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ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A special advisory panel studying the federal Compliance, Safety, Accountability program heard conflicting opinions from two accident litigators on the merits of police accident reports as the basis for assessing blame in truck-involved crashes.

PeopleNet Communications Corp. said it is working with security technology firm SafeKey Corp. to provide a location-aware key fob that truck drivers can use to send “panic” signals through PeopleNet’s system.

Less-than-truckload carrier Central Freight Lines Inc. has added 100 Freightliner compressed natural gas-powered tractors to its fleet of more than 1,600 trucks, the companies announced.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) vetoed a bill Sept. 9 that would have classified most port drayage and parcel truck drivers in the state as employees, and put the burden on carriers to prove that drivers are independent owner-operators, he said.

The Teamsters union and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association have asked a federal court to reconsider its April decision that upheld the government’s cross-border Mexican trucking plan, saying the decision conflicts with the law.

Crews in Washington state were constructing a temporary span last week to replace a section of bridge on Interstate 5 that collapsed May 23, apparently after it was struck by a truck carrying an oversize load.

The Transportation Security Administration has awarded a contract to Triumph Enterprises Inc. to continue a program, initially started by American Trucking Associations, to train commercial drivers to spot possible terrorist activities on U.S. highways, according to a memo obtained by Transport Topics.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said Friday it has eliminated what it said is a redundant requirement that truck and bus drivers report out-of-state traffic convictions to the states where they are licensed.

Trucking failures doubled in the first quarter of 2013, reaching the highest level in nearly two years, and will keep rising because fleets’ costs are increasing twice as fast as revenue, according to a new investment report.