Today's Transportation Pulse
Hormuz minesweeping could delay oil flow for weeks
A preliminary U.S.-Iran agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz includes a minesweeping phase that may take 40‑50 days, using conventional minesweepers and advanced underwater drones to locate up to 1,000 Iranian naval mines. The delay could hold tens of millions of barrels of oil, while daily vessel traffic remains at 12‑15 ships.
Also developing:
New £45,000 Jaecoo 8 Is Brand's Largest, Plushest Car Yet
Jaecoo has unveiled its flagship 8 SUV, a six‑ or seven‑seat plug‑in hybrid that will launch in the UK in May. The model arrives in two trims – Luxury at £45,500 and Executive at £47,500 – and is powered by a 1.5‑litre turbo‑charged engine paired with an electric motor delivering 422 bhp and a 0‑62 mph time of 5.8 seconds. It offers an 83‑mile electric‑only range and more than 700 miles combined, with fast‑charging up to 40 kW. Premium appointments include dual 12.3‑inch displays, Nappa‑leather seats and massaging front seats.
Cathay Rewards Staff with 11‑week Bonuses After $1.38B Profit
Cathay Group’s employees will receive over 11 weeks of bonuses & a salary increase this year after the group reported a full-year 2025 profit of US$1.38 billion (HK$10.8 billion) driven by higher capacity, load factors & strong cargo demand.
Commercial Readiness Confirmed for Alfa Laval’s Ammonia Fuel Supply System as FAT Wraps Up
Alfa Laval has completed a certified factory acceptance test (FAT) for its FCM Ammonia fuel supply system, earning class certification from China Classification Society and confirming commercial readiness for ammonia‑fueled two‑stroke engines. The test validated hardware integration, control logic, safety...
Grimaldi Euromed and FS Logistix Join Forces for Sea-Rail Links
Grimaldi Euromed and state‑owned FS Logistix signed a memorandum of understanding to launch sea‑rail connections, initially linking the Adriatic ports of Ancona and Venice with intermodal terminals across Italy and Europe. The partnership will use Grimaldi’s short‑sea Ro‑Ro network and...
Ford Explorer with LFP Battery Starts at €39,990
Ford Europe has launched an updated Explorer electric SUV featuring a larger 58 kWh LFP battery, boosting WLTP range to 444 km. The powertrain now delivers 140 kW and 350 Nm of torque, while the list price remains €39,990 in Germany. Additional upgrades include...
Press Release: Tokyo Motor to Exhibit Hydrogen and Fuel-Cell Technologies
Toyota announced its participation in the 25th International Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Expo in Tokyo from March 17‑19, 2026, where it will display its latest hydrogen and fuel‑cell technologies. President Mitsumasa Yamagata will present partnership initiatives aimed at building a...
Beyond Trade Policy: What the BIS Connected Vehicle Rule Really Demands From Automotive Software Teams
The U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security’s Connected Vehicle Rule, effective March 2025, focuses on software provenance rather than merely restricting Chinese or Russian components. It requires manufacturers to file Declarations of Conformity backed by defensible documentation that proves where each...
EPMB Launches Local Assembly of MG S5 BEV in Malaysia
SAIC Motor’s MG brand has begun local assembly of the S5 battery‑electric vehicle in Malaysia through a partnership with EP Manufacturing Bhd (EPMB). The Alor Gajah plant will assemble up to 2,000 units this year from imported CKD kits, leveraging...
What’s New in the North Wales Train Timetable?
Transport for Wales is launching a sweeping timetable overhaul for North and West Wales in May, adding roughly half as many new services on the North Wales Coast Line and introducing an hourly clock‑face pattern. The changes include direct Manchester...
Nio Enters Thai Market with Firefly BEV
Chinese EV manufacturer Nio has launched its Firefly compact battery‑electric vehicle in Thailand, the brand’s second Southeast Asian market after Singapore. The rollout was supported by a distribution agreement with Thonburi Blue Sky, the Thai importer that also handles Mercedes‑Benz....
