Truck Registration Research Articles

Did ‘long COVID’ increase road deaths in the USA?

ObjectiveTo examine data on COVID-19 disease associated with a 10% increase in US road deaths from 2020 to 2021 that raises the question of the potential effect of pandemic stress...

Developing a Decision-Making Process of Location Selection for Truck Public Parking Lots in Korea

As the number of truck registrations and the traffic volume have increased continuously in urban areas, the problem of truck illegal parking on the roadside has become more serious in Korea. Although the government presented the necessity and the construction plan of the truck public parking lots through the ‘4th Comprehensive Plan for Expansion of Truck Resting Facilities’, there is no detailed guideline for the local government of where to construct them. The previous studies on the location selection of the parking lots have mainly focused on passenger cars and buses, but not trucks, and the process for candidate location selection was not mentioned. To fill this gap, this study presents a decision-making process for the location selection of truck public parking lots in urban areas based on mixed-integer programming; it includes a candidate location selection by spatial analysis and an optimal location determination by the application of the competitive p-median algorithm. A case study of Incheon was conducted to validate the presented decision-making process. This study introduced a systematic decision-making process that includes standards establishment, data processing, and methodology application; it is universalistic enough to be utilized as a guideline for the government to efficiently construct truck public parking lots.

What factors impact pedestrian and cyclist fatalities? A state level analysis

BackgroundPedestrian and bicyclist injuries and fatalities have increased since 2010 after a long downward trend. Trucks and SUVs, collectively called light trucks, have also increased in sales and size, which may affect pedestrians and bicyclists. Additionally, pedestrian and cyclist commuters vary by state and it has been speculated that an increase in such commuters may affect fatalities. Studying vulnerable road users can bestow clues on best practices for infrastructure and public health.MethodsState level pedestrian and cyclist fatality data was obtained from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration for 2018. Light truck registration by state was obtained from the Office of Highway Policy Information for 2018. Commuters who walk or bike to work were obtained from the American Community Survey from 2009 to 2011, from the latest Centers for Disease Control report. We performed multiple linear regression, accounting for total motor vehicle lane miles per 100 people, also obtained from the Office of Highway Policy Information for 2018. Multiple regression analysis was performed to assess predictors for pedestrian and cyclist fatalities with the predictors variables of light truck registration, lane miles per 100 people, and proportion of commuters who are vulnerable road users. Secondary analysis included simple linear regression of the predictor variables against each other.ResultsThe multiple regression model, including proportion of light truck registration, lane miles per 100 people, and proportion of commuters who are vulnerable road users, accounted for 18% of the variability in the outcome variable (p = 0.03). An increased number of vulnerable road users were negatively associated with pedestrian and bicyclist fatality. Additionally, there appeared to be an association between motor vehicle lane miles per 100 people and proportion of light truck registrations that was also significant (p < 0.01).ConclusionThe variables affecting vulnerable road user deaths are important to understand given their increased risk exposure on the road. This state level study identifies a potential protective variable with increased vulnerable road users being associated with a decrease in pedestrian and bicyclist death rates. Additionally, light truck proportions do not appear to have a significant effect on death rates.

Spatial Distribution of Skills and Regional Trade Integration

This study is a theoretical and empirical analysis of the effects of regional trade integration on the spatial distribution of skills. We first develop a theoretical model in the economic geography field to integrate heterogeneous workers, housing, local entrepreneurs and skill upgrading by unskilled workers. We then analyse how the domestic integration of each state in the USA, approximated by truck registrations, influenced the location choice of skilled and unskilled workers in 1940–1960. By using inter- and intrastate trade flow from the US Commodity Flow Survey, we also analyse the impact of regional trade costs for the contemporary period (1997, 2002, 2007). The theoretical model shows that the bell-shaped curve of spatial development displays a sorting of individuals and firms. Only high-skilled workers increasingly choose the core region during the process of regional integration, while intermediate-skilled workers move to the periphery due to the increase in the price of housing. By impacting differently on the opportunity cost to invest in skill acquisition in the core and the periphery, this sorting influences the regional creation of human capital. First a regional divergence in education investment occurs and then a convergence, but only for high-level regional integration. The empirical analysis confirms that regional trade integration has been a determinant of the spatial distribution of skills in the USA.

