Stay Up to Date on Trucking Industry Laws & Regulations
Trucking regulations are determined by several government agencies in the United States. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the lead agency responsible for trucking laws, regulating and providing safety oversight of commercial motor vehicles (including over 500,000 commercial trucking companies. The FMCSA’s mission is to reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities involving large trucks and buses.
There’s also the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), which supports state and local governments in the design, construction and maintenance of the country’s highway system. FHWA programs include the Federal-Aid Highway Program and the Federal Lands Highway Program.
Other agencies involved in transportation regulations include the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Federal Maritime Commission (FMC), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and the Maritime Administration (MARAD).
Find more news and information on our Trucking Industry page.
Federal regulators are considering a proposal first ordered by the Obama administration that could change how trucks undergo safety inspections.
Federal regulators will use a simulator experiment to assess driver distraction in automated trucks.
Associations have come together on supply chain issues in California to form the Goods Movement Alliance.
Rural states top the latest list of riskiest states for truck accident fatalities.
Drivers and trucking companies seeking flexibility from work rules can expect full attention from federal regulators.
AB5 was the topic of an IANA panel discussion, with compliance through brokerage seen as a leading option for trucking companies.
Updated cybersecurity best practices for cars and trucks warn against OEMs monopolizing vehicle repair and maintenance services.
Two top officials from Universal Logistics used the occasion of a Wall Street conference to defend its AB5-related Southern California deal with the Teamsters union.
Federal regulators release new data and ask for public comment to help determine whether to end the nationwide trucking hours-of-service waiver.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has ruled — again — that UPS has not shown it can maintain safety levels if it were exempted from new driver-training requirements.
Truck safety regulators have renewed until Oct. 15 a national exemption from hours-of-service rules for drivers supporting pandemic relief efforts.
A Michigan trucking company owner is seeking major relief from driver work-rule restrictions to help his customers avoid costly shutdowns.
Federal regulators have appointed 16 members to an all-female advisory board in an effort to boost the ranks of women in trucking.
Truck safety advocates want federal regulators to reconsider a “fatally flawed” rule designed to prevent deaths and injuries in tractor-trailer crashes.
Growing hemp has been legal since 2018, but transporting it across state lines remains a risky proposition for trucking.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issues a temporary exemption to hours-of-service rules for the states affected by BP’s refinery shutdown.
Trucking regulators will consider allowing hair drug test results to be reported into a federal drug clearinghouse — despite asserting a lack of authority.
New York City police have targeted overnight truck parking in a section of the city close to Kennedy Airport.
Federal regulators are inviting the public to comment on a truck driver’s request to be exempt from hours-of-service rules.
Federal regulators are issuing new guidance for truck driver medical qualifications, and sleep apnea regulations could be a next step.
A FreightWaves survey of carriers suggests most believe California’s AB5 independent contractor law will affect their business.
Washington state is weighing options after agreeing not to appeal FMCSA’s preemption determination on the state’s truck driver meal/rest break laws.
California’s PAGA law, which turns private citizens into mini-prosecutors, may become the key to enforcing AB5 in trucking.
Truck drivers should expect at least a Level 3 inspection when they stop at a weigh station.
A federal appeals court upheld the FMCSA’s hours-of-service rules by rejecting a challenge filed by safety groups alleging the 2020 changes make the roads less safe.
TransForce, long a provider of drivers to carriers, is rolling out its proposal for independent contractor compliance with AB5.
Public comments reveal most truckers believe a proposal to require engines to have speed limiters will make roads less safe.
AB5 fallout and freight labor unrest are adding to inflation fears, Republican lawmakers are told.
California’s trucking sector is looking at numerous ways to keep in compliance with AB5, but is doing so without specifics on what’s right and wrong.
Comments filed with the FMCSA underscore concerns over how the agency should regulate freight brokers and dispatchers.
Federal regulators are creating a board to recommend equipment standards aimed at preventing cars from sliding under trailers during truck crashes.
California’s trucking sector is likely to be upended now that it will need to deal with AB5, the state’s more rigid independent contractor law.
California’s trucking sector must now brace for the imposition of AB5’s rules on independent contractors as the court rejects overturning pro-AB5 appellate decision.
California’s AB5 law will remain blocked from implementation in the state’s trucking sector for now as the Supreme Court remains silent.
AskWaves provides a state-by-state breakdown for the record $463 million in funds set aside in 2022 for reducing truck crashes.
Columbus, Indiana is the very definition of a company town. And it owes its vitality to Cummins Inc.
The feds released a first-time report aimed at developing a clearer picture of autonomous vehicle safety.
The FMCSA is looking to the public to help settle a controversy over what constitutes freight brokers, agents and dispatch services.
The California Trucking Association filed its brief to the Supreme Court, laying out arguments why the court should review AB5 in the state’s trucking sector.
California is moving too fast to implement changes in trucking pollution regulations, an industry group said in suing the state.
The latest extension by FMCSA of its COVID-19 waiver that goes back to March 2020 will now take the hours of service exemption through August.
The solicitor general has advised the U.S. Supreme Court not to hear the appeal of a lower court decision that would require adoption of the AB5 independent contractor law in the state’s trucking industry.
The number of carriers receiving FMCSA conditional safety ratings is increasing as more off-site audits are conducted.
The Small Fleet & Owner-Operator Summit takes place on June 15, 2022.
With CVSA’s annual International Roadcheck fast approaching, now is the time for carriers and drivers to prepare for the inspection process.
FMCSA has added three fuels to its list of energy products that can be transported beyond normal HOS rules, but will the larger rule be extended soon?
