The American Trucking Associations has formed the American Transportation Research Institute,

which will advocate for, and conduct on a limited basis, transportation research.
"The trucking industry will now have a 'think tank' organization dedicated to providing members of ATA access to top notch, state-of-the-art scientific research, which has become essential to the development of good, sound public policy," said Walter B. McCormick Jr., ATA president and CEO. "We've learned the hard way - with misguided hours of service reform and ergonomics regulations - that when federal agencies lack sound science, public policies suffer, and so will our industry."
Michael W. Wickham, Chairman and CEO of Roadway Express and current head of the ATA Foundation, will chair the American Transportation Research Institute.
"This is a new direction for the trucking industry," said Wickham. "All of us engaged in this complex business of moving the nation's freight want to be good corporate citizens; we want to protect our workers and our assets. To do that effectively, we need to pursue right-minded legislation, regulation and policy, backed by sound, unbiased scientific research."
Over the coming months, the American Transportation Research Institute will constitute its Board of Directors, appoint an external Research Advisory Committee and approve a research agenda for the coming year.