Road Scholar | Transport Blog's

The trucking industry is facing another potential shift in federal safety and compliance requirements following the introduction of H.R. 10620, the Trucking Safety and Accountability Act of 2026, also known as “Barron’s Law.” Introduced in the U.S. House on September 28, 2026, the legislation would make significant changes to commercial motor vehicle safety requirements, including stronger penalties for carriers that knowingly use ineligible drivers, standardized English-language testing for CDL applicants, additional requirements for non-citizen commercial drivers, tougher penalties for cabotage violations, and measures intended to prevent so-called “chameleon carriers” from avoiding federal safety sanctions.   The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. For trucking companies, the proposal is about more than immigration or licensing.   It could substantially increase the importance of driver qualification, employment verificati...

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month—a time to increase understanding, challenge misconceptions, celebrate people with Down syndrome, and recognize the families, advocates, educators, healthcare professionals and organizations working to create more inclusive communities. At Road Scholar Transport, awareness is something we believe should travel far beyond a single month.   Through our fleet of awareness tractor-trailers, we use the open road to bring important causes directly into the communities we serve.   Our awareness trailers turn miles of highway into opportunities to educate, encourage conversation and remind people that every individual has a story worth knowing. This October, we are proud to highlight Down syndrome awareness and the importance of inclusion. The Numbers Behind Down Syndrome Down syndrome is a genetic condition caused by the presence of an extra copy of chromosome 21.   It is the most common chromosomal condition diagnosed in the Unite...

Cargo theft has long been a concern for trucking companies, manufacturers, distributors and retailers.   But the threat is changing.   Criminals are increasingly using technology, deception and stolen transportation data to identify valuable shipments and manipulate the logistics process itself. A new 2026 Cargo Theft Report from SmartSense by Digi, based on a survey of 150 U.S. loss-prevention and organized-retail-crime professionals, highlights just how quickly the threat is evolving.   The findings suggest that cargo theft is no longer simply a matter of someone breaking into a parked trailer.   Instead, sophisticated criminal networks are targeting the entire supply chain—from shipment information and carrier identities to pickup appointments, routing and tracking systems.   For shippers, that means cargo security needs to begin before a truck ever arrives at the loading dock. Cargo Theft Is Becoming More Organized The SmartSense survey found that 81% ...

For chemical manufacturers, transportation has never been as simple as putting a shipment on a truck and sending it down the road. Chemical products can require specialized equipment, hazmat-trained drivers, strict documentation, temperature protection, security controls and carefully planned routes.   At the same time, manufacturers are dealing with increasingly complex supply chains, changing regulations, tighter delivery requirements and greater expectations for shipment visibility. That is prompting many chemical companies to reconsider how transportation is managed—and whether their current network of carriers, brokers and logistics providers is capable of handling the complexity. Recent activity in the chemical logistics sector illustrates the trend.   Chemical companies are increasingly looking toward strategic transportation partners that can coordinate multiple modes and provide greater visibility across their supply chains. One recent example is the movement to...

For years, selecting a trucking company was often treated as a procurement decision: find an available truck, confirm the rate, verify the carrier’s authority and insurance, and move the freight. That approach is becoming increasingly difficult to defend. A major 2026 U.S. Supreme Court decision has changed the legal landscape surrounding freight brokers and carrier selection.   In Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC , decided May 14, 2026, the Court unanimously held that state-law negligent-hiring claims against freight brokers are not automatically preempted by federal law when those claims involve the selection of a motor carrier.   The decision means broker selection practices can become part of litigation when questions arise about whether a carrier was appropriately selected. The timing is particularly significant because the trucking industry is also dealing with carrier identity fraud, double brokering, cargo theft, chameleon carriers and increasingly sophisti...