State trucking associations have elected John Esparza, president and CEO of the Texas Trucking Association, as chairman of the Trucking Association Executives Council (TAEC), as well as Tony Bradley, president and CEO of the Arizona Trucking Association, as vice chairman.
“To say it is a tremendous honor would be an understatement,” said TAEC Chairman John Esparza, president & CEO of the Texas Trucking Association. “I will take Shannon’s lead in this long gray line of so many state executives who have been elected by their peers, all with the same goal in mind: to serve the industry and one another selflessly and with the spirit of the many great men and women who work daily to keep this country trucking safely.”
Esparza previously served the council as vice chair, and now succeeds Shannon Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association after she finished her one-year term as chair. In his new role, he will be the TAEC representative at ATA Executive Committee and Strategic Priorities Committee. Bradley, meanwhile, is the first alternate if Esparza cannot participate in an Executive Committee or Strategic Priorities committee meeting.
Read more: Road to election: Where candidates stand on trucking issues
Prior to their election, Esparza has led the Texas Trucking Association and the Southwest Movers Association since 2006. Before that, he worked for the Governor Rick Perry and Governor George W. Bush administrations, and served on the Texas Energy Task Fore, Texas Panama Canal Stakeholder Work Group, and Texas Proposition 1 Special committee on Transportation Funding. Currently, he serves on the Texas Transportation Commission’s State Freight Advisory Committee and Texas Border Infrastructure Planning Committee, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently appointed Esparza to the Texas Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Task Force.
Meanwhile, Bradley has led the Arizona Trucking Association and Arizona Trucking Association Foundation since 2013. He first began his career with Senator John McCain and worked in various capacities, including consulting and advising on political and public affairs campaigns.
