U.S. government scrutinizes truck driving schools
Published: Thursday, December 11, 2025 | 09:00 AM CDT
A recent federal review found nearly 44% of U.S. truck-driving schools may not meet government training standards, with thousands at risk of losing certification. This scrutiny and investigation into programs issuing commercial driver’s license (CDL) credentials concerns proper classroom and behind-the-wheel training and record-keeping.
Because thousands of educational opportunities for truck drivers remain, it’s not clear that this will have a direct impact on trucking capacity.
At the same time, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is enforcing other stricter rules on drivers, such as those governing certain visas and the renewal of CDLs for drivers who don’t live in the country or the state that issued them.
Taken together, these could increase recruiting costs and slow driver onboarding, particularly for carriers relying on newer or non-traditional drivers, and in turn contribute to a continued tightening of trucking capacity in 2026.
See the C.H. Robinson carrier forecast in the Truckload section of this report.
For insights on U.S. tariffs, go to the Trade Policy & Customs section of this report.