Cass Information Systems helps carriers in all facets of their operations, from HR to IT, finance to compliance. In this newsletter, we cover hot topics in each branch of a carrier’s business, beginning with a subject that’s top of mind for everyone in trucking: enforcement of the English language proficiency executive order.
U.S. Department of Transportation inspections now can include a determination whether commercial motor vehicle operators can reply to questions and directions in English, as well as understand highway traffic signs and electronic message boards.
Drivers who are not proficient in English can be immediately placed out of service.
“Federal law is clear, a driver who cannot sufficiently read or speak English — our native language — and understand road signs is unqualified to drive a commercial motor vehicle in America,” Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a news release announcing enforcement guidelines that took effect June 25.
The Associated Press reported that carriers and trucking groups across the country are working to help their drivers improve their English skills — and save their jobs. In Laredo, Texas, for example, a border city where many residents speak a mix of English and Spanish, the Laredo Motor Carriers Association is offering free English classes on weekends to help truckers feel more confident in their ability to communicate.
An Overdrive survey found that 82% of the truckers it polled supported placing drivers out of service if they could not meet the English language proficiency requirements, but enforcement could become a nightmare for carriers’ HR departments, as about 20% of the trucking workforce in the United States consists of immigrants.
FreightWaves estimated the English proficiency requirement could put 40,000 to 60,000 interstate CDL holders out of service.
C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s AI agent is helping shippers figure out the National Motor Freight Traffic Association’s (NMFTA) revamped LTL freight classification system.
The National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC) system was designed as a way to “establish a commodity’s transportability.” Key factors determining freight class involve measuring density, handling, liability, and stowability. Misclassification of LTL freight can result in reclassification fees, shipment delays, and lost revenue.
The NMFTA said the NMFC changes, in effect as of July 19, “fundamentally impact how freight is classified, rated, and billed.”
The NMFTA summarized the changes as:
It can easily take up to 10 minutes to manually look up or confirm the freight class and code for every emailed LTL tender, Arun Rajan, C.H. Robinson’s chief strategy and innovation officer, said in a news release. “For shipments the AI agent is reasoning through for the first time, it can choose a freight classification in about 10 seconds.”
Digital freight brokerage Flock Freight has launched a pooling and load-matching tool designed to help carriers maximize earnings, minimize empty miles, and unlock greater efficiency.
The Commercial Carrier Journal (CCJ) reported that Shared Truckload (STL) AddOns automatically identifies freight to fill empty trailer space along a carrier’s entire route and that Flock Freight said the tool has enabled carriers to increase earnings by an average of 77% on top of their original booked loads and double trailer utilization.
“No one else in the industry is matching freight in real time to fill partially loaded trucks at scale,” Flock Freight Chief Technology Officer Lu Saenz said, according to the CCJ. “By doing so, we help carriers earn more with less friction, enable shippers to cut costs without compromising service, and materially reduce emissions by eliminating unused space on trucks.”
Fleetworthy has acquired commercelogic to provide carriers with near real-time toll visibility, automated discrepancy detection, and dynamic route optimization.
Commercelogic is a GPS-powered analytics platform that will be combined with the Bestpass by Fleetworthy platform to give fleets predictive toll insights, automated reconciliation, and cost savings.
Fleetworthy, which offers a technology suite for fleet safety, compliance, and efficiency, previously acquired Drivewyze, a weight station bypass system and provider of in-cab driver safety alerts; Empire Commercial Services LP, a commercial vehicle parking violation management and resolution provider in New York City; and Haul, a provider of AI-powered compliance and safety automation technology.
The Conference Board said in June it believes the U.S. economy is about to hit a wall.
“The Conference Board does not anticipate recession, but we do expect a significant slowdown in economic growth in 2025 compared to 2024, with real GDP growing at 1.6% this year and persistent tariff effects potentially leading to further deceleration in 2026,” Justyna Zabinska-La Monica, the board’s senior manager for business cycle indicators, said in a statement.
