Shows / The Fleet Lead
The Fleet Lead
The Fleet Lead podcast features journalists from EndeavorB2B's commercial vehicle brands, including FleetOwner, Fleet Maintenance, Bulk Transporter, and Trailer Body-Builders. It aims to help fleet managers, trucking professionals, and transportation industry leaders navigate the rapidly changing industry, covering topics like new technologies, efficiency, and regulatory shifts.
Episodes
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: ELD tampering out-of-service extension, Indiana's 1,790 non-dom CDLs
Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of April 2: Indiana removed nearly 1,800 non-domiciled CDLs International and Ryder are using an…
- The Fleet Lead
Volvo Trucks' Peter Voorhoeve on tariffs, market timing, the all-new VNR, and North American manufacturing
With cross-border tariffs making headlines and the average North American tractor reaching the oldest age in years, fleets are caught between a soft freight…
- The Fleet Lead
Is broker liability about to change? Supreme Court case on Montgomery could decide
The Supreme Court took up the opportunity to standardize how states look at negligent hiring claims against freight brokers. The decision could change how…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: New wheel-end sensor, diesel prices
Heavy-duty repair businesses are doing better, survey finds Hendrickson shows off its new wheel-end sensor In the spot market, refrigerated and flatbed rates…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Rear impact guard milestone, truck tech lawsuits
Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of March 19. Another House bill mandating English proficiency just passed committee Stoughton Trailers…
- The Fleet Lead
Autonomous spotlight: PlusAI's software-first approach to trucking
Autonomous trucking has real-world operations today—and the developers have bold plans for commercialization within the next two years. This week, the Fleet…
- The Fleet Lead
Looming trade dispute ruling could reshape the U.S. trailer industry
A high-stakes trade dispute could reshape the North American trailer market. U.S. manufacturers say low-priced imports from China, Mexico, and Canada are…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: 13,000 CDLs gone, diesel price hikes
Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of March 12: California removed 13,000 non-domiciled CDLs. Pell Grants might pay for some workforce…
- The Fleet Lead
Autonomous spotlight: Torc Robotics driving Freightliners
Autonomous trucking has real-world operations today—and the developers have bold plans for commercialization within the next two years. This week, the Fleet…
- The Fleet Lead
Autonomous spotlight: Bot Auto narrowing cost per mile
Autonomous trucking has real-world operations today—and the developers have bold plans for commercialization within the next two years. This week, the Fleet…
- The Fleet Lead
Autonomous spotlight: Kodiak's focus on AI
Autonomous trucking has real-world operations today—and the developers have bold plans for commercialization within the next two years. This week, the Fleet…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: New vocational trucks, legal decisions
Here are the big stories from this week in trucking as of March 5: OEMs announced two new vocational trucks The Trump administration is changing independent…
- The Fleet Lead
Trucking's "Law and Order" Era: Incoming TCA President Jim Mullen on FMCSA crackdowns, freight recessions, and emissions course corrections
Jim Mullen is replacing Jim Ward as president of the Truckload Carriers Association in early April. How will Mullen use his deep trucking industry…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Tariff reruns, FMCSA wants more English proficiency
Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of February 26: The Supreme Court struck down IEEPA tariffs FMCSA is continuing its driver qualification…
- The Fleet Lead
Daimler Truck's next diesel engine and the urgency of fleet renewal
As EPA's new NOx standards creep nearer, Daimler Truck North America this month revealed its next generation of complaint heavy-duty engines. The…
- The Fleet Lead
Is manufacturing coming back to U.S.? Reshoring Institute talks tariffs, China, nearshoring
The relocation of manufacturing back to the U.S. could be a boon for domestic freight. The pandemic recently spurred business interest in reshoring, but tariff…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: emissions rollback, non-domiciled oversight
Here are the trucking industry's headlines this week, as of February 12: EPA finalizes removal of trucks’ greenhouse gas regulations FMCSA makes another…
- The Fleet Lead
Ford Pro's take on tech shortage, work truck TCO, and journey to zero downtime
