DOT puts 2,000 drivers, trucks out-of-service in 'Operation SafeDRIVE' blitz

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy Friday announced results from a massive on-highway law enforcement blitz, Operation SafeDRIVE, that concluded with "2,000 unqualified truckers and vehicles being removed from American roads." 

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration worked with state law enforcement partners "to execute the first wave of Operation SafeDRIVE, a high-visibility, multi-state enforcement and education effort focused on reducing dangerous driving behaviors, ensuring drivers are properly qualified, and addressing unsafe drivers and vehicles on the nation’s roadways," a DOT release said. 

During the three-day effort, which took place January 13-15 across 26 states and Washington, D.C., FMCSA inspectors and law enforcement partners "carried out targeted enforcement actions along major freight corridors and other high-risk locations that resulted in nearly 2,000 unqualified truckers and vehicles being removed from American roads."

A rundown of the results:

• 8,215 inspections conducted
• 704 drivers placed out-of-service (including nearly 500 for English proficiency violations)
• 1,231 vehicles placed out-of-service
• 56 arrests (including DUI and illegal presence in the U.S.) 

“Operation SafeDRIVE shows what happens when we work together with our law enforcement partners to pull unqualified drivers and vehicles off American roads,” said Duffy. 

[Related: 10,000 CDL drivers out-of-service with English language proficiency violations: Where's the rates bump?]

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The DOT-led effort, by including immigration enforcement, represents just the latest in a long string of coordinated events between that department and the Department of Homeland Security, which has vowed to "prevent illegal aliens from getting CDLs" and remove unlawfully present current CDL holders. 

“We need a whole-of-government approach to ensure the Trump Administration’s strong standards of safety are in place to protect American families and reduce road accidents," Duffy concluded. 

Similar enforcement events happened in individual states, including Oklahoma and Indiana, in 2025. The bulk of OOS orders handed out were for equipment violations. 

“This operation was about safety,” said FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs. “When drivers ignore the rules, operate without proper qualifications, or get behind the wheel impaired, they put all of our lives at risk. Operation SafeDRIVE demonstrates the value of focused enforcement and strong partnerships in removing these drivers and vehicles from our roads.” 

The operation took place in D.C. and the following states:

• Alabama 

• Arkansas

• Connecticut

• Delaware

• Florida

• Georgia

• Illinois

• Kentucky

• Louisiana

• Maine

• Maryland

• Massachusetts

• Mississippi

• New Hampshire

• New Jersey

• New Mexico

• New York

• North Carolina

• Oklahoma

• Pennsylvania

• Rhode Island

• South Carolina

• Tennessee

• Texas

• Virginia

• West Virginia. 

Notably, many of these states have not partnered with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the 287(g) program, which allows state police to conduct immigration enforcement. 

[Related: No English-proficiency out-of-service orders in border zones: FMCSA]