After the 1973 oil crisis, the U.S. government imposed a nationwide 55-mph speed limit, and fuel shortages and rationing were widespread. Until that time, drivers (especially commercial truckers) used CB radios mostly to locate service stations with better fuel supplies and notify other drivers of speed traps. But during the 1974 strike, led by independent truck drivers, the radios were used to organize blockades and convoys to protest the new speed-limit and other regulations that they felt would negatively impact both their productivity and livelihood.

In the early 1970s, motor vehicles produced significant air pollution, prompting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to impose new regulations on fuel consumption and engine design. These rules required manufacturers to develop cleaner engines and refiners to produce low-sulfur fuels. To further reduce emissions, the EPA introduced strict diesel engine standards alongside measures to lower sulfur content in diesel fuel. In response, the Detroit Diesel Series 60 was developed from the ground up to meet these new requirements—becoming the first diesel engine to feature a fully electronic control system and setting a new benchmark for cleaner, more efficient performance.

The first commercialized electric vehicle in the United States was developed in 1890 by William Morrison; the vehicle was a six-passenger wagon capable of reaching a speed of 14 mph. Electric vehicles had a number of advantages over their competitors — they didn’t have the vibration, smell, and noise associated with gasoline vehicles, nor did they require gear changes or manual effort to start.

The popularity of the electric vehicle began to decline by the 1920s. Electric vehicles were limited to urban use by their slow speed (15-20 mph) and low range (30-40 miles), and gasoline vehicles were now able to travel farther and faster due to improved road conditions and the worldwide discoveries of large petroleum reserves. Inventions such as the electric starter by Charles Kettering in 1912 and the muffler by Milton and Marshall Reeves in 1897 made gasoline vehicles even easier to operate. Finally, the initiation of mass production of gas-powered vehicles by Henry Ford brought the price down and made gas-powered vehicles even cheaper to purchase and maintain, further cementing the dominance of gas-powered vehicles in the market.

The energy crises of the 1970s and 1980s brought about renewed interest in electric vehicles, since they were not dependent on fuel. General Motors created the Electrovette in 1976 and the Impact in 1990. However, it wasn’t until the invention of the lithium-ion battery in 1991 that led to the development of modern electric vehicles capable of long-distance travel. By the late 1990s, it had been commercialized into pickup trucks. In 2017, the first light-duty commercial vehicle went into production.

The electronic logging device (ELD)—mandated by the U.S. Congress under the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act—was designed to improve safety, accuracy, and efficiency in the trucking industry. Intended to create a safer work environment for drivers, the ELD automatically records driving time by synchronizing with a vehicle’s engine, ensuring precise tracking of service hours and simplifying the management and sharing of travel data for commercial carriers.

TuSimple, the self-driving truck company, was awarded a contract in May 2019 to complete five round trips, during a two-week pilot, hauling USPS trailers more than 1,000 miles between the Postal Service’s distribution centers in Phoenix and Dallas; there were two human drivers on board to supervise. As of June 2019, Starsky Robotics became the first company to operate fully unmanned on public highways at 55mph with nobody in the cab of the truck.