News of Montgomery Transport LLC’s collapse broke like a hard brake check on the interstate. In a video bulletin, Alex Mai of Mutha Trucker – Official Trucking Channel reported the company is filing Chapter 7 and ceasing operations immediately, instructing roughly 600 drivers to stop where they are, deliver only if already near consignees, and otherwise head home to await instructions.
Mai relayed the internal communication drivers were receiving: payroll for completed deliveries would be honored, no new loads should be picked up, and those near the Birmingham, Alabama terminal should return equipment there. For about 1,000 employees in total, he said, the message boiled down to this: it’s over.
The Human Toll, Told by Drivers
Mai’s feed filled with workers posting goodbye notes, snapshots of flatbed loads they were proud of, and pleas for prayers and job leads. One employee’s message, shared by Mai, captured the mood: grateful for colleagues and memories, heartbroken at the loss, and uncertain about what’s next. I’ll be blunt – truckers often rebound faster than office staff because their skills are in high demand; Mai acknowledges that. But for dispatchers, safety coordinators, billing clerks, and shop teams who planned to retire at this company, this kind of abrupt shutdown is a gut punch that doesn’t heal quickly.
How a Sale Derailed Into Liquidation
In the same brief, Mai read from a message attributed to an executive – laying out a timeline that would make any M&A lawyer wince. According to that note, ownership decided in June 2025 to exit the trucking space; P&S (often stylized P&S or P&S Transportation within Daseke’s family) began due diligence in July with a target close of Sept. 30.
Then, Sept. 26, a lawsuit and restraining order by Rollins Montgomery allegedly blocked the sale, “killing” the conventional purchase. The company reportedly pivoted to a Chapter 11 plan, but by Oct. 8, creditor consensus fell apart – and Chapter 7 became the only option. If that internal chronology is accurate, one legal grenade, and subsequent creditor standoffs, blew up the lifeboat.
“Deliver What You’ve Got, Then Shut It Down”
Mai emphasized the operational directives many drivers received: deliver current loads if close; park the truck if near home; don’t accept new freight. That’s the triage you see when a carrier moves from “maybe we can restructure” to “we’re done.” The promise to protect payroll for delivered freight is the lone bright spot in his report. I hope it holds. Too often, in trucking collapses, drivers end up chasing unpaid miles through bankruptcy court while their names and DAC reports carry the scar of a shutdown they didn’t cause.
“This Isn’t a Pivot. It’s the End.”
Insurance broker Kevin Taylor at State & Co Truck Insurance offered a broader and blistering diagnosis. He calls Montgomery’s Chapter 7 a case study in internal rot, not just tough market forces. In his view, drivers were left stranded after fuel cards were canceled, authority revoked, and paychecks missed, with some still sitting under loads as the news hit.
Taylor’s critique isn’t delicate: he frames the collapse as one more example of financial engineering and deregulation hollowing out a critical industry. You might disagree on the politics, but the operational description – drivers marooned mid-load, companies going “radio silent” – is a pattern the industry knows too well.
Warning Signs That Didn’t Get Action
Taylor says the signs were obvious for weeks: declining freight counts, billing drop-offs, lost freight, and mounting disorganization. If you’ve been around long enough, you recognize these as classic pre-failure tells – loads get scarce, payroll hiccups, communication evaporates, and rumor fills the vacuum. Taylor argues that while management promised turnarounds, no meaningful intervention came—from regulators, financiers, or industry groups. I’ll add this: there’s no easy lever for regulators to “save” a failing carrier, but there are plenty of ways to prevent the most chaotic form of collapse. We rarely use them.
Who Pays When the Music Stops?
Both Mai and Taylor focus on the people in harm’s way: drivers and front-office staff. Taylor’s point is scathing – executives move on, assets get scooped up “for pennies on the dollar,” and workers are left to fight for wages and clarity in court. He argues the Department of Labor should prioritize back pay before asset transfers, and regulators should freeze corporate asset movements until workers are made whole. In a perfect world, yes. In the world we inhabit, bankruptcy law prioritizes secured creditors, and workers end up in line. This is where policy could change.
