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Perspective: America's trucking resurgence is underway
Now we must finish the job, write Trucking Association Executives Council leaders Maxwell, Colson
Key Takeaways:
- Maxwell and Colson say government and industry efforts have closed trucking safety loopholes by removing fraudulent training providers, high-risk carriers and unqualified drivers.
- Nearly 10,000 CDL schools have been removed from the federal registry, while more than $217 million was invested in CDL integrity and highway safety.
- Maxwell and Colson urge stronger data sharing, training oversight, fraud enforcement and ELD standards to sustain safety gains and protect compliant operators.
Over the past year, industry leaders, law enforcement officials and government regulators have begun closing loopholes that allow fraudsters, unqualified drivers and noncompliant carriers to take advantage of our industry. The results are real: Fraudulent training providers have been removed from the federal registry, high-risk carriers and drivers have been taken off the road, and states are strengthening the integrity of the commercial driver license.
That is meaningful progress, but it is not a victory lap. It is proof that practical solutions and determined leadership can make our highways safer — and a reminder that we still have work to do.
The entire ATA federation and a broad coalition of stakeholders are engaged to advance comprehensive, lasting solutions that strengthen safety at the federal and state levels and restore integrity to our industry. Last fall, the Trucking Association Executives Council released “The Fight for Fairness and Safety: Paving the Way for a Trucking Resurgence.” Our goal was straightforward: Identify the gaps that allow bad actors to enter and operate illegally in trucking and provide the road map and action plan to close them.
Those bad actors represent only a small fraction of our industry, but their impact is enormous. They exploit weaknesses in licensing, safety data and enforcement. They commit fraud, manipulate records and evade accountability. In doing so, they put the public at risk and undercut the vast majority of motor carriers and professional drivers who follow the rules.
The plan was not about pointing fingers. It was about fixing systems, making roads safer and protecting the integrity of the trucking industry.
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Maxwell
The plan calls for stronger CDL safeguards, better oversight of training providers, improved safety data, tougher action against freight fraud, greater electronic logging device integrity and more consistent enforcement of long-standing rules. Just as important, it calls for closer coordination among federal regulators, state agencies, law enforcement and the trucking industry.
That partnership is producing results.
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Colson
Nearly 10,000 CDL schools have been removed from the federal Training Provider Registry, including 550 identified as fraudulent. Hundreds of high-risk carriers have been investigated. Thousands of unqualified drivers have been placed out of service. More than $217 million has been invested in CDL integrity and highway safety, while related reforms are advancing in more than 20 states.
These actions send an unmistakable message: The days of exploiting gaps in our trucking safety system without consequence are coming to an end.
Credit belongs to the federal and state officials who have treated these concerns with the urgency they deserve. The leadership of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration leader Derek Barrs, along with sustained work by law enforcement and state agencies, has helped turn industry recommendations into action. That partnership is essential because trucking crosses state lines every day — and the weaknesses that bad actors exploit rarely stop at one state’s border.
This progress should strengthen our resolve, not lessen it.
Arpan Podduturi of Samsara examines how AI, telematics and onboard cameras are converging to protect drivers and reduce risk. Tune in above or by going to RoadSigns.ttnews.com.
Data sharing between state and federal databases still needs to improve. CDL training and testing require stronger and more consistent oversight. Regulators need modern tools to identify unsafe carriers that close down and reopen under new names. Fraudulent brokers and identity thieves must face meaningful consequences. ELD providers should be held to standards that prevent tampering and protect hours-of-service integrity.
We must also remember whom these reforms are designed to protect: the professional drivers, small-business owners and responsible motor carriers who keep America moving. They invest in safe equipment, train their employees, comply with the law and serve their communities. They should not have to compete against operators that cut corners.
Early results show what is possible when industry and government work together with a common purpose. We have a road map. We have momentum. And we have growing recognition that safety, fairness and integrity must remain nonnegotiable.
A trucking resurgence is underway. Now we must finish the job.
Chris Maxwell is chairman of TAEC and CEO of the Rhode Island Trucking Association. Colson is vice chairman of TAEC and CEO of the Alabama Trucking Association. The Trucking Resurgence action plan and progress report can be found at truckingresurgence.com.
