politics
26,000 truckers can’t read signs. Why are they driving 80,000-pound missiles?
On Aug. 7, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a rule that never should have needed writing down: If you cannot read an English highway sign, you have no business piloting an 80,000-pound truck on an American interstate. Since Duffy’s crackdown began, more than 26,000 drivers have been pulled off the road for failing basic English proficiency checks. As a designated expert witness who testifies in court about whether someone met a duty of care owed to the public, I can tell you this one is not a close call.
TL;DR
- Over 26,000 drivers have been removed from the road for failing English proficiency tests since Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's crackdown began.
- Federal law has required English proficiency for commercial drivers since 1937, but this requirement was weakened in 2016.
- The Obama-era memo in 2016 instructed inspectors to stop issuing out-of-service citations for English proficiency violations.
- Fatal crashes in Florida and Colorado have been linked to drivers who could not read warning signs or communicate effectively.
- Duffy rescinded the 2016 memo in April 2025, restoring automatic out-of-service enforcement and aiming to codify the standard into regulation.
- The rule applies to all commercial drivers, regardless of origin, and focuses on the ability to read essential road signs for safety.