Trucking news and briefs for Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026:
- What are your biggest concerns in trucking today?
- 23 violations, including 5 OOS, in one stop?
- Reminder: Big fines for distracted driving.
ATRI launches Top Industry Issues Survey
Trucking companies and drivers can now weigh in on the top issues they face in trucking today.
The American Transportation Research Institute launched its 2026 Top Industry Issues Survey, which asks trucking industry stakeholders to rank the top issues of concern for the industry along with potential strategies for addressing each issue.
Now in its 22nd year, ATRI’s annual survey serves not only to rank the issues overall, but hopes to provide insights about how critical topics are weighted differently by motor carriers and truck drivers, and changing over time.
“For more than two decades, the Top Industry Issues list has been essential reading for any professional seeking to gain deeper insight into the current state of trucking,” said American Trucking Associations Chair and Groendyke Transport CEO Greg Hodgen. “Compiled annually by ATRI, this report provides a crucial snapshot that identifies trucking’s biggest challenges, sets our priorities, and focuses the ATA Federation’s advocacy to develop commonsense solutions. Just as important, it serves as a valuable guide for influential policymakers who want to understand how they can best support the men and women who keep America moving,”
An early-2026 Overdrive survey of owner-operators found the cost of insurance, rising equipment costs, excessive regulations and the weak freight environment of the prior year readers' four biggest challenges.
One owner noted the “combination of [an] astronomical increase in insurance rates (231% in 2 years) [and] weak freight” were on the verge of driving him out business entirely.
Freight market improvements this year may have alleviated some of that concern as time's gone on, yet the cost side of the profit equation continues pressing. Not just fuel, either, in the words of another Overdrive reader: “Cost of parts, tires, maintenance in general, cost of insurance..." all high with too-weak rates to afford the hikes.
Low rates from shippers, said another, "trickle down to carriers and drivers as insulting spot rates, too low to maintain operations, let alone thrive and make profits.”
As the year's progressed, how might you rank those and your other biggest challenges today?
Weigh in via ATRI’s survey at this link through Oct. 2. The results will be released Oct. 18, ATRI said.
[Related: Trucking's 2025 operating costs hit all-time high: Will rates keep up?]
Log truck sidelined in Texas with 23 violations, including 5 OOS
A logging truck that the Texas Department of Public Safety said “looked like any other truck on a Texas highway” from a distance ended up with nearly two dozen violations upon inspection.
During a roadside inspection, the truck was found with:
- 7 missing lug nuts
- An inoperable brake
- Unsafe tire tread
- Leaking air lines
- Inoperative brake lights
Among the 23 total violations found on the truck, five were out-of-service conditions.
“That’s why commercial vehicle inspections matter,” Texas DPS added. “What looks normal from a distance isn’t always safe up close.”
Texas's truck enforcement efforts rank high in Overdrive and RigDig's analysis of state-to-state intensity: No. 1 most intensely focused in the Vehicle Maintenance category broadly, No. 4 for brakes, and No. 3 for lights.
With the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance's Brake Safety Week ongoing through Saturday, Aug. 29, access a state-by-state brakes-enforcement intensity map via this link, ICYMI.
[Related: Brakes inspections incoming: Where troopers will focus annual blitz]
Colorado warns of big penalties for distracted truck drivers
The Colorado State Patrol recently issued a reminder of the penalties commercial motor vehicle drivers and their employers can face if the drivers are caught driving while distracted.
CSP said its troopers investigated 316 CMV crashes involving distracted driving in 2025. While the majority were property damage only (257), 19% (60 crashes) caused injury or death. Last year’s overall number of CMV crashes involving distracted driving in Colorado was a slight decrease (6.5%) from 2024.
“Trucking is an important and demanding job that requires focus,” said Col. Matthew C. Packard, chief of the Colorado State Patrol. “With the long hours professional drivers are on the road, they need to be proactive when it comes to removing distractions and ensuring that driving never comes second to any other task in the cab.”
Distractions can come from inside or outside the truck cab. In an effort to curb distractions from electronic devices, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) banned commercial vehicle drivers from texting while driving in 2010. Then, in 2011, FMCSA banned all hand-held devices.
[Related: Here's the toughest states for moving violations]
Other distractions -- eating behind the wheel, using navigation or dispatching devices while driving, driver fatigue generally -- can also be areas of concern for professional drivers, CSP said.
FMCSA rules apply regardless of the state in which the violation occurs, the state agency emphasized, and penalties can be steep wherever you go:
- Drivers can be fined up to $2,750
- Repeat offenses will result in the driver being disqualified or put out of service for up to 120 days
- The driver’s employer can be fined up to $11,000 if they knowingly allow or require drivers to use hand-held devices while driving
- Violations will negatively affect the employer’s SMS (Safety Measurement System) ratings
- Violations are considered “serious traffic violations,” and penalties are taken from existing FMCSA guidelines
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), some of the most common indicators of distracted driving include:
- Inability to maintain lane position
- Driving between lanes or sudden swerving for no apparent reason
- Not keeping a relatively constant speed
- Sudden braking in reaction to normal traffic stops
- Running a red light or stop sign
- Seeing a driver’s eyes are not on the road
