Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026:
- Where does the DOT stand on truck parking? Upcoming meeting with the National Coalition on parking to provide details.
- Another brake light-related waiver sought by lighting manufacturer.
- Border Patrol arrests driver with fraudulent license, immigration document.
DOT truck parking coalition set to provide update
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Coalition on Truck Parking will host a virtual meeting to provide an update on the state of truck parking.
The Coalition was formed to respond to needs identified in the Jason’s Law truck parking surveys.
Leaders from the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. DOT Office of Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and the Maritime Administration, as well as core parking coalition stakeholders, have been invited to present on the status of truck parking funding, planning, and development.
The meeting, free and open to the public, will be held March 4 at 1 p.m. Eastern time. Registration is available online here.
A recording of the meeting will be made available on FHWA’s website.
Owner-operators, drivers and fleets can still weigh in on the third Jason's Law surveys through Feb. 27.
[Related: Truckers asked to participate in truck parking survey for third Jason's Law report]
Lighting manufacturer seeks waiver to allow auxiliary brake-activated lights on trucks
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has requested public input on a request from truck lighting manufacturer Truck-Lite to allow motor carriers to install auxiliary amber brake-activated pulsating warning lamps on the rear of commercial trucks and trailers in addition to the steady-burning brake lamps required by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).
The company’s exemption, if granted, would allow fleets and truck owners to operate trucks equipped with Truck-Lite or ECCO branded auxiliary amber brake-activated pulsating warning lamps. The lamps operate as a Class II amber strobe that pulsates (up to four seconds) with each application of the service brake and then transitions to a steady burning red signal; the auxiliary lamps remain off when the brake circuit is inactive.
Truck-Lite cited FMCSA research, FMCSA Report No. FMCSA-RRT-13-009, to support the potential safety benefits of using its lamps. The company also cited waivers issued to Groendyke Transport, the National Tank Truck Carriers group, and Grote Industries that allow similar lights to be installed.
Comments on Truck-Lite’s request can be filed here through March 20.
[Related: Grote Industries asks FMCSA for rear lighting waiver]
Mexican truck driver with fraudulent California license arrested, deported by Border Patrol
Border Patrol agents in Yuma, Arizona, recently responded to a call for assistance regarding a possible illegal alien operating a commercial vehicle.
Agents arrested the driver, Jesus Martinez-Alonzo, for being in the United States without legal status.
A Facebook post from the Border Patrol’s Yuma Sector says that Martinez-Alonzo, a Mexican national previously deported in 2019, was in possession of a fraudulent California driver's license and a copy of a fake Legal Alien Permanent Resident Card.
Martinez was charged with felony re-entry after removal and processed for deportation.
