The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has launched a new registration platform called Motus that uses biometrics and data analytics to verify trucking companies and other motor carriers, replacing what agency officials described as a decades-old system vulnerable to fraud, waste, and abuse.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Administrator Derek Barrs announced the rollout of the new system on May 19.
The officials said it is designed to ensure that only legitimate and qualified trucking, motor coach, and other commercial transportation operators receive federal registration numbers.
The new system requires applicants to prove both that they are who they claim to be, and that the businesses they represent are legitimate legal entities.
Officials said the change is intended to prevent fraudulent carriers from obtaining operating authority and putting unsafe vehicles on U.S. roads.
“Dangerous foreign drivers and the shell companies who employ them have been taking advantage of this lax, decrepit federal registration system for years,” Duffy said.
“The lack of accountability is disturbing, and it’s killed American families on our roads,” the DOT secretary asserted.
“Thanks to President Trump, we are delivering a new registration system that will stop fraud dead in its tracks and strengthen oversight on shady carriers,” Duffy said.
“And for good, honest drivers who follow the rules – our new system will improve customer service, enhance reliability, and cut down on red tape,” he said.
Barrs said the platform will modernize both customer service and enforcement. “FMCSA’s registration modernization effort represents a major advancement in how the agency oversees and supports the commercial motor vehicle industry,” he said.
“This system improves efficiency for legitimate carriers while strengthening FMCSA’s ability to detect fraud, improve data quality, and identify unsafe operators,” Barrs added.
According to the department, the previous registration process relied on five or six disconnected applications that required little more than an email address, name, and physical address to obtain a federal registration number. Officials estimate that several thousand suspicious registration numbers are tied to fraudulent carriers.
The fragmented system created what DOT called “critical information silos” and “systemic blind spots” that allowed so-called chameleon and reincarnated carriers to shed poor safety records, create new corporate identities, and evade federal oversight while continuing to operate unsafe trucks.
Motus consolidates those systems into a single secure digital dashboard and introduces mandatory identity verification using government-issued identification and digital facial scans, along with third-party business validation to block fraud at the point of registration, DOT said.
For legitimate fleets, freight brokers, and freight forwarders, the department said Motus streamlines the entire registration lifecycle – from initial applications to required biennial updates – through a mobile-friendly online interface intended to reduce confusion, improve transparency, and shorten processing times.
DOT said the platform also will improve data quality and reliability for FMCSA, state agencies, law enforcement, and safety officials, while providing a scalable technology foundation that can adapt to future operational, enforcement, and customer service needs.