TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2026.01.17

TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2026.01.17 is the trucking commentary on news affecting professional truck drivers for the week ending January 17, 2026, written by Vicki Simons.

I welcome your comments, thoughts and feedback on the items of your choice below.

TDMST Weekly Round-Up

1. Regarding Future, Language, Securement, and Testing:

Future

At — and just after — the beginning of every new year, there are always articles about what the outlook appears to be for the trucking industry that year.

Here are some articles for your consideration…

Language

I am glad that this topic is getting the attention it deserves.

This is part of “General qualifications of drivers [who drive a commercial motor vehicle]” 49 C.F.R. 391.11(b)(2):

Can read and speak the English language sufficiently to converse with the general public, to understand highway traffic signs and signals in the English language, to respond to official inquiries, and to make entries on reports and records;

It appears that for too long, states have been letting this slide and now they cannot run from the consequences.

Here are at least some of this week’s articles on this topic:

Securement

It is every professional truck driver’s responsibility to make sure that his/her load is secure before driving.

The Code of Federal Regulations 49 CFR Part 393 covers “Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation”.

Subpart I details “Protection Against Shifting and Falling Cargo”.

It covers everything from Â§ 393.104 Standards for cargo securement devices and systems to very specific kinds of loads including boulders, containers, metal coils, etc..

If you have not been trained on how to secure your load, demand that your trucking company provide you with that training before you drive a single inch!

Why? Because you as the trucker will be held responsible for it if something goes wrong.

Testing

2. Regarding Border, Brokers, Business, Containers, Events, Load Boards, and Ports:

Border

Brokers

FMCSA is called to suspend TQL authority over broker transparency waivers

Business

Containers

Events

Load Boards

Ports

3. Regarding Alcohol, Crashes, Death, Drugs, and Fatalities:

Alcohol

Never ever consume alcohol — or use an alcohol-containing product (such as mouthwash) — before beginning to drive a commercial motor vehicle!

Crashes

Please look through these articles to see if there is anything you can learn to help you prevent being involved in a similar crash.

Death

I express my deep sympathy — and offer my condolences — to the family of the loved one who died as reported in this article.

NTSB Investigating After Maine Kindergartner Dragged 280 Feet, Killed by School Bus

Drugs

Never ever haul or take illegal drugs.

Fatalities

I express my deep sympathy — and offer my condolences — to the families of those whose loved ones died.

Can you learn anything from the articles below that would help prevent being involved in a fatal large truck crash?

4. Regarding Fires, Fraud, Staged, Theft, Violations, and Violence:

Fires

Police seek suspects after heavy tow trucks set ablaze in Brampton

Fraud

Never attempt to deceive, misrepresent something, intentionally pervert the truth, or pretend to be someone else for the purpose of trying to get something valuable.

Theft

Never take something that doesn’t belong to you unless you have permission from the owner.

With as much surveillance equipment as is in place in the 21st century, it’s only a matter of time before the thieves are apprehended.

Violations

A lot of violations are found during truck inspections while others are spotted on the road.

Make it your aim as a trucker to do everything in compliance with the law and regulations — even if your trucking company is trying to get you to compromise.

For your convenience, please review these posts:

Now for the news articles on this topic:

Violence

It is never right to perpetrate violence upon someone in an unprovoked manner.

All perpetrators of violence must be dealt with in a just legal manner.

5. Regarding Autonomous Vehicles, Batteries, Electric Vehicles, Fuel, Fuel Economy, and Oil:

Autonomous Vehicles

I wholeheartedly oppose the operation of autonomous, driverless, or self-driving commercial motor vehicles on the same roads as the motoring public — but I share articles on this topic with our readers to help us stay current on the topic.

Batteries

Electric Vehicles

Before you buy an all-electric Commercial Motor Vehicle, please do your due diligence by asking some questions and getting answers.

Fuel

Fuel Economy

Some time back, I wrote this post:
Maximize Truck Fuel Economy for Your Commercial Motor Vehicle

This week…

Mesilla Valley Transportation Solutions brings fuel economy testing into the 21st century

Oil

6. Regarding Economy, Employment, and Investment:

Economy

Employment

Investment

Activist investor Ancora carves out niche in transportation sector

7. Regarding Pay, Rates, Surcharges, Tariffs, and Trade:

Pay

The second article in this section says:

“In this difficult and prolonged freight recession, the companies with the greatest edge are the ones that have the best data,” said Bob Costello, ATA chief economist.

