During WIT's Accelerate! Conference & Expo last week, the nation's top trucking safety regulator outlined an aggressive agenda to improve roadway safety, combat fraud, and support professional drivers.
Derek Barrs, Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), explained his priorities with the WIT audience: Improving trucking safety requires tougher enforcement, better driver training, stronger accountability, and industrywide collaboration.
Drawing on nearly 35 years of law enforcement and roadway safety experience, Barrs outlined his agency's priorities for reducing crashes, fatalities, and injuries while supporting responsible motor carriers and professional drivers.
"We cannot address safety by looking at one regulation, one company, or a singular focus on the driver," Barrs emphasized. "It has to be a holistic approach," encompassing driver training, licensing, registration, operations, and enforcement.
Barrs recognized the progress the industry is making in engaging more women truck drivers, citing WIT’s 2026 Index at an average of 9.5% of overall CDL-holding truck drivers as women. He also noted that women now represent 31% of all C-suite executives, 37.5% of all company leaders, and 44% of all safety professionals. But he also suggested there are opportunities to engage more talented women into the trucking industry.
He stressed the need to introduce younger generations to trucking careers and expand workforce development opportunities. “As we make more progress on such challenges as strengthening driver training and expanding safe truck parking, the industry will attract more talent in these roles.”
One of Barrs' highest priorities is ensuring that commercial drivers receive legitimate, effective training before operating heavy trucks, and this involves an aggressive crackdown on commercial driver training schools that fail to meet federal safety standards, he said. Barrs emphasized that obtaining a commercial driver's license (CDL) should represent legitimate training and demonstrated competency.
He challenged the industry to hold training providers accountable, stating, "It's time for everybody to start acting like that and holding people accountable." He reported that FMCSA has removed more than 10,000 training providers from its registry over the past year and indicated that additional enforcement and regulatory changes are coming.
FMCSA also is tightening oversight to prevent fraudulent training schools from reopening under different names. The agency is seeking emergency approval to require more extensive documentation before training providers can register, including instructor qualifications, training curricula, equipment, and facilities. FMCSA also has conducted hundreds of investigations and targeted schools associated with drivers who failed to meet English-language proficiency requirements. Importantly, the broader registry cleanup includes inactive and administratively noncompliant providers—not necessarily 10,000 fraudulent schools.
"If we're not serious about this and the driver training schools are not serious about this, they don't need to be in the business in the first place," he said.
Looking ahead, Barrs has suggested recently that he wants to strengthen entry-level driver training requirements by combining minimum behind-the-wheel training hours with demonstrated proficiency. He explained that simply completing a specified number of hours should not qualify someone to drive a commercial vehicle unless they can demonstrate the necessary skills. These changes remain under development, but Barrs has made clear that FMCSA intends to raise training standards and continue removing providers that fail to comply.
Barrs expressed FMCSA is combating fraud and strengthening enforcement as central priorities.
“Fraud in this industry is rampant,” he emphasized, and suggested that FMCSA is working more closely with federal law enforcement agencies and state prosecutors to investigate criminal activity. “We do not have criminal authority,” he explained. “But we see things that are happening, and we have strong partnerships to go after these bad actors.” The agency is particularly focused on identifying fraudulent CDL operations, improperly issued licenses, and so-called chameleon carriers—motor carriers that establish new identities or obtain multiple USDOT numbers to evade safety regulations and enforcement actions.
Barrs discussed improvements being made to FMCSA's registration system that have uncovered 36 cases of suspected fraud under investigation by the DOT's Office of Inspector General. He also highlighted the agency's crackdown on electronic logging device (ELD) manipulation, reporting that more than 100 ELDs have been removed from the Federal registry and that stricter provider verification requirements are being developed. He emphasized that FMCSA intends to strengthen enforcement throughout the entire commercial vehicle lifecycle—from registration and licensing to roadside inspections.
“We have to be strong enforcers,” he told attendees, stressing that consistent oversight is essential to protecting roadway safety and ensuring responsible motor carriers compete on a level playing field.
Barrs mentioned he has consistently identified the shortage of safe truck parking as one of the industry's most pressing safety challenges, emphasizing that professional drivers should not have to choose between complying with hours-of-service (HOS) regulations and finding a safe place to rest.
“Truck parking is one of the most persistent challenges faced by American truckers today,” he explained, emphasizing that expanding parking capacity will help drivers get adequate rest and reduce dangerous roadside parking. He mentioned that the U.S. Department of Transportation recently announced $200 million in federal funding for 14 truck parking projects across 12 states, representing a significant investment in addressing the nationwide shortage.
Barrs reinforced that safe truck parking is essential to both roadway safety and driver well-being. He reported that this latest federal investment is expected to create approximately 2,400 additional truck parking spaces, while also improving lighting, facilities, and other amenities. He also emphasized that simply adding parking spaces is not enough; drivers need secure, accessible locations with appropriate facilities.
“Parking availability can be connected to driver retention, personal security, and quality of life, particularly for women professional drivers,” he said. His comments received enthusiastic applause from conference attendees, reflecting the importance of this issue to the trucking community.
Barrs acknowledged the challenges professional drivers face, including inadequate parking, limited access to clean facilities, extended time away from family, harassment, and discrimination.
"These are not just general issues that we're talking about," he explained. "They affect your personal security, your quality of life, and the decisions that you make whether you continue to stay in this profession or not."
He emphasized FMCSA's commitment to collaborating with public- and private-sector partners to address harassment, assault, and human trafficking.
Barrs encouraged professional drivers, motor carriers, and industry stakeholders to participate actively in upcoming federal rulemakings. Potential regulatory changes discussed included stronger entry-level driver training standards, enhanced ELD oversight, commercial driver licensing requirements, and improvements to the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scoring methodology.
He also discussed agency research exploring greater flexibility in sleeper berth provisions under HOS regulations.
"Your voice matters," Barrs told attendees, urging them to provide individual comments on proposed regulations. "There are things that we may have missed, and we need your input individually."
Throughout his keynote, Barrs reinforced the importance of collaboration between regulators, motor carriers, and professional drivers. Ultimately, Barrs emphasized that improving trucking safety requires everyone to work toward a common goal.
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