The year about to call it quits later this week was pretty much uninspiring for truckers. And, frankly, 2026 doesn't appear to hold much more hope for professional drivers.
An online poll by Truckers News found just about half of respondents had lukewarm responses when we asked, "How was your 2025?" Likewise, many truckers answering our poll expect the same of the new year that begins Thursday, while some just hope it won't be as hectic as 2025.
Here are the numbers.
We asked, "How was your 2025? and the results were:
- 23.56% said it was good
- 20.99% said it was fair
- 20.69% said it was poor
- 14.37% said it was about the same as 2024
- 9.77% said they'd be glad to see it gone
- 8.05% said it was great
Worth noting are the results of the same poll on Truckers News a year ago. Then, 44.63% of respondents said the expected 2025 to be, "A decent year and better than 2024." But, 19.8% said they expected 2025 to simply be a continuation of the year before.
We also asked, "What are you expecting or hoping 2026 will be like?" The results were:
- 36.26% said, "Same stuff. Different year."
- 23.08% said, "Hope it's less tumultuous than 2025 has been."
- 18.68% said, "New year. New opportunities."
- 8.79% had no opinion either way
- 5.4% said, "Can't wait for it to arrive
For comparison's sake, a recent Talker Research poll of 2,000 Americans found:
- 39% of respondents said 2025 was "just okay"
- 19% said it was "bad"
- 10% called it "awful"
That same poll found asked about what's ahead for 2026, and the results found:
- 45% of those responding said they plan on saving more money in the year ahead
- 45% said, to no big surprise, plan on getting more exercise
- 40% plan to eat healthier
- 29% expect to spend more time outdoors
- 29% said the plan on improving their mental health
