ATA’s Chris Spear outlines trucking priorities with Samsara’s Meagen Eisenberg during a June 24 session at the technology developer’s annual conference. (Seth Clevenger/Transport Topics)

SAN DIEGO — Recent policy wins on commercial vehicle emissions have allowed trucking industry leaders to shift their attention to other pressing issues, such as expanding truck parking, mitigating cargo theft and embracing innovation to boost safety and efficiency, American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear said.

During a June 24 session at technology vendor Samsara’s 2025 conference, Spear recapped the rollback of regulations that had been steering the trucking industry toward deploying electric vehicles and outlined several other rising priorities for ATA in a conversation with Meagen Eisenberg, Samsara’s chief marketing officer.

Resolutions passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump in June blocked the California Air Resources Board’s Advanced Clean Trucks Low NOx rules and shifted policymaking back to the federal level.

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The Environmental Protection Agency, meanwhile, is in the process of reviewing its Phase 3 Greenhouse Gas rule.

Instead of a “rush to zero” applied to the entire industry, Spear said electric truck adoption and the infrastructure buildout needed to support those vehicles should start with industry segments that are ready to adopt them, such as drayage operations, garbage trucks, step vans and school buses, then expand from there over time.

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“It’s not a negative technology,” Spear said. “In fact, our drivers really, really like the tech. They love the equipment. It’s just not ready for prime time, certainly not nationally.”

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He cited a lack of charging infrastructure, electrical grid constraints, lengthy vehicle charging times and the significant price premium for a battery-electric truck compared with a new diesel model.

With that front-burner issue “largely solved,” Spear said the industry can now shift its focus toward other technologies, such as safety enhancements, autonomous vehicles and artificial intelligence.

“Innovation in my view is going to be a catalyst for growth,” he said.

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Recent advances in AI, for example, could yield tremendous benefits in areas like servicing and routing vehicles and smarter logistics planning.

“It’s a very exciting space to be in right now, and I think it’s very transformational,” Spear said.

A near-term priority for ATA is highway infrastructure funding.

“I’m quick to point out that is our shop floor,” Spear said. “That’s where our members and our drivers go to work each and every day.”

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed by former President Joe Biden four years ago, increased federal spending for roads and bridges by 38%, but that law is set to expire in September 2026.

Right now, ATA is submitting its priorities for infrastructure projects to the current administration and Congress.

One of those priorities is truck parking.

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“Our drivers right now on the road spend 56 minutes on average looking for a parking spot each day,” Spear said.

That not only results in lost wages and frustration for drivers but also causes people to exit the industry, he said, adding that more safe, secure, well-lit parking could serve as a recruiting tool for more female drivers.

“This is an infrastructure issue that’s actually a workforce issue, with safety and security in the middle,” Spear said.

Mitigating cargo theft is another issue that has been gaining bipartisan traction, he said.

ATA’s members have designated cargo theft as a Tier 2 priority for the federation, but Spear said he suspects the issue will move up to Tier 1 when ATA gathers for its 2025 Management Conference & Exhibition in October.

Spear cited strategic theft schemes carried out by transnational organizations, including cases in which criminals hack into a carrier’s systems to access bills of lading and redirect drivers to different drop sites to intercept the freight.

“That’s how sophisticated and advanced they’ve gotten, and we have to do the same thing to combat it,” Spear said, suggesting that the use of technologies like asset tracking and AI to flag irregularities could help thwart cargo theft attempts.

Technology also is helping trucking companies fight back against another pressing challenge — lawsuit abuse.

Plaintiff attorneys who are specifically targeting the industry “go running” when onboard cameras capture footage showing that a crash wasn’t the truck driver’s fault, Spear said. “Technology is the equalizer.”