Vietnam Vehicle Market Declines 9% in February – VAMA
Vietnam's wholesale vehicle market slipped 9% in February 2026, registering 15,665 units, a dip attributed to fewer working days during the Lunar New Year. Despite the monthly decline, the first two months of the year saw a robust 38% increase...
Ferry Routes Face 12.5% Fare Rise Due to Losses
Assistant Commissioner for Transport Louisa Fung, on the upcoming 12.5% price hike on six island ferry routes: “Both ferry service operators have been struggling financially. Setting aside government subsidies under special assistance measures, the six routes would record a loss of...
Shaping the Industry’s Next Transformation
Air cargo has shifted from a supplemental service to a core component of global trade, with airlines treating freight as a strategic business unit. Industry veterans stress that long‑term success hinges on trusted partnerships, disciplined operations, and policy alignment rather...
Air India Express Aircraft's Nose Wheel Faces Malfunction at Phuket Airport — Here's What We Know
Air India Express’s Hyderabad‑Phuket Boeing 737‑Max 8 suffered a nose‑wheel malfunction during its March 11 landing at Phuket International Airport, prompting the runway’s temporary closure. The aircraft touched down at 04:24 UTC, and both nose wheels detached, but no passengers or crew were injured....
Iran Conflict Already Costing Global Tourism $600 Million Per Day, WTTC Warns
The World Travel & Tourism Council warns that the Iran conflict is wiping out roughly $600 million in international visitor spending each day. Airspace closures and flight cancellations are disrupting the Middle East’s role as a critical aviation crossroads, affecting hubs...
PTE Preview: Sara Solis, Circular Economy Lead, Royal Schiphol Group
Royal Schiphol Group’s circular economy lead, Sara Solis, outlines how the airport embeds circular principles—avoidance, low‑impact choices, lifespan extension, and material recovery—directly into design, procurement and operations. She highlights that upstream decisions in construction and asset design generate the biggest...
Geely Auto Beats BYD Sales in First 2 Months of 2026 to Become China’s Top Carmaker
Geely Auto overtook BYD as China’s top carmaker in the first two months of 2026, delivering 476,327 vehicles, a modest 1% increase year‑over‑year. BYD’s sales plunged 35.8% to 400,241 units after a partial withdrawal of a purchase‑tax incentive. Geely’s EV...
3PL Culture and Fulfillment Experience
In this episode, Kevin interviews Michelle Harris of Our Service Works (OSW), a Dallas‑based 3PL that evolved from outsourced customer care to a full‑service fulfillment operation. They discuss how OSW carefully selects carriers—evaluating performance data, technology integration, and support—to enhance...
EREVs May Be Interim Tech, but It’s a Long Interim
Extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs) combine electric drive with an on‑board ICE generator, delivering up to 1,000 miles of total range while offering 100‑200 miles of zero‑emission travel. China has validated the model, selling roughly 2.4 million units in 2025 and expanding...
Mansion House Station Named After Unbuilt Location
Ever wondered why “Mansion House” underground station on the District Line is not in fact at the Mansion House but a considerable walk away? Well the station was planned to be there, but the location was changed when the necessary...
Princess Cruises Announces 2028 World Cruise: 115-Day Global Voyage Visiting 49 Destinations
Princess Cruises unveiled its 2028 World Cruise aboard the 2,000‑guest Coral Princess, a 115‑day, 36,000‑nautical‑mile itinerary that touches 49 ports in 24 countries across five continents. The voyage features a maiden call to Mossel Bay, South Africa, and includes 39...
Accelerating 4D Imaging Radar with Vision 4DR
Cadence introduced a 4D imaging radar solution that couples its Vision 341 DSP with the Vision 4DR accelerator to handle the heavy FFT workload inherent in high‑resolution MIMO radars. Adding elevation to range, velocity and azimuth creates a massive data...