A Call for Guardrails – Before the Cliff, Not After
Taylor proposes systemic fixes: escrowed payroll, fuel-card protections, and early-warning disclosures when insolvency is imminent. If that sounds radical, trucking already does versions of this in micro, think factoring reserve accounts or carrier-settle holdbacks meant to cover chargebacks and advances. A formal, legally mandated “worker protection escrow” wouldn’t be crazy. Mai’s reporting underscores why: had drivers known a sale was at risk when that restraining order hit, some could have planned safer exits instead of finding out on a fuel-is-declined screen at 2 a.m. in Cheyenne.
The Lawsuit That Killed the Lifeboat
Let’s return to Mai’s reported executive timeline. If a temporary restraining order by a company insider (or related party) blocked the P&S sale and triggered the chain that led to Chapter 7, that’s not just a business dispute—it’s the match that lit 1,000 livelihoods on fire. Maybe there were principled reasons; maybe there was a better plan that never materialized. But in a people business like trucking, process risk is people risk. My view: if you’re going to take the legal shot that prevents a rescue, you owe workers a viable alternative – not just a righteous fight.
Will Drivers Land on Their Feet?
Mai notes that other carriers were immediately inviting Montgomery drivers to apply – some even sending recruiter blasts, asking the industry to “please refer them to our recruiting department.” That’s the one structural advantage truckers have in a downturn: CDL-holders with clean records get hired. But there are caveats. Drivers may be stuck with abandoned freight questions, equipment return logistics, and DAC/PSP paper trails that need careful documentation. Pro tip: photograph equipment on return, keep copies of bills of lading, settlement statements, fuel receipts, and written instructions you received during the shutdown. Documentation is your friend when HR changes hands.
What This Collapse Says About the Market
Taylor sees Montgomery’s fall as part of a broader pattern – soft freight, high operating costs, tight credit, and too much leverage. He’s not wrong. The flatbed segment in particular lives on construction, manufacturing, and energy demand cycles. When those slow, weaker carriers wobble. But structure matters, too. If we continue to allow carriers to switch off without guardrails, we will keep having stranded drivers, unpaid staff, and shippers caught mid-supply chain. This isn’t about “saving every company.” It’s about civilizing the failure when failure happens.
The Road Ahead – and What Should Change
What should happen now? From Taylor’s list and the lessons in Mai’s reporting, three reforms make sense:
- Wage Priority & Escrow: Require carriers above a certain size to maintain a segregated payroll account covering a rolling two weeks of wages and reimbursements, triggered for release at the first insolvency notice.
- Fuel & Freight Safeguards: Mandate a 72-hour operational wind-down protocol: fuel cards stay live for load delivery and equipment return; carriers must issue written instructions to every driver and notify shippers/consignees of custody plans.
- Early Warning: Create a notice of material distress filing with FMCSA when a sale is blocked or a restructuring becomes likely – so drivers can plan and shippers can reroute.
None of this saves a broken balance sheet. But it saves people from chaos.
Final Mile
Between Alex Mai’s frontline reporting and Kevin Taylor’s hard-edged analysis, one truth is non-negotiable: 1,000 people just lost their paychecks because a deal died and a company hit the wall. The industry can debate blame. Drivers can’t debate rent. If we want trucking to keep America moving, we have to stop treating its workforce as shock absorbers for every failed merger and every botched pivot. A more orderly landing isn’t charity. It’s basic competence.
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Mark grew up in the heart of Texas, where tornadoes and extreme weather were a part of life. His early experiences sparked a fascination with emergency preparedness and homesteading. A father of three, Mark is dedicated to teaching families how to be self-sufficient, with a focus on food storage, DIY projects, and energy independence. His writing empowers everyday people to take small steps toward greater self-reliance without feeling overwhelmed.
