Trucking news and briefs for Monday, April 27, 2026:
Freightliner, Detroit expand Assurance safety-assist features
Freightliner and Detroit have announced new advanced safety capabilities for the Detroit Assurance Suite of Safety Systems.
Standard for the Freightliner Cascadia, Detroit Assurance with Active Break Assist 6 (ABA6) builds on its existing offering with the introduction of Cross Traffic Assist and Active Side Guard Assist 2 with left turn protection for Cascadias built beginning in 2027.
“Safety at Freightliner has consistently been shaped by customer needs, and by embracing a holistic, long-term perspective,” said Joanna Buttler, general manager, product strategy and market development, Daimler Truck North America. “Each enhancement to the Detroit Assurance Suite of Safety Systems reflects careful decisions about where added capability can make a meaningful difference for fleets and drivers. The latest ABA 6 features extend that approach, strengthening active safety while aligning with how commercial vehicle operation is expected to evolve over time.”
Intersections and turning maneuvers consistently rank among the most complex and high-risk situations for commercial vehicles, making them an important focus area for the latest ABA 6 feature enhancements, Freightliner noted.
Cross Traffic Assist is designed to help detect vehicles crossing the truck’s forward path at intersections – an operating environment where visibility and reaction time can be limited. Using radar inputs to monitor cross traffic movement, the system can provide visual and audible warnings when a potential collision risk is identified and, when conditions warrant and within defined system limits, support the response with partial or full braking to help mitigate or reduce the severity of a collision.
Active Side Guard Assist 2 with left turn protection expands Freightliner’s sideguard functionality beyond right-hand braking on pedestrians and cyclists to address the added complexity of left turns, particularly in environments where traffic patterns and closing speeds can change quickly. When the left turn signal is engaged, the system is designed to monitor the vehicle’s intended path for oncoming traffic that could intersect. If a potential hazard is detected, the system can issue visual and audible alerts and, in some cases, apply partial or full braking before the vehicle enters the collision zone.
ABA 6 is designed to address an expanded set of collision scenarios, including visible vehicles in curves, vehicles in adjacent lanes, stationary offset vehicles commonly present following roadway incidents, and moving or stationary pedestrians and bicyclists.
Orders for Detroit Assurance with Active Brake Assist 6, including Cross Traffic Assist and Active Side Guard Assist 2, are expected to open in the third quarter of 2026, with production beginning in January 2027.
[Related: Up close with Detroit’s new sixth-generation diesel engines]
ATRI extends deadline for carriers to participate in Ops Costs survey
The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) has extended the deadline for motor carriers to participate in its annual Operational Costs of Trucking report. For-hire motor carriers can now submit data through Friday, May 15.
Data can be submitted online or by PDF: both forms are available on ATRI’s website, along with a sample customized report and other helpful information for participants. All confidential data is protected and published only in anonymized averages; NDAs can be signed by request.
ATRI’s Operational Costs of Trucking report is trusted by thousands of industry decisionmakers every year as a key barometer of freight market conditions and is the leading public benchmarking tool for motor carriers of all sectors, from owner-operators to 10,000+ truck fleets.
The report tracks cost metrics such as driver pay, equipment expenditures, and insurance premiums, as well as key performance indicators such as non-revenue mileage, driver utilization, mileage between breakdowns, and revenue per truck per week.
All participating motor carriers receive a customized report that compares their costs and operations to an anonymized peer group of the same sector and size. New in 2026, customized reports for multi-year participants will also include year-over-year comparisons to more directly evaluate trends over time.
FMCSA boss joins Georgia inspection officers
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration chief Derek Barrs recently joined Georgia enforcement officials during the state’s Operation SafeDRIVE initiative.
“The focus of Operation SafeDRIVE centered around targeting unsafe drivers and driving behaviors while reinforcing a safe and reliable transportation network,” Georgia Department of Public Safety said in a Facebook post.
Barrs joined Georgia DPS Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Major Andrew Montgomery for an aerial overview of enforcement operations before visiting the Monroe County Inspection Stations, where he worked alongside CVE officers during traffic stops, inspections, and a demonstration of the CVE K-9 program.
Barrs was also greeted in Monroe County by Georgia Motor Trucking Association (GMTA) President Seth Millican, highlighting the partnership-driven approach to improving roadway safety.
Results of Georgia’s Operation SafeDRIVE:
- Total CMVs inspected: 454
- Level I inspections: 113
- Level II inspections: 32
- Level III inspections: 372
- Out-of-service drivers: 88
- Out-of-service vehicles: 51
- Moving violation inspections: 296
- English Language Proficiency violations: 1
- Arrests: 3 (Drug Possession, Contraband Possession, DUI)
Former trucking company owner pleads guilty to COVID loan fraud
Mark Crosby, 43, the former owner of Crosby Auto LLC and MSC & Sons Trucking LLC, has entered a guilty plea for wire fraud in a scheme to fraudulently obtain two Paycheck Protection Plan (PPP) loans totaling $92,233.32, guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Crosby, of Kansas City, Missouri, admitted to, on May 14, 2020, submitting a $71,417 PPP loan application on behalf of Crosby Auto. In the loan application, Crosby falsely stated that, in 2019, Crosby Auto had a monthly payroll of $28,567, and gross receipts of $736,928. In reality, Crosby Auto did not have that payroll or annual revenue.
Based on the fraudulent representations Crosby made in the PPP loan application, on June 2, 2020, $71,400 was transferred to Crosby Auto’s bank account.
Additionally, MSC & Sons Trucking LLC applied for a $20,833.32 PPP loan. The application stated the business had gross income of $131,848 in 2019 and included a 2019 Schedule C which stated the business had gross receipts of $131,848, and contract labor expense of $69,129. The Schedule C was not filed with the IRS, and MSC & Sons Trucking did not have gross receipts or payroll in those amounts. On May 5, 2021, MSC & Sons Trucking account received the $20,833.32 PPP loan.
Under federal statutes, Crosby is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole.
