Since June 25, the executive order signed by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, has come into effect, which requires motor transport operators with B1 visas to speak and read English in order to operate legally on the roads of the neighboring country to the north.

While it has been identified as a protective measure, this order is actually aimed at reinforcing a 2016 law by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) , implemented to establish measures for deficiencies in English proficiency .

In response to this situation, the Nuevo Laredo Freight Carriers Association (ATC) began working months ago on an application that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to support truck drivers in practicing and strengthening their English through their cell phones.

PASO allows operators to have real-time feedback on their language knowledge through AI, but it also corrects pronunciation so that it can be improved by the operators .

“The English language proficiency requirement has always existed for trucking operators, but it was reinforced under President Trump’s administration,” identified Pedro Lozano Martínez, president of ATC.

The app called PASO allows B1 operators (Mexicans with visas who operate in the United States) to practice English at any time without being tied to classes or schedules. ATC is the founding association of this project, developed in conjunction with Panacea , which developed the app.

“This tool addresses a real need of our operators. It’s not just about learning English; it’s about enabling them to cross with confidence, handle a consular interview or inspection without language being a barrier to their work,” Lozano Martínez added.

This new tool is now available, and the service contract will be managed through ATC.

PASO prepares operators for three scenarios:

1. Visa interviews and consular renewals.
2. Border crossings and FAST inspections of the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) .
3. Road inspections conducted by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) .

According to Pedro Lozano, there is currently an estimated record of about 25,000 trucking operators who were “taken out of service” for not mastering the English language , “it’s not that they stop operating, they must go through their process and demonstrate their mastery of the language and return to their activity.”

Blandina Guerra Fernández, representative in Tamaulipas of the Federal Ministry of Economy , recognized Nuevo Laredo’s leadership in international trade and congratulated ATC for this initiative in favor of carriers who face language as a daily barrier in their work .

Also participating in the PASO presentation were Edgar Orfelio Martínez, Vice President of ATC; Ricardo Pillado, delegate of the National Chamber of Freight Transportation (Canacar) in Nuevo Laredo; and Alaster Love, Chief Technology Officer of Panacea.

*Photos taken from ATC’s Facebook account.

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CANCÚN, Q. ROO.- The Transportation Services Index (TSI) , carried out by the United States Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) and which measures the demand for freight services, averaged a total of 137.57 points in 2023, by 2024 this indicator dropped to levels of 136.84 and in the first seven months of 2025 it stood at 137.23 units.

The United States is facing a phenomenon known as the “Great Freight Recession ,” which combines very flat demand for transportation services, falling service rates , and rising operating costs , leading to the collapse of several companies.

In this context, there is an increase in companies with services with operators called B1 (who have a United States visa), and can perform international transport services, that is, services that have as origin-destination a point in the United States or Mexico, but that cannot perform cabotage service, that is, connecting two or more points in the United States with cargo that is not international .

According to experts from Mexico, the United States, and Canada, the market situation has prompted some Mexican companies with B1 operators to meet the needs of shippers in the United States, who, in order to pay low rates, use operators with this status for cabotage. “It is not normal for a B1 operator to take up to four weeks to return to Mexico ,” some businesspeople consulted agree.

Within the framework of the National Chamber of Freight Transportation (Canacar) National Convention , the panel “The USMCA under review: What’s at stake for national freight transportation?” was held . One of the topics discussed was the situation faced by foreign operators in the United States.

Last August, a traffic accident occurred in Florida involving a truck and a private vehicle, resulting in the deaths of several family members. “What happened in Florida has raised questions about whether licensing is being done correctly ,” said Ed Gilroy, Chief Advocacy and Public Affairs Officer of the American Trucking Associations (ATA) .

In this regard, Martín Rojas, Senior Advisor for the Americas of the International Road Transport Union (IRU) , stressed that the United States must strengthen its oversight to ensure that B1 licenses are being used correctly, as a way of protecting the operators themselves , who in some cases are left helpless by their companies when a situation arises.

From the participants’ perspective, the situation with B1 operators must be prioritized to avoid impacting the mobility of goods within the United States and to prevent them from spreading schemes like those in some entities, which seek to limit the operations of transport units to operators with foreign licenses . This situation, from the perspective of Greg Arndt, Co-Owner & Vice President Jade Transport Ltd. and the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) , goes against the trade facilitation that is required as a region.

Manuel Sotelo, vice president of Canacar’s Northern Region, emphasized that one demand from the trucking industry for authorities in the North American region is that greater trade facilitation be urgently needed to allow for closer integration with the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

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A few days ago, a truck driver with an irregular immigration status caused an accident on the Florida Turnpike, causing a private vehicle traveling on the road to crash into the dry van, resulting in the deaths of three passengers.

