Trucking news and briefs for Monday, June 30, 2025:
North Carolina outlaws booting of commercial trucks, requires return of cargo following tow
A bill passed in the North Carolina legislature last week would make it a misdemeanor to put a boot on a commercial truck for the purposes of parking enforcement, as well as require towing companies to return commercial cargo to the owner upon request.
North Carolina Senate Bill 311, which included many more provisions unrelated to trucking, passed the state’s Senate on June 25 with a unanimous 46-0 vote and, the next day, it passed the state’s House with a 100-7 vote.
The move follows legislation either introduced or codified in several states around the country aimed at preventing abuse of truck owners by bad actors among towing companies, including Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, Colorado, Maryland and Virginia, where a new law "last year provides regulation of private property impounds" in "several counties," said attorney Martin Cain of the Moseley Marcinak Law Group. North Carolina's new legislation would prohibit commercial-truck booting, full stop, and "requires release of cargo from a vehicle that’s been towed," he added.
The legislature's move also follows several reports stemming from sticky booting and towing situations in North Carolina reported in Overdrive and elsewhere.
Under terms of the legislation, effective Dec. 1, as noted commercial motor vehicles cannot be “immobilized using a device such as a boot or any other device for the purposes of parking enforcement.” Doing so would be a Class 2 misdemeanor, punishable in North Carolina with a maximum of 60 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.
The legislation also aims to prevent companies from holding cargo hostage in efforts to extract outsize fees. It requires a towing company involved in either a nonconsensual tow or a tow directed by law enforcement to “promptly return any commercial cargo towed by the tower to the owner of the commercial cargo, or to a designee of the owner, upon request.”
If a trailer is towed, the towing company is required to allow the trailer containing commercial cargo “to be exchanged with a trailer of similar type that is in working condition and was manufactured within five years of the manufacturing date of the original trailer, or newer, as arranged by the commercial cargo owner."
[Related: Beating predatory truck tows -- the Partners in Business guide]
I-40 reopens in Tennessee following rockslide
Interstate 40 in Tennessee is back open to one lane in each direction following a nine-day closure due to flooding and a rockslide.
Mark Nagi, Regional Communications Officer for the Tennessee Department of Transportation in the region, urged drivers to continue using caution in the area, as crews are still present working on Hurricane Helene-related repairs to the interstate.
The interstate is back open sooner than originally expected. Tennessee Department of Transportation officials expected a two-week closure immediately following the rockslide.
Three Mack models recalled for two separate issues
Mack Trucks has issued two recalls affecting its Anthem, Granite and MD Electric units, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration documents.
One recall affects just eight model-year 2025 Mack Anthem and Granite trucks. In those vehicles, the power cables may have been improperly routed, which can cause an electrical short. An electrical short can cause an engine stall, increasing the risk of a crash. It could also cause the cables to overheat, increasing the risk of a fire, the recall noted.
Mack said in the affected trucks, the 12-volt positive can encounter the 48-volt negative terminal and potentially cause chafing and/or then short.
Dealers will re-route the power cables, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 16. Owners may contact Mack's customer service at 1-800-866-1177 with recall number SC0480. NHTSA’s recall number is 25V-382.
In a separate recall affecting 148 model-year 2024-’26 Mack MD Electric trucks, when the Controller Area Network (CAN) communications are interrupted, the throttle signal from the electro-mobility control unit may retain the last known throttle setting, and the engine will not return to idle as intended. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 124, "Accelerator Control Systems."
If the engine doesn’t return to idle quickly enough, there could be a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will update the control unit software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed Aug. 19. Owners can contact Mack's customer service at 1-800-866-1177 with recall number SC0481. NHTSA’s recall number is 25V-427.
