This profile series spotlights the members of ATA's Law Enforcement Advisory Board (LEAB), which works to strengthen the ties between the trucking industry and law enforcement community. LEAB is comprised of ATA members who have previous experience in federal, state, and local law enforcement, as well as current and retired law enforcement officials who have contributed positively to the partnership between both groups.
For more than 26 years, Bill Kotynski has been a trusted leader at Ryder, helping customers strengthen safety programs and navigate compliance issues. But before he ever worked with a fleet, he wore a badge.
Kotynski spent over a decade with the Michigan State Police, working criminal and regulatory investigations and patrolling highways before being promoted to investigator and eventually serving as Commander of the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Divisions investigative unit. His law enforcement career gave him a unique perspective on safety, compliance, and ethics — qualities that would later make him an invaluable asset to the trucking industry.
His move to Ryder began with a simple phone call. The company’s national safety manager reached out to ask about Michigan trucking law, which differs in some ways from federal regulations. Bill answered his questions, sent over the statutes, and before long, received a surprising follow-up: “I’d like to recruit you.”
It was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up. In the nearly three decades since that phone call, he’s served as a senior manager of safety and loss prevention as well as a senior loss prevention consultant for Ryder, enjoying every step of the way. Kotynski said he still misses police work every day and his heart still pumps blue.
“If everything changed tomorrow, I’d still tell you it was the best move ever,” Kotynski said. “Ryder is an amazing and ethical company with phenomenal leadership. The way they make decisions, it’s almost a state police model. They always do the right thing.”
That commitment to doing things by the book was clear early on. Shortly after Bill joined Ryder, two managers allowed drivers to exceed hours-of-service limits by just 15 minutes to save money. Headquarters found out and terminated them immediately.
“They said, ‘If you want to violate the regulations, you do it for someone else. You’re not doing it for us.’ That was music to my ears,” Kotynski recalled.
At Ryder, Bill spends his days helping customers improve safety programs, answering compliance questions, and making sure Ryder’s business partners share the company’s high ethical standards. His law enforcement background gives him a unique advantage in working with agencies across the country.
“I can speak to law enforcement with law enforcement knowledge,” he said. “It’s a two-way street. They call us for information, and we share what we can to help the industry and the motoring public.”
Bill’s dedication to safety extends beyond Ryder. Every year since retiring from the Michigan State Police, he has been invited to serve on the state’s Michigan State Police Motor Carrier Advisory Board. In 2023, he was appointed — and recently reappointed — by the governor to the Michigan Truck Safety Commission, the only body in the U.S. solely dedicated to commercial truck driver education and safety.
The commission funds training programs, including a unique driver training track with a skid pad operated by the Michigan Trucking Association. “Drivers come back raving about it,” Bill said. “It’s all about the safety of the drivers and the motoring public.”
For fellow law enforcement officers considering a second career in trucking, Bill has simple advice: choose the right company.
“Ask in the interview how they handle violations and regulations. For someone from law enforcement, it’s critical to work somewhere ethical that does things the right way.”
From investigating crimes to safeguarding fleets, Bill Kotynski’s career shows that the skills, discipline, and integrity forged in public service can be a perfect fit for trucking, especially when paired with a company committed to safety and doing what’s right.