Following this situation, yesterday on his X account, the Secretary of State of the American Union, Marco Rubio reported: “From now on, we will pause all issuance of worker visas for commercial truck drivers.”

This measure has raised concerns among Mexican carriers who employ operators from Mexico with B1 visas, authorized to transport cargo exclusively between Mexico and the United States, without being able to engage in cabotage, that is, connecting two points within the United States.

Israel Delgado, vice president of the Northwest Regional Office of the National Chamber of Cargo Transportation (Canacar) , stated in various messages that this measure does not impact operators entering the United States with B1/B2 visas and International Licenses.

“This measure would only affect operators applying under the H-2B, E-2, and EB-3 visas who plan to work within the United States. The impact is intended to protect the jobs of American commercial vehicle drivers within the United States,” he explained.

H-2B visas are defined for temporary non-agricultural workers, the E-2 is for investors from treaty countries who wish to work in the United States in their businesses, while the EB-3 is for workers seeking permanent residence and is divided into professionals, skilled workers, and other workers.

This measure by the United States government is the second action against trucking operators who do not have that nationality and, according to specialists, seeks to protect jobs for American workers .

Last April, the Trump administration issued an executive order requiring all motor carrier operators operating in the United States to be proficient in English .

As T21 reported, the move to require English has caused several operators, both in California and Texas, to be out of service, unable to continue their journey to their destination.

According to data from the United States Department of Commerce , trade between Mexico and its northern neighbor in the first half of the year reached 432.553 billion dollars (mdd) , of which 264.382 billion dollars were exports to the United States, and imports from Mexico totaled 168.170 billion dollars , consolidating itself as the main commercial partner of the United States.

Motor transport is the primary mode of trade between the two countries, with the Laredo border port being the most significant, capturing 39.5% of the total . In the first half of 2025, Laredo recorded trade of more than $175 billion, an increase of 5.7% compared to the same period in 2024.

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June 25, the date set by the administration of Donald Trump , President of the United States, to strictly implement the measure, marked the beginning of a stricter phase.

“In the last week, we’ve already started to see outages, something we hadn’t seen before,” confirmed Israel Delgado, vice president of the Northwest Region of the  National Chamber of Cargo Transportation (Canacar) in an interview .

Since the provision was announced, the industry knew it needed to act urgently. In Delgado’s words, companies were forced “to urgently seek different means to begin operator training .”

The reason is simple: without support, many could be left “out-of- service.”

And that scenario is already underway. Inspections in Texas , and to a lesser extent in California, have begun to include observations stating that the driver is “unable to communicate in English,” Delgado explained.

While these warnings do not yet carry an immediate penalty , they do anticipate that, in a second review, the operator may be removed from service if they do not demonstrate progress or ongoing training.

“The warning doesn’t have an immediate consequence, but rather warns us that a second inspection could result in the vehicle being taken out of service,” said Delgado, who also noted that they have already detected specific cases of sanctions.

To date, there is no official count of how many operators have been reviewed or sanctioned. However, Delgado confirmed that contacts have been made with U.S. government agencies to compile this data. “We do not currently have this information,” he stated.

What is clear is the challenge. According to estimates, around 80% of operators still lack sufficient English to handle these inspections. Therefore, the call to action is not only for drivers, but for the entire industry.

“If companies don’t help operators comply with this rule, what we’re going to see is a lot of outages,” he warned.

Some are already responding, from in-person and virtual training to the use of technological tools to accelerate learning, including Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based approaches.

Furthermore, he anticipated that not only could more cases of suspension be seen, but also possible financial penalties.

“Starting today, we anticipate we’ll begin to see an increase in these types of rules or sanctions, out-of-service, and possibly financial penalties,” he explained.

Language is no longer an added value, but rather part of the minimum qualifications. Speaking English is now the entry pass for operating on the other side of the Mexican border.

The numbers don’t lie. The change is significant. In the state of Wyomingalone , between October 2023 and September 2024, 410 violations related to drivers’ lack of English proficiency were documented, according to US government data . Although not all of those cases involved B1 drivers.

Meanwhile, across the border, the exchange of goods continues unabated. From January to April 2025, trade in goods between Mexico and the United States exceeded $285 billion , according to figures from the government of Mexico . More than a number, this daily flow represents thousands of operators crossing, delivering, returning, and keeping two economies that depend on each other moving.

But while the United States tightens entry restrictions, Mexico is experiencing its own paradox. According to the International Road Transport Union (IRU) , the country closed 2024 with more than 99,000 operator vacancies . Given this situation, some see these restrictions as an opportunity: if operators who fail to cross return to domestic routes, they could begin to close a gap that has remained unresolved for years.

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