This is the first time that I’ve read that there is a “freight recession” going on in the USA.

With tariffs in place and other economic crunches that make consumers think twice about potential purchases, things may get harder before they get better.

Rates

Surcharges

Proliferation of parcel delivery surcharges drives up shipping rates

Tariffs

For a much better and more thorough explanation about the problems with Trump-issued tariffs, please search for the word “tariffs” in Peggy Hall’s Substack archive.

Trade

8. Regarding Ban, Roads, and Weather:

Ban

Please pay attention to all bans for full tractor trailer rigs or specific trailers, especially when weather turns foul.

Certain high-profile vehicles banned from Indiana Toll Road for winter weather

Roads

Weather

Disaster Readiness Starts Before the Storm [Call for Experts]

9. Regarding ELDs, FMCSA, Politics, and Regulations:

ELDs

How many times will the FMCSA reject the use of certain ELDs after they once previously required only self-certification of the products?

Others within the trucking industry were speaking out against the Electronic Logging Devices “mandate” long before December 4, 2017, but you may read my commentary on the mandate.

In TDMST Weekly Round-Up: 2017.12.09, I quoted Indiana’s Attorney General, Curtis Hill, regarding the self-certification provision regarding ELDs.

I also asked, “In what other industry besides trucking has the government ever mandated the purchase of a “self-certification” product?”

So, I’m truly distressed for every trucker who invested in a “self-certified” ELD that used to be on the approved list, only to later have that certification revoked!

If you are such a trucker, I want to hear from you about how expensive this was for you.

FMCSA

Politics

Regulations

Feds slash compliance costs for fuel haulers

10. Regarding Inspections, Legal, LTL, and Parking:

Inspections

If you keep yourself and your rig in perpetual readiness for an inspection, you’ll never be caught off-guard.

Legal

LTL

LTL pricing index hits new high in Q4

Parking

11. Regarding Maintenance, Right to Repair, Reports, and Supply Chain:

Maintenance

Winter Downtime is the Perfect Moment for Cold Chain Optimization

Right to Repair

One source said:

The “right to repair” is the principle that consumers and independent repair shops should have the ability to fix products they own, rather than being forced to use the original manufacturer, by accessing necessary parts, tools, diagnostic software, and repair manuals at fair prices to combat planned obsolescence and reduce e-waste. It aims to empower owners to choose their repairer, promote competition, and keep devices working longer.

Although not the same as “repair,” I encounter the same kind of situation when I want to replace the ink jet cartridges in my printer without having to pay the exorbitant prices of name-brand cartridges.

In my case, the off-brand (less expensive) ink jet cartridges work just as well or even better than the name-brand ones — at a fraction of the cost.

In our day, with the advent of 3D printing, I imagine that clever inventors will find ways to make less expensive and just as durable truck parts that meet needs.

According to the first article in this section:

Truck drivers must have the ability to work on their vehicles.

That was the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association’s message to the House Energy & Commerce Committee ahead of a hearing scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 13.

…Specifically, OOIDA asked committee members to include heavy-duty trucks and commercial motor vehicles in the Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair (REPAIR) Act.

If you are interested in this legislation, please see HR1566.

Reports

The first article in this section says:

For every collision, fleets now see seven near-collisions. And these near-misses, Motive says, are becoming the most important leading indicator of risk, because they allow safety managers to intervene before someone is hurt or equipment is damaged.

Another quote from that article:

Overall, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is reporting an 8.2% decrease in traffic fatalities on the U.S. roads in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024, the largest mid-year decline in more than a decade, even as Americans drove more than 12.1 billion more miles.

Please see the rest of the article for more info.

Supply Chain

12. Regarding Technology, Training, Trucking, and Verizon:

Technology

Training

Trucking

Verizon

The subtitle of the first article in this section says:

Wednesday’s Verizon collapse didn’t just kill your phone; it threatened ELDs, dashcams, fleet tracking, and the communication lifeline between dispatch and drivers

Farther into the article, we read:

Modern trucking has quietly become dependent on cell towers in ways most fleet managers haven’t fully reckoned with. And Wednesday’s outage was a stark reminder of just how fragile that infrastructure can be.

If you have your cell phone service through Verizon, did you experience a connectivity problem this past Wednesday?

If so, did it cost you any money?

Please comment through the form below.

I wish you — and all professional truck drivers — safe travels and lots of money saving opportunities on the road.

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