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🚨Two Minnesota Carriers Shut Down Overnight 200 Drivers Out of Work

We have been in a “Freight Recession” since March of 2022, and on the FreightWaves website, they have an entire section dedicated to bankruptcies throughout the industry to highlight the truth of what’s been going on, and over the weekend two more carriers were added.

MinStar Transport and Transport Design Inc. both located in Minnesota under the umbrella of True North Equity Partners shut down their operation with no warning, leaving roughly 200 drivers jobless.

The news broke first across trucking Facebook groups and driver forums, where posts from employees and partners confirmed both fleets had communicated an immediate halt to operations. Each company ran roughly 100 trucks.

Who Owned the Companies?

Both carriers were part of the transportation portfolio of True North Equity Partners, a Minneapolis based private equity firm.

Their holdings included:

• Transport Design – acquired March 2020

• MinStar Transport – acquired October 2022

• Plus affiliated entities: MinStar Logistics, Transport21, and North Star Transport

MinStar’s business focused heavily on temperature controlled (reefer) freight, while Transport Design ran a mix of refrigerated and dry van across food and consumer products.

At the time of True North’s 2022 MinStar acquisition, which was eight months into the freight downturn, the portfolio was projected to generate $220 million in annual revenue.

⚖️ Legal + Financial Pressure Behind the Scenes

There was a possible warning sign that surfaced earlier this year.

In September 2025, American National Bank filed a lawsuit in Minnesota against True North Transportation Holding Company, Norsemen Holdings, Norsemen Trucking, and executives Brian Slipka and Eric Valder. The suit alleges breach of loan obligations and demands repayment.

Early litigation like this often signals deeper financial troubles, especially inside a freight recession with razor thin margins.

📉 A Tough Year for Trucking Closures

2025 has seen an alarming wave of shutdowns, including:

• 10 Roads Express – the largest bankruptcy since Yellow, impacting 2,500 trucks and 5,000 employees

• Montgomery Transport – more than 1,000 employees out of work after its private-equity owner exited the industry

True North Equity Partners also owns additional carriers such as Contact Cartage, D&A Truckline, Viking Land Transportation, J-Mar Enterprises, and Norsemen. Their future status isn’t yet clear.

🚛 Why This Matters

While closures are devastating for drivers and their families, they are also part of the freight market’s painful rebalancing.

The industry has been dealing with excess capacity for nearly four years. Companies failing or downsizing is one of the few mechanisms that reduces that oversupply, and eventually helps stabilize rates for the carriers that survive.

But the personal impact is immediate and harsh. Two more fleets, two hundred more drivers, and right before the holidays isn’t the best news to report.

Do you know anyone impacted? I want to hear from you! For Driver Submissions, questions, and comments contact me at: [email protected] or Text me directly at 423-275-2444

Tale Lites Throwback

A December message from the cover of Tale Lites in December 1968 asking for Peace!

🚦 FMCSA Begins Step 1 of New Registration System, Carriers Don’t Need to Act Yet

The FMCSA began a soft launch of its brand new registration platform, Motus, on December 8. Motor Carriers don’t need to do anything just yet, but here’s what it’s all about.

🛠️ Who Can Access Motus Today?

Only three groups get early access:

• Transportation service providers

• BOC-3 filers

• Financial responsibility filers

These supporting companies can now log in to create their user and business profiles so they’re ready to help carriers once Motus opens wider in 2026.

FMCSA says this initial phase is prep work to get ahead.

What’s Coming in 2026

FMCSA plans to open Motus for all users next year, including:

• Motor carriers

• Brokers

• Freight forwarders

• Anyone needing federal registration

FMCSA says it will release step by step instructions as the public launch gets closer.

The purpose of the new system?

• Streamline registration

• Crack down on fraud

• Make the process more intuitive than the outdated URS workflow

So far, no changes are being made to safety registration, docket numbers, or BOC-3 filing. Those bigger reforms are still being drafted and are expected to go out for comment in March 2026.

💸 What About the Broker Financial Responsibility Rule?

If you were unaware there is an upcoming rule that suspends a broker’s authority if their financial security drops below $75,000

That rule was supposed to take effect in early 2025, but FMCSA delayed it because Motus wasn’t ready yet.

With progress finally happening, the compliance date now sits at January 16, 2026, and this soft launch makes it more likely the rule will go live on schedule.

📩 What are your thoughts on Motus?
Reply to this email or text (423) 275-2444 

Health Tip of the Week - Is Sugar Free Okay?

This week, we’re focusing on one simple win that pays off fast: swap sugary drinks for sugar free options or water.

🧁 Why Cut Back on Sugary Drinks?

Sugary drinks add a ton of calories without filling you up. For drivers, that means:

• Blood sugar spikes and crashes

• Low energy, irritability, and cravings

• Harder weight control

• Higher long term risk of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome

The numbers don’t lie:
The Framingham Heart Study found that people who drink one or more sugary drinks daily are:

• 25% more likely to struggle with blood sugar

• Nearly 50% more likely to develop metabolic syndrome

⚡ Benefits of Making the Swap

Replacing sugary drinks with water or unsweetened options leads to:

• Steady, consistent energy, no mid shift crashes

• Better hydration without the sugar overload

• Easier weight management, making you feel stronger and more in control

🚚 Road Ready Tips to Make It Easy

• Keep sugar free flavor packets, unsweetened tea, or plain water in your cab

• Stock your truck or fridge with only the drinks you want to stick to

• Avoid high temptation spots like vending machines and soda aisles

Small steps are what make the big wins.

The internet offers a lot of criticism of sugar free options, citing cherry-picked information from specific studies done with rats. Unfortunately drinking a few diet cokes is not the same thing as being submerged in aspartame for the human equivalent of 3 lifetimes, which only possibly increases the risk of cancer, not guarantees it. It’s within my scope of practice to tell you, as a Certified Nutrition Coach, that the risk factors of Chronic disease are worse for your overall health than a Diet Coke

Partner Post of the Week

Check out our Partner Shawn Smith get some movement in the cold weather up in Canada! Use the promo code fittrucker20 for $20 off your next booking!

@fittrucker1975

#winterworkout #fitness #motivation #nogymnoproblem #truckerfitness

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