Spatial distribution of skills and regional trade integration

This study is a theoretical and empirical analysis of the effects of regional trade integration on the spatial distribution of skills. We first develop a theoretical model in the economic geography field to integrate heterogeneous workers, housing, local entrepreneurs and skill upgrading by unskilled workers. We then analyse how the domestic integration of each state in the USA, approximated by truck registrations, influenced the location choice of skilled and unskilled workers in 1940–1960. By using inter- and intrastate trade flow from the US Commodity Flow Survey, we also analyse the impact of regional trade costs for the contemporary period (1997, 2002, 2007). The theoretical model shows that the bell-shaped curve of spatial development displays a sorting of individuals and firms. Only high-skilled workers increasingly choose the core region during the process of regional integration, while intermediate-skilled workers move to the periphery due to the increase in the price of housing. By impacting differently on the opportunity cost to invest in skill acquisition in the core and the periphery, this sorting influences the regional creation of human capital. First a regional divergence in education investment occurs and then a convergence, but only for high-level regional integration. The empirical analysis confirms that regional trade integration has been a determinant of the spatial distribution of skills in the USA.

Characterization of road freight transportation and its impact on the national emission inventory in China

Abstract. Diesel trucks are major contributors of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and primary particulate matter smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) in the transportation sector. However, there are more obstacles to existing estimations of diesel-truck emissions compared with those of cars. The obstacles include both inappropriate methodology and missing basic data in China. According to our research, a large number of trucks are conducting long-distance intercity or interprovincial transportation. Thus, the method used by most existing inventories, based on local registration number, is inappropriate. A road emission intensity-based (REIB) approach is introduced in this research instead of registration-population-based approach. To provide efficient data for the REIB approach, 1060 questionnaire responses and approximately 1.7 million valid seconds of onboard GPS monitoring data were collected in China. The estimated NOx and PM2.5 emissions from diesel freight trucks in China were 5.0 (4.8–7.2) million tonnes and 0.20 (0.17–0.22) million tonnes, respectively, in 2011. The province-based emission inventory is also established using the REIB approach. It was found that the driving conditions on different types of road have significant impacts on the emission levels of freight trucks. The largest differences among the emission factors (in g km−1) on different roads exceed 70 and 50% for NOx and PM2.5, respectively. A region with more intercity freeways or national roads tends to have more NOx emissions, while urban streets play a more important role in primary PM2.5 emissions from freight trucks. Compared with the inventory of the Ministry of Environment Protection, which allocates emissions according to local truck registration number and neglects interregional long-distance transport trips, the differences for NOx and PM2.5 are +28 and −57%, respectively. The REIB approach matches better with traffic statistical data on a provincial level. Furthermore, the different driving conditions on the different roads types are no longer overlooked with this approach.

An Item Response Theory Analysis of Safety Knowledge in Colorado Farm Residents

This study was designed to identify safety knowledge questions that differentiated those with high and low vulnerability to injury and assess differences in safety questions by sex and age. Colorado farm operators and their spouses were recruited in 1993 from farm truck registrations (n = 872) and between 1993 and 1997 from property value assessment lists or rural directories (n = 761). Item Response Theory was used to assess ten safety questions. Knowing fatigue causes injury best discriminated between high and low injury vulnerability; incorrectly answering the question about inattention causing injury was associated with highest vulnerability to injury. No measurement invariance was identified by sex, but those older than 65 years answered differently than those younger than 45 years (P = 0.005). Safety programs emphasizing the role of fatigue and inattention on injury risk might reduce injuries in the farming community.

Safety knowledge, safety behaviors, depression, and injuries in Colorado farm residents

Changing safety behavior has been the target of injury prevention in the farming community for years but significant reductions in the number of farming injuries have not always followed. This study describes the relationships between safety knowledge, safety behavior, depression, and injuries using 3 years of self-reported data from a cohort of farm residents in Colorado. Farm operators and their spouses (n = 652) were recruited in 1993 from a farm truck registration list using stratified probability sampling. Respondents answered ten safety knowledge and ten safety behavior questions. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale was used to evaluate depression. The most severe farm work-related injury over a 3-year period was the outcome variable. Factor analysis was used to produce a single measure of safety knowledge for logistic regression models to evaluate the relationships between injuries, safety knowledge, and behaviors. Safety knowledge was significantly associated with wearing personal protective equipment. None of the safety behaviors were significantly associated with injuries. In the presence of depression, low safety knowledge increased the probability of injury (OR 3.87, 95% CI 1.00-15.0) in models adjusted for age, sex, hours worked per week, and financial problems. Compared to those not depressed, those depressed with a low safety score showed significantly greater risk of injury than those depressed with a high score in adjusted models (OR 3.09, CI 1.31-7.29 vs. OR 0.86, CI 0.31-2.37). Future work on injuries in the farming community should include measures of mood disorders and interactions with safety perceptions and knowledge.

