Business

Freight recession hits home in latest ATRI survey » Land Line Media

October 27, 2025 2 min read

Sometimes, research simply confirms information we already know.

For instance, the American Transportation Research Institute recently released results of surveys that economic issues top the list of concerns for motor carriers and truck drivers.

Surprise. Surprise. Of course, the trucking industry has been coping with a freight recession for nearly three years. ATRI’s 2025 survey results about critical issues in the industry reflect that.

More than 4,200 trucking industry stakeholders participated in the survey. More than 1,000 of those respondents listed the economy as the trucking industry’s most critical issue.

“Now three years into a historic freight recession, freight rates and tonnage have remained stagnant across the trucking industry at the same time that per-mile costs increased considerably faster than inflation – a perfect storm that is squeezing fleet operating margins and necessitating extensive cost-cutting measures,” ATRI wrote in its report. “Total trucking employment and driver employment specifically continued to fall year-over-year amid layoffs, market exits and bankruptcies. Unfortunately, the challenging economic conditions keep these freight capacity reductions from translating into improved rates.”

The economy retained the top spot for a third year in a row. Truck parking, which was second in 2024, dropped to fourth. Lawsuit abuse reform and insurance costs each moved up one spot to second and third, respectively.

The overall top 10 is made up of responses from 46% motor carrier executives and personnel, 30% truck drivers and about 24% from other freight stakeholders.

ATRI’s 2025 Top 10 Critical Issues

Economy
Lawsuit abuse reform
Insurance cost/availability
Truck parking
Driver compensation
CSA
English-language proficiency
Diesel emission regulations
Driver training standards
AI in trucking

Each year, ATRI also releases top 10 lists for truck drivers and motor carriers.

While truck drivers and trucking companies look at things from a different perspective, both top 10s were led by concerns about money, aligning with the freight recession.

Truck drivers said that driver compensation was the No. 1 concern in the industry. Motor carriers agreed with the overall top 10, ranking the economy at the top.