TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2025.04.05

TDMST Weekly Round-Up 2025.04.05 is the trucking commentary on news affecting professional truck drivers for the week ending April 5, 2025, written by Vicki Simons.

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

TDMST Weekly Round-Up

1. Regarding bathroom, CBD, emergency, events, and weather:

Bathroom

Personally, I would have preferred it if the bill had been called the “Trucker Restroom Access Act.”

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Even so, here’s a brief history of this bill in Congress, with results from searching for “Trucker Bathroom Access Act“:

So, this is the third time this bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Furthermore, I am encouraged that it seems as though the number of co-sponsors of the bill has been increasing over time, the most recent bill (as of this writing) having been introduced on 03/31/2025 (not even a week ago), with 5 cosponsors.

Although I am a strong advocate for truckers who have sleeper berths on their tractors being allowed to have a portable toilet in their trucks — for the reasons I list here — I know that there are lots of tractors that don’t have sleeper berths, day cabs being among them.

I consider it to be inhumane to deny truckers access to products, services, and facilities where truckers can take care of the bodily need for waste removal in a sanitary method.

Over the years, I have read dozens of articles, posts, memes, etc., related to this topic, some of which can briefly be summarized as “without access to a bathroom,…”:

  • use a jug that may be stored in the truck (but that doesn’t take care of the solid waste issue);
  • cut a hole in the tractor floorboard (which allows waste to hit the tractor and ground, being very unsanitary);
  • “go” on the tractor’s catwalk (same effect as cutting a hole in the floorboard); and
  • try to find another outdoor place away from the rig, risking an indecent exposure legal problem.

It is obvious that none of these “workarounds” is as sanitary as using an indoor bathroom or restroom.

So, if you feel strongly about this, please contact your Congressional representative to express your opinion.

CBD

According to the third article in this section:

Horn’s case has now made history in the highest court in the land, but for drivers, the real lesson is clear: Don’t risk it with CBD products.

Actually, in my opinion, the real lesson is that manufacturers need to be truthful in their labeling and advertising!

Emergency

It seems that various parts of the country are having revolving weather-related emergencies over time.

I personally think that weather is being manipulated on purpose to make it more severe.

Truckers, please be as prepared as you can be by reading and heeding various posts on this website.

Events

Weather

Truckers are the “captain of the ship” when it comes to operating their trucks and (per the whistle blowing post on this site) cannot be compelled to drive their trucks when there is “A substantial and specific danger to public safety.”

2. Regarding politics and regulations:

Politics

Regulations

Would you like to help identify “unnecessary regulations” in the trucking industry?

Now’s your chance!

See some of the articles listed in this section.

3. Regarding border, business, maintenance, recalls, repairs, shut down, tires, and trends:

Border

Business

Maintenance

Recalls

If your tractor or trailer is under a recall, please have the work attended to as soon as possible.

Repairs

Shut down

I don’t understand how a trucking company can just “abruptly cease operations.”

Surely, folks within the finance department saw trouble brewing ahead of time.

Just saying…

Tires

Trends

4. Regarding autonomous vehicles, electric vehicles, emissions, fuel, and green:

Autonomous vehicles

I definitely oppose the operation of self-driving, autonomous, or driverless 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.

Electric vehicles

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

Emissions

Fuel

Green

5. Regarding crashes, death, drugs, explosion, fatalities, smuggling, theft, and violence:

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 ones who died.

Is there anything we can learn from this?

Drugs

Never ever haul or take illegal drugs.

Explosion

The article in this section states:

A bobtail semi truck was destroyed and a trucker was burned in an explosion caused by a portable stove inside of the truck cab over the weekend.

The article doesn’t state what kind of power source or fuel the portable stove used, but I’m going to hazard a guess that it was something very flammable.

I wonder if what led up to the explosion was a manufacturing defect or operator error.

I listened to part of the video and it sounded to me like the wind was whipping up, which may have been a reason why the trucker didn’t try to use the portable stove outside his truck.

What are some other lessons we can learn from this?

Please comment through the form below on this.

Fatalities

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

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

Smuggling

Never ever transport people made in the image of God as if they were cattle or cargo — no matter how large of an incentive you’ve been offered.

Theft

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

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

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.

6. Regarding Liberation Day and tariffs:

Liberation Day

Tariffs

7. Regarding detention, employment, parking, and training:

Detention

Employment

Parking

Training

8. Regarding economy, lottery, pay, rates, taxes, and tolls:

Economy

Lottery

Pay

The introductory paragraph from the article in this section reads:

Independent truck drivers on average made a bit more money in 2024 than they did in 2023, but they worked harder for those extra dollars.

Would you like to comment through the form below?

Rates

Taxes

Tolls

9. Regarding health and hitchhiking:

Health

Hitchhiking

10. Regarding inspections, legal, roads, safety, and securement:

Inspections

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

Legal

Roads

While I know that a lot more work will be required, I rejoiced to read:
NCDOT says 90% of roads damaged by Helene have reopened.

Safety

Securement

If you are unsure of how to secure the load in or on your trailer — or the chassis on its trailer — please ask for and get an accurate answer.

11. Regarding technology, testing, towing, trucks, and weight:

Technology

Testing

Towing

Trucks

Weight

12. Regarding awards and thank you:

Congratulations to all truckers who have been nominated for an award!

Awards: Citizen Driver

Awards: Driver of the Year

Thank you

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









Return from TDMST Weekly Round-Up: 2025.04.05 to our TDMST Weekly Round-Up Trucking Commentary or our Truck Drivers Money Saving Tips home page.



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