniture at the sidewalk edge.
Scottish startup company Trojan Energy – “flat and flush EV charging” – has designed the system for those without access to off-street parking, garages, or driveways, which is a major impediment for charging, not only in London, but in most cities around the world.
Fifteen flat EV chargers are installed in parallel from one electricity network connection, with power distributed across the chargers. The user inserts a personal lance into the charger, which then locks it in place. Once charged, the lance can be removed by key fob or smartphone and stored in the car.
Read the article at Electrek.
Strategic Cargo Theft on the Rise — How to Reduce the Risks
By: Fleet Management Weekly Editorial Staff
Fleet Management Weekly recently spoke with Scott Cornell, Vice Chair of the Transported Asset Protection Association (TAPA Americas) board of directors, to understand the different techniques cargo thieves are using and what transportation professionals can do to help mitigate the risk of theft.
Scott also serves as Transportation Lead, and Crime and Theft Specialist, at Travelers®, and he highlighted some of the latest trends affecting the industry.
FMW: We all know cargo theft is a problem for the transportation industry. How are thieves committing these crimes?
Scott Cornell: When we talk about cargo theft in transportation, there are two main buckets: straight theft and strategic theft.
Straight theft – when thieves steal cargo where it sits – is more common than strategic theft. For instance, thieves can take cargo directly from ports, warehouses or distribution centers, or even from a trailer sitting at a truck stop or staged in a lot before it’s ready for transit.
Strategic theft is a little more complex.
