Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of October 29:

Roehl Transport launched a $10,000 driver incentive

Roehl Transport, No. 62 on the FleetOwner 500 For-Hire, launched a retention program where the company gives some new drivers $10,000—but the deal comes with a lot of fine print.

The $10,000 incentive program applies only to CDL drivers who join the company between November 2 and December 14—and already have six months or more of recent regional or over-the-road experience. Among qualified drivers, the $10,000 retention incentive applies only to drivers who work for certain Roehl fleets and live in certain areas.

The drivers who qualify for the hiring fleet, living area, hiring date, and experience requirements will be paid $500 after hauling their first load, followed by an additional $500 every 10,000 miles up to a maximum $10,000 total.

Carriers nationwide are raising their pay and benefits this year as they face greater competition for quality drivers. Roehl Transport already announced two truck driver pay increases earlier this year.

FMCSA’s National Consumer Complaint Database has a new name

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) changed the name of its platform for complaints and concerns within the commercial motor vehicle industry. The platform is no longer called the National Consumer Complaint Database; instead, it is now the FMCSA Complaint Center.

The autonomous truck market saw two large orders this week

Autonomous truck developers Aurora Innovation and Kodiak AI both revealed agreements with fleets to use more autonomous trucks under the driver-as-a-service model.

Aurora entered a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Charger Logistics, in which Charger expressed interest in buying 500 of Aurora’s autonomous trucks. If the order goes through, Aurora would deliver the 500 trucks through 2027 and 2028. Charger would deploy the trucks on high-volume routes nationwide.

Meanwhile, Kodiak entered a binding agreement with DTL Transport to deploy 75 of Kodiak’s autonomous trucks. DTL would pay a per-mile fee to use Kodiak’s trucks to haul produce along routes through Texas and Georgia along I-10 and I-20.

Freightliner is celebrating the Cascadia’s 20th anniversary in 2027

Freightliner introduced the Cascadia in 2007. To celebrate the model’s 20th year, Daimler Truck North America is running a campaign in 2027 titled “20 Years of What’s Next.”

The campaign invites customers to share their stories with the Cascadia. The company is collecting photos, videos, and anecdotes from drivers, dealers, fleet managers, and owners.

In the spot market, rates remain flat

The total average broker-posted spot rate fell 2.3 cents last week, according to FTR Transportation Intelligence, to $3.24 per mile. Dry van rates increased 2 cents to $2.87 per mile. Refrigerated rates decreased 5.5 cents to $3.49 per mile. Flatbed rates declined 1.7 cents to $3.32 per mile.

In fuel, the price of diesel rose 8 cents

The national average on-highway diesel price rose to $6.35 per gallon, according to weekly data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), or $6.33 per gallon according to the latest data from AAA. The Iran War continues.

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