Moving traffic: The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development says it will permanently operate a second morning ferry at the Plaquemine landing. The Associated Press reports the landing was added temporarily last month following the August flood to ease traffic congestion. During that time, an additional 230 vehicles were carried each day. The Plaquemine Ferry carried more than 450,000 vehicles last fiscal year, which was a 12% increase from the previous year and due to the addition of a second afternoon ferry. The additional morning ferry allows up to 120 vehicles per hour to cross the Mississippi River. The new ferry’s hours of operation will be extended a half hour each weekday. The ferry will operate from 5:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. on weekdays.
Big payday: Wells Fargo’s embattled CEO John Stumpf can walk away from the bank with even more money than he could at the end of 2015. USA Today reports that Stumpf is still positioned to collect pension accounts and stock valued at $134.1 million if he were to retire. That calculation is based on new data available this week by compensation consulting firm Equilar. Stumpf was called upon several times to resign by members for the House Financial Services Committee during a nearly four-hour grilling Thursday. The bank is under scrutiny after thousands of unauthorized bank and credit cards accounts were opened in its customers names, racking up fees and potentially damaging credit scores. Wells Fargo fired 5,000 lower level employees as a result of the scandal. Read the full story.
Covering new ground: Apple is extending its push into selling business technology by partnering with the Deloitte consulting firm to advise companies on using iPhones, iPads and Apple software in the workplace. The Associated Press reports that Apple’s new partnership comes as the company is confronting a global slowdown in the consumer market for smartphones and tablets. The slowdown has spurred Apple to announce business-focused partnerships with companies that sell to corporate customers. Apple says it sold $25 billion worth of products and services to businesses in the 12 months through September 2015. Read the full story.
