Trucking news and briefs for Wednesday, July 9, 2025:
Colorado governor vetoes bill to ban driverless trucks
A bill passed by the Colorado legislature that would have banned the use of driverless commercial vehicles in the state was vetoed last month by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.
The bill, HB 25-1122, would have prohibited the use of autonomous driving systems on Colorado roadways unless a CDL holder:
- Was physically present in the truck
- Was seated in the driver’s seat while hazmat was being transported
- Monitored the performance of the truck while driving
- Intervened, if necessary, to avoid illegal or unsafe driving of the vehicle
The penalties for violating the provisions of the bill would have been $1,000 for a first offense, $2,000 for a second offense, and would have doubled for each subsequent offense.
In vetoing the bill, Polis said the legislation “would effectively create a first-in-the-nation prohibition on autonomous commercial vehicle testing and operations.”
Polis added that “[d]river error is the leading cause of accidents. Preserving tools which could make Coloradans safer is critical, especially as we've observed higher crash rates nationwide.” He noted that requiring a driver to be present in the autonomous truck “may undermine innovation of future technologies that could increase road safety.”
Truck driver busted for watching YouTube, operating while OOS
The Arizona Department of Public Safety Highway Patrol didn’t let its guard down when it came to commercial vehicle enforcement on Independence Day.
Arizona DPS said in a Facebook post that on July 4, a trooper with its Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Team pulled over a commercial truck on I-10 for speeding at approximately 75 mph -- while watching a YouTube video behind the wheel.
AZDPS said the driver was also in violation of a federal out-of-service order. The driver was cited, and both he and the truck were removed from service.
That same day, an Arizona trooper stopped another commercial vehicle driver for operating while using a cellphone.
Pennsylvania upping aggressive driving enforcement
More than 80 municipal police departments will be joining the Pennsylvania State Police in a coordinated aggressive driving enforcement campaign over the next month.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced that police departments from Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties will join the Pennsylvania State Police in the effort, which is part of a statewide mobilization running through Aug. 17. The goal of the campaign is to reduce the number of crashes, injuries and fatalities on Pennsylvania roadways.
The enforcement wave will target heavy truck violations, pedestrian safety, red light running, speeding, and tailgating. Motorists demonstrating unsafe behaviors, such as driving too fast for conditions or other aggressive actions, will also be cited.
Law enforcement will utilize strategies such as traffic enforcement zones, saturation patrols, speed enforcement details, corridor enforcement, work zone enforcement, and multi-jurisdictional patrols to identify and cite aggressive drivers.
According to 2024 PennDOT crash data, there were 1,608 aggressive driving crashes, resulting in 43 fatalities and 99 suspected serious injuries in Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties. Aggressive driving crashes involve at least two aggressive driving factors in the same crash. Factors include, but are not limited to, running stop signs or red lights, tailgating, careless turning or passing, and driving too fast for conditions.
[Related: Reckless driving to be focus of annual Safe Driver Week enforcement blitz]