Modern work trucks have become very advanced, and OEMs' strategies to manage those trucks even more advanced. Ford Pro's Eric Rice, general manager of U.S…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Sysco loses retaliation suit, $200 million for truck parking
Here are the trucking industry's headlines this week, as of February 5: The latest highway funding bill includes truck parking Five employees won a $52 million…
- The Fleet Lead
An AV vs. EV horse race: ACT Expo 2026
Erik Neandross, president of TRC’s Clean Transportation Solutions Group, previews ACT Expo 2026 in Las Vegas. As the industry pivots from clean fuel goals to…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Werner acquired FirstFleet, autonomous milestones
Here are the headlines from this week in trucking, as of January 29: Werner acquired FirstFleet Gatik completed 60,000 autonomous medium-duty hauls Traton gave…
- The Fleet Lead
2026's regulatory rodeo with David Heller, Truckload Carriers Association
2025 had no shortage of regulatory changes for the trucking industry, vacillating between rapid crackdowns and sluggish rulemakings. David Heller, senior VP of…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Spot rates down, California enforces English
Here are the headlines this week in trucking, as on January 22: California started enforcing English language proficiency requirements United States Postal…
- The Fleet Lead
2026 Outlook: Rise of AI, dwindling EV focus, and brain-reading trucks
The first 2026 roundtable of the Fleet Lead podcast brings together editors from Fleet Owner and Bulk Transporter to analyze a commercial vehicle market…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Appalachian CDLs, STG Logistics bankruptcy
Here are the headlines from this week in the U.S. trucking industry, as on January 15: Tennessee is asking CDL holders for proof of legal residence FMCSA…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: California loses funding, USPS cuts non-dom CDLs
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of January 8: DOT cut more of California's funding USPS is trimming its use of non-domiciled CDLs Autonomous…
- The Fleet Lead
What to expect from PC-12 engine oils with Shell's Karin Haumann
As the transportation industry continues to meet ever more stringent emissions rules from the EPA, especially the latest low NOx rule, new heavy-duty engines…
- The Fleet Lead
Nuclear verdicts cost the entire U.S. economy
Lawsuit abuse is the second-highest concern among fleet executives in 2025, second only to the economy. When thermonuclear verdicts against carriers are…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Colorado CDL scrutiny, LTL closure
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of December 30: DOT targeting Colorado over non-domiciled CDLs Standard Forwarding Freight ceased operations…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Rail merger targets trucking, 17k CDLs on pause
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of the holiday week of December 23: California paused its plans to reissue 17,000 CDLs Major rail merger wants to…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Prime's nuclear verdict, non-domiciled CDL disputes
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of December 18: California is suing DOT over terminated transportation funding DOT is also threatening New York's…
- The Fleet Lead
New ATA chairman on drivers, tankers, regs, and trucking's future
ATA's latest chairman and Groendyke Transport's CEO, Greg Hodgen, thinks of himself as an optimist, while others call him a realist. But both perspectives are…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Fleets downsizing, autonomous expands
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of December 11: For-hire fleets getting acquired or downsizing Aurora expands autonomous truck operations Wreaths…
- The Fleet Lead
Dean Croke's' connection to Wreaths Across America, U.S. truck drivers
Analyst Dean Croke talks about his plans for this year’s Wreaths Across America, his bustling social media, and the trucking community's dedication to honoring…
- The Fleet Lead
Trucking's year in review: Uncertainty
The Fleet Lead’s editors share a retrospective on 2025 and a look ahead to 2026, focusing on the industry’s latest problems: freight demand and regulatory…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: CDL crackdown, truck orders plummet
These are the major headlines in trucking, as of December 4: FMCSA improves ELD review Truck orders continue to plummet FCMSA removes 3,000 CDL training…
- The Fleet Lead
Podcast: Ryder recruiter Suzanne Varghese on veteran hiring best practices
When it comes to adding veterans to your fleet or shop, there are plenty of benefits you stand to gain. After all, many veterans bring both hard and soft…
- The Fleet Lead
Hendrickson's 'Beyond Suspensions' strategy
