WVTA News
WVTA Press Room
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Charleston, W.Va. (August 10, 2015) – Hundreds of professional truck drivers, including nine drivers from West Virginia, will arrive in St. Louis, MO later this week to compete at the American Trucking Association’s National Truck Driving Championships at America’s Center Convention Complex & Edward Jones Dome Center. These elite drivers earned their way to compete in the “Superbowl of Safety” after winning their titles at state competitions earlier this summer.
Over 420 drivers from all 50 states will compete in St. Louis for the four day competition, challenging their driving skills, and knowledge of safety, equipment and the industry. From 18-wheeler five axle sleepers to tank trucks to twin trailers – they will drive a course and maneuver through obstacles that recreate situations truck drivers face daily. These may include: an alley dock, a rear line stop, a side park, a scale stop, a right turn, a front line stop, and straight line driving through a diminishing clearance.
On August 15, nine competitors will become champions of respective categories while one contestant will drive away as the Bendix National Truck Driving Championships Grand Champion.
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Senator Capito Holds Press Event at UPS Freight Facility in Huntington
On Monday, Senator Shelley Moore Capito held a press event at the UPS Freight Facility where she discussed the three month highway funding patch, which recently passed and signed into law by President Obama; as well as a vitally important six-year highway funding bill, which needs to be passed by Congress. Senator Capito advised that she is working hard to get the bipartisan six-year highway bill passed and reinforced her support for a long-term solution to fund and fix West Virginia’s crumbling highways and infrastructure. UPS Freight Driver Clarence S. Jenkins, Jr., who is a former America’s Road Team driver, was also on hand for this event. Jenkins, who has logged more than 4.5 million miles without an accident over his nearly forty-year career, spoke to the safety concerns of truckers and the risk motorists face as they navigate subpar road conditions and dilapidated bridges on our highways.
The event received tremendous media coverage, including all three of Charleston’s television stations, including WOWK, as well as reporters from the Charleston Gazette-Mail and West Virginia Public Broadcasting.
Congressman Jenkins Visits UPS Package Facility in Huntington
On Monday, Congressman Evan Jenkins, along with his daughter and state Delegate Carol Miller, toured the UPS package facility in Huntington. Jenkins had the opportunity to briefly speak with drivers and other employees and assisted in presenting employees with various safety awards and recognitions.
WVTA Participates in Human Trafficking Awareness Seminar
On Tuesday, the West Virginia Trucking Association, along with the West Virginia Intelligence Fusion Center, West Virginia Attorney General’s Office, the NATSO Foundation and Truckers Against Trafficking hosted a seminar for nearly forty law enforcement and trucking industry representatives on human trafficking. The seminar provided attendees with information on the types of trafficking, where it is likely to take place, how to spot a situation that could be considered trafficking and how to report such situations. The seminar was led by Kendris Paris, executive director of Truckers Against Trafficking and included presentations from the WV Attorney General’s Office, the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, a live skype session with a victim of human trafficking and a law enforcement panel. In addition to Jan Vineyard and Ryan Thorn attending the seminar on behalf of the WVTA; Daniel Harmon of Con-way Freight, John Snyder of Cummins Crosspoint, LLC and Chuck Bradley of Worldwide Equipment were also in attendance. This event received media coverage from Metro News.
To learn more about how your company and employees can be trained to spot and report incidents of human trafficking please visit www.
WOWK 13 News Visits Con-way Freight for Share the Road Segment
On Thursday, a reporter from WOWK 13 News in Charleston visited the Con-way Freight hub in Belle and was able to learn about safety in the industry and how teens can safely share the road with tractor trailers. She later visited Jan Vineyard at the WVTA office to learn more about the Share the Road program and to gain a few safety tips as the school year begins and traffic increases. Click here to view this segment.
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he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) new definition for a tank vehicle, and requirements for which drivers need tank endorsements, goes into effect today, July 8, 2015. Under the new rule, any vehicle transporting bulk tanks with 1,000 or more gallons of total capacity is designated as a tank vehicle.
To determine whether or not a vehicle qualifies, carriers should add up the total capacity of all bulk tanks on the vehicle. Bulk tanks are defined as those holding more than 119 gallons. These include portable tanks, intermediate bulk containers, cylinders, and other portable tanks that traditionally did not require tank endorsements. Empty tanks and those containing only residue can be ignored. If the total capacity is 1,000 gallons or more, the vehicle is a tank vehicle and be operated only by a driver with a tank endorsement. All states must adhere to the new definition starting today. The American Trucking Association (ATA) petitioned the FMCSA to adopt a definition that would not cover portable tanks and FMCSA has an open rulemaking considering the ATA’s proposal. Unfortunately, the FMCSA had not finalized that rule before today. We’ll continue to monitor the FMCSA’s rules regarding the exclusion of the portable tanks and make our members aware of their decision.
If you have questions regarding this endorsement please contact Jan Vineyard at (304)345-2800.
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U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee Passes Transportation Funding Bill
Charleston, W.Va. (June 25, 2015) – Today, the West Virginia Trucking Association (WVTA) applauds United States Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) for her vigorous efforts to improve highway safety and for her tireless advocacy on behalf of the state’s trucking industry.
The WVTA also recognizes the actions of the United States Senate Appropriations Committee for taking vital steps necessary to improve highway safety and infrastructure, not only in West Virginia, but the entire country, by passing the FY2016 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (T-HUD) Appropriations bill.
West Virginia Trucking Association members receive a 2.7% discount
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