FreightWaves NOW Morning Minute | DOT strips CA of $160M, New Rail Rule & Cost Warning
In this episode of the FreightWaves Morning Minute, the U.S. Department of Transportation has officially withheld $160 million in safety funding from California following a dispute over commercial driver’s licenses. The state missed a critical deadline to revoke thousands of licenses issued to foreign drivers, a situation federal officials describe as a systemic collapse of safety protocols.
Shifting to the rails, the Surface Transportation Board has introduced a proposal designed to give captive shippers access to competing lines through reciprocal switching. By removing the requirement to prove anti-competitive conduct, this regulatory change aims to foster competition and offer more options to businesses served by a single railroad.
Additionally, a new quarterly report from U.S. Bank and DAT warns that a shrinking carrier pool could cause shipping costs to spike rapidly if demand rebounds. The episode wraps up with a preview of today’s FreightWaves TV lineup, featuring discussions on trucker wages, the Logistics Manager Index, and the outlook for manufacturing in 2025.
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