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The average price of diesel jumped 2.2 cents a gallon last week, the biggest leap since April, but analysts who have been calling the summer’s numbers artificially high still think the cost of fuel will stop rising.

United Parcel Service will take a $1.44 billion charge against earnings in the second quarter to cover its potential liability after a judge ruled that the company took improper deductions for insurance expenses to avoid paying income taxes.

U.S. owner-operators on both coasts are following the lead of their Canadian counterparts and taking action to protest labor conditions at seaports.

The open road has called many to a life behind the wheel, but it’s a hard one. The most common complaint registered in an informal Transport Topics poll of drivers is the long-haul trip that stretches on and on at the expense of family life. It’s an ancient conflict.

The debate over the Federal Highway Administration’s safety rating system began anew last week when the agency issued a proposed rule that would shut down carriers that do not take steps to correct an “unsatisfactory” evaluation within 60 days.

Customers of Overnite Transportation Co. are the latest targets in the Teamsters union’s efforts to organize employees of the less-than-truckload carrier.

A proposal to make terminal operators responsible for the roadworthiness of containers and chassis picked up by trucking companies will be a hot topic at the annual membership conference of the Intermodal Association of North America.

Two more less-than-truckload freight carriers - Roadway Express and Con-Way Transportation Services - announced plans to raise rates.

At least five major trucking companies may have been victimized in a scam involving fraudulent cash advances and check cashing in which criminals have targeted users of Comdata Comchek electronic cards.

Cargo thieves may soon have more to worry about than just stealing a trailer load of clothes or computers. M.S. Carriers of Memphis, Tenn., and a major national retailer recently posted a $25,000 reward for the recovery of a load of apparel stolen Aug. 3 from Manning, S.C.