Highway Bill 2025: What Truckers Need to Know About Parking, Pay, and Policy Changes

Nick Richardson

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A major update to the U.S. Highway Bill is in the works — and this time, truckers are in the spotlight. In this episode of This Week in Trucking, Amy breaks down what was said at the Senate Transportation Subcommittee hearing, what industry leaders disagreed on, and why this bill could reshape key issues like truck parking, driver training, and over-the-road pay protections.

Whether you’re an owner-operator, dispatcher, or run a small fleet, this is your guide to what’s at stake — and how to make your voice heard before the comment period closes.

https://youtu.be/Yc7GYWcUsKY

Truckers vs Lawmakers: Highway Bill CLASH 2025 (https://youtu.be/Yc7GYWcUsKY)

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What Is the Highway Bill and Why It Matters to Truckers

The Highway Bill is the federal government’s plan for funding and regulating roads, bridges, infrastructure, and transportation policy. But it’s more than that — this legislation affects:

Where truckers can safely park and rest
Driver training standards and safety regulations
Overtime protections and pay enforcement
Weight and size limits for heavier trucks

OOIDA’s Vice President, Lewie Pugh, spoke directly to Congress and laid out what truckers need most in 2025.

“Drivers don’t leave the industry because they can’t pass a drug test or park their truck — they leave because of poor pay and bad working conditions.”

What Trucking Groups Disagree On

At the hearing, leaders from OOIDA, Teamsters, TA, and the American Bus Association voiced their opinions — and not all of them aligned.

Here’s What They Debated:

✅ Lowering the interstate driving age:

TA supports going from 21 → 18
OOIDA opposes it unless drivers stay within 150 miles

✅ Hair testing for drugs:

TA supports it
OOIDA warns about racial bias and false positives

✅ Driver shortage narrative:

TA says we need more drivers
OOIDA & Teamsters say it’s about pay and retention, not headcount

Still, all parties agreed on one key issue: America needs more truck parking.

How Truckers Can Get Involved

Comments on the Highway Bill proposal are open until August 20, 2025.
Go to regulations.gov and search for the docket to submit your comment.

Make your voice heard — this is your chance to influence what laws affect your daily work.

Why This Matters for Small Fleets and Owner-Operators

If this bill includes changes like parking access, rest area upgrades, and enforceable pay rules, it could:

Lower downtime and OOS risks
Improve quality of life for OTR drivers
Level the playing field between small and mega fleets

Final Takeaway

Big changes are coming — and truckers finally have a seat at the table. Stay updated on how infrastructure laws are being shaped and how they affect your bottom line.

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Full Transcript

Highway Bill Transcript

Speaker: [00:00:00] From this week in trucking, this is hot right now and I’m Amy Lawmakers are gearing up to write the new version of the Highway bill, which is a government’s plan for funding and setting policies for our roads, bridges, and transportation infrastructure. It impacts everything from our roads, conditions.

Speaker: Rest stops and can be used to address the most important issues trucking business owners are facing. Oh, why does Vice President William Pugh, alongside other transportation group leaders, appeared in front of the Senate Transportation Subcommittee to give their thoughts? Let’s just say they didn’t exactly agree with each other on everything.

Speaker: I’m curious to see what you think of the things they said in the hearing. So let’s get into it. But before we do, don’t forget to subscribe, so you never miss an update. Okay, so O Ida represents the voices of their professional truck driver members, and they’ve been pushing for a pro trucker approach on this bill.

Speaker: So what does this really mean? Told the Senate what their members really care about for this new highway bill. Things like more truck parking, more and better rescue access. Better driver training rules over time, pay protection [00:01:00] and limits on bigger and heavier trucks. He said these changes would make things safer and would help get more drivers on board while keeping the supply chain strong.

Speaker: Three other leaders also share their thoughts, including Chris Beers from a TA John O’Brien, president of Teamsters. I’m Fred Ferguson, the American Bus Association. Parking was a topic they all agreed on, but other topics not so much. TA for example, wants to lower the interstate driving age from 21 to 18.

Speaker: Ida says younger drivers should stay within 150 mile radius. TA supports adding hair tests to the federal drug records. Oida sees this as risky. You warn for false positives, result variations based on race, age, and hair type. One of the most heated opinions, the driver shortage debates. A TA says there aren’t enough drivers.

Speaker: While Oida and Teamsters argue, it’s more about people leaving because of the bad pay and working conditions. So how can you weigh in on all of this? Comments on the highway? Bill will close on August [00:02:00] 20th, 2025. So go to regulations.gov to leave your comment for lawmakers. We’ll leave the docket number and the comments.

Speaker: If you want more quick updates like this, make sure to sign up for our free newsletter. Break down the hottest freight markets by equipment type plus interviews with carriers sharing their real cost per mile. And profits Also notify you about brokers that recently got into collections so you can avoid the shady players in the industry.

Speaker: Click the link in the description of this video and let me know what you think about this new highway Bill in the comments, don’t forget to subscribe and drive safe.