INTERTRAFFIC: Q-Free and Sony Partner to Advance Satellite Road Charging
Q-Free and Sony Semiconductor Solutions have formed a strategic partnership to integrate Sony’s low‑power GNSS technology into Q-Free’s battery‑powered on‑board tolling units. The collaboration creates a scalable, wiring‑free platform that enables precise, distance‑based road user charging and supports fleet management...
Airbus Exceeds 2025 Delivery Target, Ships 793 Jets
Airbus delivered 793 aircraft in 2025, topping its revised target as supply chain constraints eased. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/03/airbus-delivered-793-aircraft-in-2025.html
Allison and DTNA Expand Partnership for M2 106 Plus Truck
Allison Transmission and Daimler Truck North America have broadened their collaboration by adding two fully automatic gearbox options to the Freightliner M2 106 Plus medium‑duty truck. The 3414 Regional Haul Series transmission, paired with a Cummins X10 diesel, will start production in...
Continental Tyres Chosen by All Top 10 EMEA EV Makers
Continental announced that its original‑equipment tyres equipped all ten of the highest‑volume electric‑vehicle manufacturers in the EMEA region for 2025, extending its reach to 17 of the top 20 global EV makers. The company credits early investment in low rolling...
Why Free Buses Aren’t Exactly Free
Mayor Zohran Mamdani of New York City has pledged to make all bus rides free, a move that would shift the roughly $5.47 per‑ride cost into the city’s general fund, potentially costing over $600 million annually. The proposal echoes similar fare‑free...
Kapsch TrafficCom Integrates TomTom Data Into EcoTrafiX
Kapsch TrafficCom has integrated TomTom’s floating‑car data into its EcoTrafiX traffic‑management platform, delivering live traffic flow, incident alerts, and multimodal movement insights. The partnership eliminates the need for additional roadside hardware and reduces customisation effort for city and road‑authority projects....
Cathay Marks 80th Year with Hong Kong Art Aircraft Livery
Cathay Pacific has unveiled a special "Spirit of Hong Kong – 80th Anniversary Edition" livery on a Boeing 777‑300ER, created in partnership with the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA). The design, featuring artwork by multimedia artist Victor Wong, debuted...
Trump’s Funding Freeze Has Derailed Transit, Undermining Growth and Economic Opportunity For All Americans
The Trump administration has signed no new Capital Investment Grant contracts for rail transit, effectively freezing federal matching funds for new subway, elevated, and light‑metro projects. State and local rail‑funding contributions have slumped to $7 billion in 2025, down from $16 billion...
Southwest Keeps Service, Raises Prices to Delta Levels
Southwest has been giving spirit and frontier service and rules but with delta pricing ever since they made these changes.
Club Eurostar Has Launched a Big Reward Seat Sale – Worth an Amex Transfer?
Club Eurostar has opened a 20% discount sale on all reward seats, with no blackout dates and travel allowed through 12 December. Bookings must be completed by 4 p.m. on Thursday 19 March, and the reduced pricing applies to Standard, Plus and Premier...
NIQ Study: Quality Expectations Evolve Across Thailand’s Auto Market
NielsenIQ’s 2025 Thailand Automotive Quality Study surveyed 3,479 new‑car owners, revealing that battery‑electric vehicles (BEVs) posted a slightly higher Problems‑per‑100‑Vehicles (PP100) score of 174 versus 169 for conventional models. The research shows a clear shift in consumer expectations toward real‑world...
West Coast Port Volume Set to Rebound Late March
The West Coast isn’t participating in the tight trucking market, as Chinese New Years was a few weeks later this year. Last year, we had pull forward of imports. We are roughly where we were in 2024. We should do a return of...
From Toilet Paper to Diesel: Are We Creating the Shortage?
Australia’s diesel imports remain strong, with about 5.8 million tonnes expected by the end of March 2026 – the second‑largest first‑quarter volume on record. Real‑time tanker tracking from LSEG Vessel Explorer captures roughly 90 % of these shipments, confirming that physical supply...