The Federal Reserve forecasts gross domestic product will increase just 1.4% this year, and Chair Jerome Powell said there has been a “decline in sentiment over recent months and elevated uncertainty about the economic outlook, largely reflecting trade policy concerns.”
Powell, who has been sharply criticized by President Donald Trump, has said the highest U.S. tariffs since the 1930s could cause more than just a short-term rise in price pressures.
“We have not seen a marked improvement in the industrial economy,” Brie Carere, EVP and chief customer officer, said on an earnings call during which FedEx Freight reported its quarterly operating income dropped 6% year over year.
FedEx Freight blamed lower fuel surcharges, reduced weight per shipment, and higher costs for wages and benefits for the quarterly operating income dip to $477 million. LTL shipments were flat year over year in March, down 2% in April, and down 1% in May.
A spinoff of FedEx Freight is planned for June 2026.
“Shifting U.S. trade policies, fluctuating tariffs, and the resulting supply chain upheaval have created an uncertain business landscape for the North American trucking industry,” Transport Topics reported.
It said to remain agile, carriers are diversifying their networks, investing in visibility tools, and building more fluid interchange models, including drop-and-hook and relay.
“Some are co-locating near new cross-border or inland hubs, while others are expanding brokerage or intermodal offerings to flex capacity more easily,” Dilip Bhattacharjee, a partner at McKinsey & Co., said.
Transport Topics said some of the industry analysts it spoke with expect a broader and potentially lasting shift in freight flows as companies move their production and distribution operations.
“Over the long term, depending on the ultimate shape of the tariff environment, production locations could shift countries,” Bhattacharjee said. “Under those circumstances, there is a possibility for trade diversions to take place, which, in turn, affect the ports of entry for U.S.-bound goods.”
Tariff stops and starts have resulted in fluctuating freight demand.
“Drivers depend on steady cargo to have a steady check,” IMC CEO Joel Henry said. “We’ve been trying to ensure that we balance the cargo out as much as possible with our drivers to keep them busy or busy enough to survive.”
Peak season has come early this year as shippers have imported inventory ahead of tariffs. Volumes thus could be flat for the remainder of the year.
“There’s still too many trucks for loads, so that means that there’s downward pressure on rates, margins get compressed, and you see everybody start to become really stressed for the rest of this year,” DAT Freight & Analytics’ Dean Croke said.
“I think we’re going to see a very flat freight market, and I fear that some carriers and brokers may not survive this market because it’s just not enough demand,” he added.
The Texas Supreme Court has overturned a more than $100 million truck crash verdict against Werner Enterprises.
The court said the 2014 fatal crash of a pickup truck into a Werner tractor-trailer was a tragic accident on an icy interstate. The Werner driver was “not liable if his involvement was a mere ‘happenstance of place and time.’”
Nathan Meisgeier, Werner president and chief legal officer, said in a statement, “After seven years navigating the appellate process, we are thankful the Texas Supreme Court reached the same conclusion as law enforcement — that the Werner drivers and our company did nothing wrong.”
Secretary Duffy announced that the DOT will not issue a federal mandate on speed limiters on semi-trucks.
A DOT news release said that “one-size-fits-all mandates” actually can create dangerous situations. It said, for example, it can be more hazardous if a tractor-trailer is forced to drive slower than the flow of traffic.
The DOT said it “respects the professionalism of drivers and acknowledges the proposed rulemaking lacked a sufficiently clear and compelling safety justification.”
Stellantis is building a $388 million automotive parts “Megahub” in metro Detroit that is expected to be operational by 2027.
The automaker said the facility is key to its “long-term plan to modernize and centralize” its service parts distribution network.
The Megahub will be equipped with Stellantis’ AutoStore technology, which automates parts storage and retrieval by relegating those tasks to robots. Humans then process the parts for shipment.
“With the Metro Detroit Megahub, we’re building a faster, smarter and more reliable parts distribution network that puts [customer] needs first,” Darren Bradshaw, senior vice president and head of Mopar North America, said in a statement. “This investment reflects our commitment to innovation, sustainability and operational excellence, while also creating a modern, high-tech workplace for our employees.”
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