Hendrickson is a manufacturer and supplier of medium- and heavy-duty suspensions, axle and brake systems, tire pressure control systems, and other products to…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: Freight recession symptoms, Bollinger quits
The major headlines from the week of Nov. 24 in trucking, just before Thanksgiving: Bollinger Motors is no more Demand for Class 8 equipment is very weak…
- The Fleet Lead
Volvo Trucks on the freight recession, fleet survival, and the bottom line
Volvo Trucks North America launched its new VNL and VNR models in the middle of the prolonged freight recession. While OEMs don't choose the market conditions…
- The Fleet Lead
This week in trucking: NOx rule stays, Schneider ready for acquisitions
The major headlines from this week in trucking: The heavy-duty NOx rule will not be delayed Schneider is looking for more opportunities for mergers and…
- The Fleet Lead
How Peterbilt is juggling new vehicle platforms, waiting on the freight recession
Peterbilt is finishing out 2025 with a strong lineup, but just like every other industry stakeholder, they're also waiting to see how the market shifts on…
- The Fleet Lead
Volvo's autonomous roadmap
People in the trucking industry predicted that autonomous trucks would be running in 2019—then it was 2021, 2024... What's the holdup? Sasko Cuklev, Head of…
- The Fleet Lead
Veteran's Day Special: Talking veterans with Nick Smith, a U.S. Marine turned International sensation
Whether they're in the bay or on the road, veterans have both the tangible and intangible skills to succeed in the transportation industry. Whatever the branch…
- The Fleet Lead
Navigating uncertainty with Fleet Advantage's Brian Antonellis
Fleets have been working in challenging conditions for the past two years, from a long-running freight recession to swiftly shifting regulations. But while…
- The Fleet Lead
Jade Transport driver talks his trailer, dashcams, and more
While fleets must often focus on a top-down view of the trucking industry, sometimes it helps to get back in the driver's seat to appreciate the finer details…
- The Fleet Lead
ATRI, A&M Transport talk top fleet concerns
The economy is a chief concern for fleets during an ongoing freight recession, and nowhere is this more apparent than at the American Transportation…
- The Fleet Lead
Leadership means focusing on the outcome
Success comes from focusing on outcomes, maintaining a positive mindset, and taking personal responsibility for daily progress. That’s the takeaway from this…
- The Fleet Lead
Calling plays for mobile maintenance
In the age of convenience where everything is delivered, even commercial vehicle maintenance comes on wheels. But why would a shop decide to go mobile? In this…
- The Fleet Lead
Great Dane’s secret to 125 years is focusing “on the right thing”
To reach 125 years, trailer manufacturer Great Dane continually adapted and innovated to remain a leader in the transportation space—and kept focused “on the…
- The Fleet Lead
Trucking today: trailer manufacturing, English requirements, emissions regs
The Fleet Lead’s team of transportation experts break down some of the industry’s hottest topics today: re-shoring manufacturing, trucking’s overcapacity…
- The Fleet Lead
How smaller fleets can use AI to survive the freight recession
Another trucking software company has launched a product that utilizes artificial intelligence (AI). PCS Software unveiled several new offerings that use…
- The Fleet Lead
The future of electric truck adoption is dimmer
The electric truck market faces big changes this year. State and federal incentives are dissipating in the wake of the Trump administration's disruptions. In…
- The Fleet Lead
Tank trucks explained
Tanker trucks are often easy to identify: a tractor hauling a metal cylinder to transport liquid or gas cargo in bulk. But what else separates them from the…
- The Fleet Lead
Trailer/Body Builders Buyer's Guide: 65 years and counting
Trailer/Body Builders is celebrating the 65th anniversary of its Buyer’s Guide—an annual complete directory of materials, components, supplies, and services…
- The Fleet Lead
How to launch an electric truck company during the Trump era
Countless commercial electric vehicle (EV) initiatives in the U.S. have either failed or stalled. Despite this, manufacturers still plan to succeed and grow…
- The Fleet Lead
For-hire’s overcapacity problem
Since the pandemic, growth among private fleets and owner-operators weakened for-hire pricing. ACT Research’s senior analyst Tim Denoyer explains the problem…
- The Fleet Lead
Tanker segment to outpace GDP through 2029
The dedicated contract carriage segment of the national liquid and dry bulk truckload market could U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) growth through 2029. The…
- The Fleet Lead
Introducing The Fleet Lead Podcast
The Fleet Lead podcast features journalists from Endeavor Business Media's commercial vehicle brands, including FleetOwner, Fleet Maintenance, Bulk…