The CVSA’s International Roadcheck runs May 12–14, 2026. With inspectors targeting ELD records and cargo securement, now is the time to get your operation buttoned up.
Every spring, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) coordinates a massive 72-hour enforcement push across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The trucking industry has its own name for it: DOT Blitz Week. During this window, inspectors fan out at weigh stations, ports of entry, and roadside checkpoints. As you can imagine, during this time, the number of vehicles pulled for inspection spikes sharply.
This year’s Roadcheck lands on May 12–14 and the CVSA has already communicated what inspectors will be zeroing in on. This year, they will focus on Electronic Logging Device (ELD) compliance and hours-of-service records on the driver side, and cargo securement on the vehicle side. If your drivers aren’t buttoned up in these areas, the risk of an out-of-service violation, and the downtime and fines that come with it, can be a very real consequence.
Here’s a breakdown of what to check before your trucks hit the road during Blitz Week.
Driver-Side: ELDs & Hours of Service
Inspectors will be looking closely at both the device itself and the logs it has recorded. Don’t wait until the morning of a run to discover a problem.
- Confirm your ELD is connected and functioning: A device that’s unplugged, malfunctioning, or showing error codes is an immediate red flag. Verify the ELD is properly synced to the vehicle’s ECM and transmitting data correctly before every dispatch during Blitz Week.
- Verify the correct duty status is being used and annotated: Most drivers will simply be in “Driving” status, and that’s straightforward. But if a driver is operating under a special status — such as Personal Conveyance (PC) or the Adverse Driving Conditions exemption — that status needs to be properly noted in the log. Missing or vague annotations on exception statuses are a common citation trigger.
- Audit the previous days’ logs, not just the current day’s: DOT inspectors are not limited to what happened today. They can and will review logs from prior days. Make sure your drivers’ records show proper 10-hour rest breaks, that no one exceeded the 11-hour driving limit, and that the logs are clean, consistent, and accurate. Gaps, overlaps, or uncertified logs will get flagged.
Remember, inspectors are specifically trained to spot ELD tampering. If something in a driver’s log looks inconsistent with GPS data or engine records, that’s grounds for a deeper look. Accurate, honest logs are always your best defense.
Vehicle-Side: Cargo Securement
The second major focus area this year is cargo securement. An unsecured or improperly secured load can get a truck placed out of service immediately and it’s one of the most preventable violations out there.
- Check tarps and tie-downs on flatbeds: For flatbed operations, walk the load before departure. All tarps should be fully secured and ratcheted down with no loose edges or billowing sections. Every strap and chain needs to meet tension requirements under FMCSA’s cargo securement rules — and inspectors know exactly what to look for.
- Secure freight properly inside enclosed trailers: Dry van and reefer drivers shouldn’t assume they’re off the hook. Inside standard trailers, load bars and load straps must be used correctly to prevent freight from shifting in transit. Loose or improperly placed cargo is a violation, even if it’s not visible from outside the trailer.
DOT Blitz Week doesn’t have to be a source of anxiety. Drivers and fleets that run compliant every day have nothing to fear from a three-day enforcement surge. But it’s a good forcing function to do a thorough review, especially of ELD health, log accuracy, and load securement practices before May 12 arrives.
Use the next few weeks to reinforce these habits with your drivers, spot-check recent logs, and make sure every truck leaving the yard during Roadcheck week is road-ready from front to back.