Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025:
- The owner of one of the nation's largest truck dealer networks explains why he believes the truck sales market remains sluggish.
- OOIDA urges FMCSA to reject call for extended under-21 pilot program.
- Know an exceptional female trucker? Nominations for Women in Trucking's Driver of the Year award are open.
Rush Enterprises’ chief: Too many trucks chasing too little freight to blame for sluggish equipment demand
Overcapacity in trucking markets has been in focus for well more than a year as freight rates have failed to rebound from the post-COVID lull ongoing since 2022. But it's not all that's impacted by overcapacity.
At Rush Enterprises’ annual Tech Skills Rodeo in Nashville, Rusty Rush -- president, chairman and CEO of Rush Enterprises -- said until the carrier market normalizes, new equipment demand won't improve.
Rush Enterprises executives Jason Wilder, COO, and Rusty Rush, president, chairman and CEO, speak during a press conference Tuesday at the 2025 Rush Tech Skills Rodeo in Nashville.Lucas Deal
[Related: Late-model used-truck sales, prices on downswing: Latest data]
Rush leadership, like most across the industry, expected a freight turnaround in 2025 when setting business plans last year, Deal noted. Yet Rush and COO Jason Wilder said it was clear “when all the tariff stuff picked up” in March that those plans were scrapped. Even still, the company didn’t expect the overcapacity issue to remain a problem this long.
“I feel sorry for our carrier friends,” Rush added.
Just how far down is new-truck demand? FTR Transportation Intelligence's Avery Vise, trucking VP for the firm, said it's been a "pretty weak year here in terms of ordering," citing some of the same reasons as Rush, including early uncertainty around tariffs, which has firmed up a good deal since. "When you strip all the exceptions and exclusions away, it comes to around a tariff impact of 9%," Vise said, "spread out among all equipment."
More clarity delivered recently by the Environmental Protection Agency around 2027 regulations should help demand, too, he said.
FTR's Vise shared this chart as part of last week's "State of Freight" online seminar series, showing just how weak new-truck ordering activity's been this year, with the September-November season's activity down more than 30% from last year.
This year's lower ordering activity could "have implications in late 2026," Vise said. "Availability of road-worthy equipment could be a constraint" for growth of successful fleets of all sizes. If orders don't improve significantly along with production by truck makers, capacity limitation in the carrier population would deliver improvements "that carriers would welcome. Shippers would not."
For the Rush dealer network, Rusty Rush expects 2025 to finish “maybe a little off” from 2024, Deal reported, and the CEO's trying to stay optimistic for 2026. Rush said he’s hopeful the fleet population level sets by Q2 so the second half of the year begins a cycle turnaround, as Vise suggested.
Rush noted a small pre-buy could occur then ahead of EPA 2027, with potential to expand if broader economic conditions allow.
Read more from Deal’s report on TPS here.
[Related: Third time a charm for Rush Rodeo champ]
OOIDA calls on FMCSA to reject request to renew under-21 trucker pilot program
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association in a Dec. 17 letter urged the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to reject a request to renew the Safe Driver Apprenticeship Pilot Program (SDAP) that allowed 18-20-year-old truck drivers to haul interstate.
The program expired in November, and in a petition published Dec. 8, the American Trucking Associations requested an exemption that would effectively extend the SDAP for five years. ATA requested that FMCSA “allow 18-20-year-old apprentice drivers to continue to be onboarded and trained for the motor carriers that FMCSA has previously approved to participate in SDAP,” adding that the exemption would “allow approved motor carriers to continue onboarding and training new apprentices after the Nov. 7, 2025, expiration of SDAP.”
ATA contended in its petition that “the program is working. While the total number of participants has been low, the safety and operational results for these participants are solid, and the outlook is promising if the program were to be continued.”
In its Dec. 17 letter, OOIDA said “research has consistently shown that younger truck drivers have higher crash rates than drivers who are 21 and older. Generally, younger drivers are more likely to be involved in fatal crashes because they lack driving experience, driving skills, and tend to take greater risks on the road.”
The organization added that allowing younger drivers “to operate in interstate commerce without necessary restrictions and oversight is a needless threat to public safety.”
OOIDA is instead advocating for the passage of the recently introduced ROUTE Act, which would broadly allow under-21 CDL holders to cross state lines, as long as they stay within 150 air miles of their work-reporting location.
[Related: New bill explores path to interstate driving for under-21 truckers]
Women in Trucking opens Driver of the Year nominations
The Women in Trucking Association (WIT) is now accepting nominations for its 2026 Driver of the Year award, sponsored by Walmart.
The annual recognition honors exceptional female professional drivers who exemplify safety, leadership, and a positive impact on the trucking industry and the communities they serve.
“Women are shaping the future of trucking,” said Jennifer Hedrick, WIT president and CEO. “This award celebrates the drivers who go above and beyond in their profession and who uplift others in the industry.”
With women representing roughly 9.5% of all professional truck drivers – according to the latest WIT Index, which tracks the percentage of women in key roles across the industry – spotlighting their contributions remains essential to the inclusion of women in the profession, WIT noted.
Last year’s Driver of the Year, Kathy Blais, said the recognition was deeply meaningful: “Every day I get behind the wheel of my car hauler, rain or shine, and do what I love. Standing on that stage to receive this award was validation – not just for me, but for every woman who has ever been told ‘this is a man’s world.’ Progress has sometimes felt slow, but seeing more women in this profession proves that change is happening.”
The winner will be selected based on her commitment to safety, community involvement, and overall contributions to enhancing the image of the trucking profession. Finalists and the overall winner will be recognized during the 2026 Salute to Women Behind the Wheel event at the Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS) in Louisville, KY on March 27.
The winner will also receive a commemorative award package including a plaque, a custom ring, and additional recognition.
