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Jon Osburn and OOIDA’s tour truck, The Spirit of the American Trucker, will be at the TA in Beto Junction, KS. That’s located at Exit 155 off Interstate 35. Stop in, say hi to Jon, and join OOIDA for a $20 discount. To see Jon’s full schedule, click here.
Meanwhile, OOIDA Life Member Ron Mermis and his NASCAR simulator are at the TA in Wildwood, FL. That’s located at Exit 329 off Interstate 75. You can join at a discount with Ron as well. For more information about the simulator, click here.
Air date: May 17, 2013.
This week's poll:
Reed Black discussed state legislation with Land Line Magazine’s Keith Goble. In Nevada, a bill halfway through the statehouse would authorize toll roads. Meanwhile in Georgia, lawmakers approved a bill that targets “super speeders.”
Air date: April 28, 2009.
Terry Scruton brought us highlights of a U.S. House hearing into a different kind of hot air – greenhouse gases. You can listen to the series of hearings held April 21st-24th at the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce committee . Air date: April 28, 2009.
In today’s Listener Comment Line, Mark Reddig spoke about his four part series on the fatigued driving evaluation checklist occurring in Minnesota or Indiana.
Air date: April 27, 2009.
Mark Reddig spoke with Donna Ryun, Jill Sheeks and Norita Taylor about the new and much improved OOIDA Web site.
Air date: April 27, 2009.
Terry Scruton spoke to Ed Briley of OOIDA’s Truck Insurance Customer Service Department about OOIDA Truck Insurance.
Air date: April 27, 2009.
Recently we gave a fat, juicy, mustachioed RAZZBERRY to mustachioed reporter John Stossel of ABC’s 20/20 for a lopsided report he did awhile back on public-private partnerships.
In case you missed the RAZZY and/or the report, here’s a recap: “Hi, this is John Stossel. Public-private partnerships are a good thing and all other opinion on the subject is shortsighted and wrong, including yours.”
So if we already gave Stossel a good RAZZ-ing for his (un)evenhanded journalism, why am I bringing it up again? Because I have more ammo. And it’s just fun.
The new ammunition came the other day in the form of an earnings report from Macquarie. You probably know Macquarie best as the owner of the Indiana Toll Road. The company also owns the Chicago Skyway, the Dulles Greenway in Virginia, the South Bay Expressway in San Diego, and is currently in negotiations to buy your driveway and the path leading from grandma’s house to the garden out back.
Macquarie may want to hold off on those last two, because the news from the earnings report wasn’t good. Indiana, Dulles and South Bay were singled out as three of the company’s worst performers, with Indiana easily topping the list. Those roads saw less traffic than a one-way, dead-end street. Paved with nails.
Okay, maybe that’s a slight exaggeration, but the point is, traffic was down significantly. And why? Macquarie pointed to the bad economy and harsh winter weather, but there was another culprit lurking behind the scenes. Toll increases went into effect on all three of those roads in January. Coincidence? Not likely.
One report I saw quoted an Australian analyst as saying that Indiana and San Diego were basically worthless for Macquarie. So what does a company do with an asset that is worthless when it’s locked into a 75-year contract with, say, Indiana? I imagine we might find out before this year is over.
Which brings me back to Stossel. He strutted around during his report, talking as though public-private partnerships held all the answers to our transportation funding problems. Stossel said one of the biggest benefits of public-private partnerships is that the roads are maintained at virtually no cost to the taxpayer. Um, John, who do you think is paying the tolls on those roads?
Well, according to the Macquarie report, nobody is, so maybe he was right on that one after all.
OOIDA has issued a Call to Action in Illinois to bring uniform speed limits to rural interstates. SB 1467 could come up for consideration at any time. You are also encouraged to contact Gov. Pat Quinn and ask for his support of uniform speed limit legislation.
Air date: April 24, 2009.
Mark Reddig talked with OOIDA Life Member John Heistand about his career, and his commitment to preserving trucking history. John is also a member of the American Truck Historical Society. You can read more about that group, and find details about its annual convention, by clicking here. Air date: April 24, 2009.
Mark Reddig spoke with Mike Joyce and Melissa Theriault-Rohan of OOIDA’s Washington, DC, office about their mission, their part in this week’s OOIDA Board of Directors’ meeting, and other related topics.
Air date: April 24, 2009.
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