Walmart

Walmart looks to the future, buys 4,500 Canoo vans

Walmart, the country’s largest retail began with founder Sam Walton driving often a 1979 Ford F-150 pickup truck loaded with merchandise, has taken a giant leap of automotive faith. It has purchased 4,500 Canoo electronic Lifestyle Delivery Vehicles (LDV). The futuristic-looking van debuted as a concept vehicle in 2019 at the Los Angeles Auto Show and will be used for delivery of the company’s online orders. Walmart First Canoo Fleet Buyer Walmart bought the vehicles, announced in 2021 with a starting price of $34,750, as part of its goal to eliminate emissions from its operations by 2040. The Canoo is on track to start production in late 2022 and will be delivered to the first customers, including Walmart, in 2023.

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Stuck in a rut? How about driving a Walmart truck for $110,000

No one has ever said making a living as a truck driver was easy. But starting pay of $110,000 a year might be the enough incentive to attract more workers to a long-hauler career. Walmart hopes so. The country’s largest retailer is trying to alleviate the country’s truck driver shortage by increasing the starting salary to $110,000 for those interesting in long-distance hauling the company’s vehicles. Driver with previous work experience working for with Walmart can earn more based on their tenure and location. Walmart, which currently has about 12,000 workers who drive its company-owned trucks, said the average company driver’s pay was $87,500. It hired 4,500 new drivers in 2021, the most in Walmart’s history. The median pay for

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Jay Leno honors Sam Walton, Walmart with new old F-150

Sam Walton needed one vehicle; Jay Leno has hundreds. But the comedian and founder of Walmart both knew about business, marketing and a good truck when they saw one. Which is why Walmart and Leno, the renowned collector, have collaborated to reimagine the late Walton’s 1979 Ford F-150. Using a 2021 Ford F-150, the project will celebrate the debut of Leno’s line of car care and detailing products at Walmart beginning in early 2021. Jay Leno Has Honored Sam Walton Walton cherished his battered truck. Among the entrepreneur’s legacy is a tale about why Walton continued to drive the truck despite being able to afford any vehicle he wanted. “What am I supposed to haul my dogs around in a

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#147, Electrify America debuts new coast-to-coast route

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:54 — 50.7MB)Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | MoreDriving across the United States in an electric vehicle takes planning and patience. For car owners driving an EV or considering a green car alternative, the challenge has been simplified. Electrify America recently announced the completion of the first of two cross-country routes. It allows EV drivers to travel from coast to coast using the largest open DC fast-charging network in the United States. Rich Steinberg, Senior Director of Green Cities, Marketing and Communications for Electrify America, is our guest on this episode of The Weekly Driver Podcast. Electrify America: Coast-to-Coast Co-hosts Bruce Aldrich and James Raia discuss with Steinberg the new route and

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Tracy Morgan improves, sense of humor back

Tracy Morgan, the actor and comedian who suffered multiple injuries June 7 in a New Jersey highway crash that killed one of his friends, has been upgraded to fair condition. “His personality is certainly starting to come back as well,” Lewis Kay, Morgan’s spokesperson, said. Morgan, 45, the former “Saturday Night Live” and “30 Rock” star suffered broken ribs and a broken leg on the New Jersey Turnpike. The crash killed comedian James McNair and seriously injured two others. Prosecutors say Walmart driver Kevin Roper’s truck hit Morgan’s limo. Roper has pleaded not guilty to death by auto and assault by auto charges. A criminal complaint alleges Roper hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours before the accident when he

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Tracy Morgan wreck spotlights long-haul trucking woes

The crash last Saturday involving comedian Tracy Morgan, his entourage and a Walmart truck driver accused of overt fatigue, has again brought to the forefront the inherent potential dangers of long-haul trucking. Bill Briggs, writing for the website of NBC news, has filed a lengthy and compression article titled: “Tracy Morgan Crash: Why Are Some Long-Haul Truckers So Tired?” In the article, Briggs writes in part: “One year ago, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) installed several rules to try to keep weary truckers off highways, including mandating a 30-minute break during the first eight hours of their shift and reducing maximum workweeks to 70 hours over eight days — including a 34-hour break once per week.” “But federal transportation

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