Federal regulators told Congress that insurance companies are refusing to share data about the costs of claims from truck and bus accidents.
AskWaves has reviewed the latest comments on a proposal allowing oral fluid instead of urine to test for drugs — the trucking industry mostly likes it.
The nation’s top highway safety watchdog plans to push federal regulators to require a higher level of speed-limiting technology than currently proposed.
Federal regulators plan to require truckers to limit their truck speeds by using electronic engine control devices.
A Wisconsin trucking company reveals how it has shifted into a higher training gear under President Biden’s 90-day trucker apprenticeship challenge.
The new president of the Truckload Carriers Association talks with an expert at FreightWaves about how environmental regulations and switching technologies impact the industry.
The Biden administration is pushing states to take a clean-energy approach to expand truck parking with new infrastructure money.
The executive order bans fuel price gouging and expands truck weight and size limits.
Regulators are moving ahead with an apprenticeship program for under-21 drivers despite attempts by trucking and safety groups to modify it.
Under pressure to move more cargo faster, truck drivers are filing complaints with the FMCSA at a record pace.
Carriers interested in conducting driver training for both property carrying and passenger carrying commercial motor vehicles must now meet requirements set forth under FMCSA’s entry-level driver training rule, including registering their programs with the TPR.
Federal regulators are standing up a new task force to study predatory truck leasing and its effect on driver safety.
The Biden administration praised strides made to boost trucking jobs — but could a freight recession undercut progress?
Werner Enterprises asserts that a five-year waiver affecting its driver trainees will fill cab seats and improve safety.
FMCSA’s safety boss grapples with a huge wave of truck entrants since the pandemic.
Sites in Kansas, New Hampshire, Vermont and Utah now are using the Drivewyze system to reduce manual processes in truck inspections.
Federal overseers have not set a specific time frame to further evaluate states’ ability to provide adequate truck parking.
A diverse coalition of trucking groups is urging the California Air Resources Board to consider alternative solutions to enforcement of an emissions rule that would require upgrades to 2010 model year or newer diesel engines by Dec. 31.
The California Air Resources Board sees the chance for a single federal standard on truck pollution, but that’s been the hope before.
Regulators have eliminated a driver requirement to provide employers with an annual list of traffic violations.
Federal regulators have amended their rules to make it easier to install driver-assist technology in trucks.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg responded to concerns about a lack of truck parking during a Capitol Hill infrastructure hearing.
A District of Columbia lawmaker tells law enforcement that a security fence around the Capitol should be removed quickly following trucker demonstrations.
A federal proposal allowing trucking companies to use oral drug testing will reduce costs but could prove less effective against “lifestyle” drug users.
Federal regulators are moving ahead with proposed improvements to a national database used to file complaints in the trucking industry.
Federal regulators have announced dates for “significant” rulemakings affecting the trucking industry.
As the Biden administration moves on its electric vehicle charging infrastructure plan, trucking makes its case for getting a dedicated network.
AskWaves lists the five most important actions driving schools need to take to comply with FMCSA’s new training regulation set to start on Monday.
The latest government data reveals that an increase in truckers testing positive for drugs in 2021 was driven by cocaine and marijuana.
Trucking regulators have issued updated guidance that could help new drivers get on the road faster.
The two rules are designed to work together, one aimed at OEMs and the other at buyers of their products.
Transportation Secretary Buttigieg is unveiling a three-year strategy to work toward zero fatalities and serious injuries involving cars and heavy trucks.
In an appeals court filing, OOIDA defended its support for changes in federal work rules for truck drivers.
The Biden administration is releasing $246 million in FY22 funding to help complete the Appalachian Development Highway System.
The American Chemistry Council chats with FreightWaves about why government leaders should keep transportation issues at the forefront of policymaking, especially in light of anticipated growth in production of chemicals.
Carriers, truck brokers and leasing companies will see annual fees collected by states reduced by up to $15,000 per year.
The Biden administration announced Robin Hutcheson will replace Meera Joshi as FMCSA deputy administrator.
The Biden administration has rejected assertions made by safety groups that more flexible hours-of-service rules will make roads less safe.
Comments coming into FMCSA look to be mostly opposed to the Apprenticeship Pilot Program.
Jackknifed trucks were a problem during the recent snowstorm that shut down I-95; a senator thinks he has a solution.
Also covered on the podcast is the spillover from the natural gas price surge.
The U.S. Department of Transportation is ramping up studies analyzing truck driver pay and unpaid detention time.
American Trucking Associations was one of the many plaintiffs in the lawsuit that challenged the OSHA rules on 100-plus worker companies.
There had not been formal guidance on truck driver status since the secretary of labor said they would not fall under the rule.
Federal watchdogs tell the Biden administration that more research is needed to ramp up a national user fee system to eventually replace the gas tax as the main way to fund highway construction.
A truckload carrier-backed study finds cocaine and opioid abuse by truckers are underreported at FMCSA.
The Biden administration is attempting to bolster the truck driver workforce by allowing younger drivers into the ranks.
Safety officials warn that federal trucking regulations are not keeping up with industry changes.
Charges against its chairman did not implicate the truckload carrier itself.
Meera Joshi’s surprise departure from FMCSA is the latest in a string that may have the public wondering why the job is so difficult to fill.
The agency that regulates trucking has not had a Senate-confirmed leader in more than two years.
The Biden administration is taking a series of actions aimed at bolstering the truck driver workforce that includes assessing compensation.
Federal regulators have once again denied a request to exempt small truck brokers from bond requirements.
A group of 14 senators is asking President Joe Biden to exempt truckers who cross the U.S.-Canada border from an upcoming mandate to avoid putting more strain on the supply chain.