IATA: E-Commerce Will Drive 30% of Air Cargo by 2027
IATA says e‑commerce will drive 30% of air cargo by 2027, up from 20% today. It projects total air freight volume reaching 71.6 million tons in 2026 with a 2.4% annual increase. Growth is strongest in Asia‑Pacific, especially Southeast Asia, where...
BOC Digitizes Car Import Process
The Philippine Bureau of Customs (BOC) has rolled out the Electronic Certificate of Payment (e‑CP) System, a real‑time digital platform that automates duty and tax validation for imported vehicles. The system links BOC directly with the Land Transportation Office (LTO),...
NYC Car Life: Double Parking Fees, Persistent Snow, Naïve Waze
NY car musings: - Waze naively asking if the pot hole in NYC is still there - NY parking rate model: basically $14 to park your car, $14 to bring it back. Otherwise quite cheap (25c/hr from 8->24hrs) - still a couple meagre...
Slow Widebody Freighter Manufacturing Supply Chains Hamper Capacity
Widebody freighter capacity remains constrained in 2026 as manufacturers grapple with lingering supply‑chain disruptions. IATA’s director general Willie Walsh warned that OEMs are still struggling to stabilize production, pushing the Boeing 777‑8F launch to 2028 and delaying Airbus’s A350F entry...
U.S. Shipping Irrelevance Drives Major Conference Collapse
In truth this is *supposed* to be the largest shipowner conference in North America. Once it was. Just five or six years ago maritime companies used to buy out every billboard along I-95. Every hotel within 20 miles sold out...
Most Late Flyers Could Avoid Hassle With Ten Extra Minutes
I fly almost every week and I’m telling you on 90% of flights there’s always somebody showing up late after they’ve ended boarding and they always have some super valid excuse on why the airline should make an exception and...
VinFast Hires Seasoned Auto Executives to Accelerate India Expansion
VinFast has pledged roughly $2 billion to expand in India and has hired more than half a dozen senior executives from Hyundai, Honda, Nissan, Renault, BMW and MG. The talent drive is designed to accelerate the launch of affordable electric cars,...
Blind Engineer Invented Cruise Control for Steady Driving
#WhyThingsWereInvented? Ralph Teetor who was blind invented the 'Speedostat' in the 1950's, later known as cruise control, to provide himself with steady speeds during car trips. (Terrifying Myths and History) #Automation #Innovation #Invention https://t.co/qeRwceRkxl
Lufthansa Pilots Schedule Two‑day Strike, Causing Major Disruptions
Lufthansa pilots are planning on going on a two-day strike on Thursday and Friday. Here's the reason for this strike, and what disruptions we can expect. https://t.co/QEncl5Rgyl
Huge Accrued Financial Losses at Beijing Capital Airport – COVID and Dual Hub Operations to Blame
Beijing Capital International Airport, once the world’s second‑busiest hub, has slipped to 15th place in 2025 with passenger volumes at just 70% of 2019 levels. Over the past five years the airport has accumulated roughly $1.6 billion in losses, and analysts...
Cargo Ship Struck by Unknown Projectile in Hormuz
DUBAI, March 11 (Reuters) - A cargo vessel was hit by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in a fire onboard and prompting the crew to evacuate and request assistance, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade...
BMW 5 Series Achieves 1200 Km on One Tank
All Screenshots are not fake. My BMW 5 series can indeed run 1200 km on a full tank. https://t.co/ZYsPhQBJaE
Cathay Pacific Profit Jumps 9.5% on Robust Demand
Cathay Pacific posts 9.5% rise in annual profit on strong passenger and cargo demand https://t.co/cz0Ox6vR1O
Choosing a Second Option Adds $800 per Load
It’s always good to get a second options Especially when you can make +$800 more on a load
Mass Truck Driver Layoff Panic Was Overblown
Remember 10 years ago when there was a minor panic over what we were going to do about the imminent mass layoffs of truck drivers? That was weird. https://t.co/DLQmJBUiDt