As Tommy Cash marks more than 3.6 million safe miles as a professional truck driver over the past 43 years, his extraordinary career as a Waste Isolation Pilot Plant team member is drawing national recognition in 2026 — again.
Office of Environmental Management
October 6, 2026
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CARLSBAD, N.M. — As Tommy Cash marks more than 3.6 million safe miles as a professional truck driver over the past 43 years, his extraordinary career as a Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) team member is drawing national recognition in 2026 — again.
Cash, a WIPP waste shipment driver of 23 years, was selected as the 2026 Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance International Driver Excellence Award recipient.
The honor comes just months after his impeccable record — safely driving a distance comparable to more than seven round trips to the moon — led the Truckload Carriers Association to recognize Cash with one of its 2026 Professional Drivers of the Year awards.
"Tommy represents what professional driving is supposed to be," said Michael Savage, director of safety for CAST Specialty Transportation, WIPP's transportation contractor. "His record is extraordinary, but the number of miles doesn't tell the whole story. It's the consistency, professionalism, discipline and willingness to teach other drivers that makes Tommy so special."
Tommy Cash, Waste Isolation Pilot Plant waste shipment driver.
Cash’s latest award from the alliance recognizes commercial motor vehicle drivers who demonstrate exceptional commitment to public safety, professionalism and excellence throughout their careers. The alliance described Cash as an example of those qualities, citing his more than four decades of safe driving, mentorship of other drivers and more than 3.6 million safe miles.
According to the alliance, Cash is one of only 36 elite, professional drivers in the United States entrusted with transporting transuranic radioactive waste from U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) sites around the country to the DOE Office of Environmental Management’s WIPP underground repository for permanent disposal. He has also successfully completed more than 1,000 inspections from the alliance during his career transporting radioactive material.
Cash's influence extends beyond the driver's seat. He serves as a lead driver and mentor for WIPP, road-testing applicants, training newly hired drivers and coaching other professional drivers. Savage told the alliance that Cash has set such a high standard that CAST has had to adapt its hiring and training standards to keep pace with his performance.
Cash’s accomplishments have also been recognized at the national level outside the transportation industry. In September, Rep. Gabe Evans of Colorado presented Cash with a certificate of special congressional recognition honoring his 2026 national transportation awards. Cash also received a congressional challenge coin.
"To have Congress recognize Tommy's accomplishments is an incredible honor," Savage said. "Tommy has spent his career representing the very best of professional transportation, and we're proud that his work is receiving recognition.”
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