How to Start a Trucking Company Part 2: Compliance Programs, Driver Files, and Audit Readiness
Most new carriers are eager to hit the road once their authority becomes active. The USDOT number is issued, the MC number is live, the insurance is on file, and it feels like the only thing left to do is start hauling and start making money. Not quite. The filings covered in Part 1 get […]
What the Supreme Court’s Broker Liability Decision Means for Small Carriers
When was the last time you looked closely at your company’s safety and compliance record? After last week’s unanimous Supreme Court ruling on freight broker liability, carriers have a new reason to pay attention. The decision makes it clear that brokers can face negligent-hiring claims when they are accused of selecting unsafe carriers, which means […]
FMCSA’s Security Push Is Bigger Than Motus
Today is the last day motor carriers can use FMCSA’s current registration tools to make updates before the agency transitions to Motus. After 8:00 PM ET, current registration functionality will be retired, and carriers that still need to update account access, clean up company information, or make registration changes will have to wait until Motus […]
Autonomous Trucking Is No Longer Hypothetical: Why California’s New Rules Matter
For years, autonomous trucking has occupied a strange space in the industry conversation. Always five years away, always “coming soon,” always the kind of thing that shows up in conference keynotes but rarely in dispatch decisions. That’s changing. California recently approved new autonomous vehicle regulations that open the door for heavy-duty autonomous trucks to test […]
Don’t Wait for Motus to Find Out Your DOT Record Is Wrong
If you have been in trucking long enough, you already know how government system transitions go. The agency announces a new platform. It is supposed to be faster, cleaner, and easier to use. And then the cutover happens, and carriers spend weeks sorting out account access, outdated records, and login problems they did not know […]
What FMCSA Should Fix After the Clearinghouse Loophole and What Carriers Should Watch
By now, most people in the trucking industry have at least heard about the Brandon Blackburn case. What started as a shocking headline quickly became something more serious: a reminder that even a federal compliance system can have weak points if the right controls are not in place. According to the FreightWaves investigation, Blackburn was […]
How to Audit Driver Files After the FMCSA Clearinghouse Loophole
The Brandon Blackburn case has put a lot of carriers in an uncomfortable position. For many, the FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse has been treated as a reliable checkpoint in the hiring and compliance process. Run the query, review the status, and move forward. That has been the standard approach. But after the FreightWaves reporting […]
How to Start a Trucking Company Part 1: DOT Numbers, Authority, and Required Filings
Each year, roughly 100,000 new motor carriers apply for their USDOT numbers. Many are experienced drivers stepping out on their own for the first time. But being a good driver and running a compliant operation are two very different things—and it’s usually not the driving that trips people up. Rather, it’s the filings, the compliance […]
When Compliance Isn’t Enough: What the Brandon Blackburn Case Should Be Teaching Every Carrier
Most carriers operate from the same assumption: if you follow FMCSA requirements, run the right checks, and keep your files in order, you are doing what the law expects. In most cases, that is a reasonable way to think about compliance. It is procedural, it is measurable, and it gives carriers a framework for making […]
The 37-Step Level I Inspection: What to Expect During Roadcheck
International Roadcheck kicks off May 12. For three straight days, inspectors across North America will be pulling over and inspecting commercial motor vehicles at a pace of nearly 15 trucks per minute. While this year’s spotlight is on cargo securement and ELD compliance, most Roadcheck inspections are full Level I inspections. This 37-step process evaluates […]