A Cohort Study of Pesticide Poisoning and Depression in Colorado Farm Residents

Depressive symptoms have been associated with pesticide poisoning among farmers in cross-sectional studies, but no longitudinal studies have assessed the long-term influence of poisoning on depressive symptoms. The purpose of this study was to describe the associations between pesticide poisoning and depressive symptoms in a cohort of farm residents. Farm operators and their spouses were recruited in 1993 from farm truck registrations using stratified probability sampling. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression scale was used to evaluate depression in participants using generalized estimating equations. Baseline self-reported pesticide poisoning was the exposure of interest in longitudinal analyses. Pesticide poisoning was significantly associated with depression in three years of follow-up after adjusting for age, gender, and marital status (odds ratio [OR] 2.59; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.20-5.58). Depression remained elevated after adjusting for health, decreased income, and increased debt (OR 2.00; CI 0.91-4.39) and was primarily due to significant associations with the symptoms being bothered by things (OR 3.29; CI 1.95-5.55) and feeling everything was an effort (OR 1.93; CI 1.14-3.27). Feeling bothered and that everything was an effort were persistently associated with a history of pesticide poisoning, supportive of the hypothesis that prolonged irritability may result from pesticide poisoning.

Jurisdiction Shopping Among Apportioned Motor Carriers: Examination of Causes and Potential Remedies

Jurisdiction shopping refers to the practice of interstate motor carriers searching for the cheapest, most convenient jurisdiction in which to register their heavy trucks. In the past 10 years this activity has contributed to the geographic redistribution of tens of thousands of truck registrations in the United States. Some jurisdictions have lost millions of dollars in registration-related revenue as a result. Unlawful registration practices have been responsible for a considerable amount of jurisdiction shopping. However, state discrepancies in registration costs and convenience have prompted some trucking firms to engage in a legitimate form of jurisdiction shopping. States wishing to preserve their carrier registration base and associated revenue must ensure that all fees and taxes assessed on local registrants are fully apportioned to out-of-state carriers operating in the jurisdiction. In addition, a convenient carrier-credentialing regime must be provided. That entails joint administration of related interstate programs and the development of unified, streamlined processing systems that minimize registrant costs and administrative burden. Finally, the provision of a broader range of registration options, such as online registration renewal and fee payment, should be explored. These strategies will help reduce the negative consequences of jurisdiction shopping and ensure that states receive a fair share of interjurisdictional truck registration revenue.

The Truth About Light Trucks: Despite Critics' Claims, SUVs are Saving Lives

To determine the relationship between light trucks and motor vehicle fatalities, we formulated a simultaneous equations model that considered the effect that light truck usage and other variables had on fatality rates over the period 1994 to 1997. We discovered that there is a negative relationship between light truck registration and the motor vehicle fatality rate in both single-vehicle and multiple-vehicle accidents. Our elasticity estimates indicate that the five-percent increase in light truck registrations in the United States over the time period 1994 to 1997 lowered single-vehicle fatalities per driver by 7.5 percent and multiple-vehicle fatalities per driver by two percent. These figures translate into about 2,000 lives saved.

The impact of state taxes on the development and growth of the trucking industry

The presence of certain state taxes is believed to have a negative impact on truck registration and the location decisions of trucking firms. For example, in a metropolitan area that covers two or more states, a trucking firm might not choose to locate in the county that is in close proximity to the metropolitan area’s business districts, population centers, and largest concentration of customers, if that county is in a state that imposes the taxes. Instead, it might choose to locate in a county that belongs to another state that does not impose such taxes as long as that county is adjacent to the metropolitan area’s most industrialized districts. This paper examines the impact that state taxes have on the very competitive trucking industry. Through a case study of Kentucky, we illustrate how state taxes such as the motor vehicle usage tax and the weight distance tax can adversely affect the trucking firm’s decisions in registering and plating trucks, and in locating its facilities.

Virginia Vehicle-Related Revenue Forecasts

An econometric model is developed to forecast the impacts of alternative future scenarios on the Virginia Division of Motor Vehicle revenue potentials. The model consists of 12 basic components, the major components being population and economy. The tested scenarios relate to possible social, political, economic and demographic future conditions, such as, high price of gasoline, President Carter's energy proposal, persons per household, shifts in population density, the impact of Virginia's participation in the International Truck Registration Plan (IRP), etc. The results, in general, show that gasoline tax and sales and use tax revenues will decline under adverse economic conditions, while registration fee revenues will remain fairly stable under most scenarios.