Although freight volume is down, a situation which has eased the intense need for more drivers, the need to identify and recruit more trained, qualified drivers remains the most critical issue facing motor carriers, Ronnie Dowdy told the general membership of the Truckload Carriers Association during its annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas, April 8 to 11, 2001. Dowdy, chairman of the TCA Driver Recruitment and Retention Panel, is president of Ronnie Dowdy Inc in Batesville, Arkansas.
Several studies have suggested that the trucking industry will require as many as 80,000 new drivers a year for the foreseeable future to keep pace with demand for highway transportation. In addition, the hours of service regulations recently proposed by the Department of Transportation could impose a need for an additional 49,000 drivers a year. The only way to meet this demand is to expand the existing pool of potential drivers, Dowdy said.
To tap this pool of potential workers, TCA recently filed for a waiver of driver age limitations as provided in the 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century. The act sets 21 as the minimum age for interstate truck drivers. The TCA waiver requests that motor carriers be allowed to hire and train drivers between the ages of 18 and 21. This three-year period is critical, Dowdy said, because, in that time, most non-college-bound workers will find other career paths.
40 States Allow Young Drivers
Precedent for the waiver already exists at the state level, where 40 states allow drivers under age 21 to operate commercial vehicles in intrastate commerce. None of those states have mandatory training, which is a prominent feature of the TCA petition for waiver of the age limit. If that is not argument enough in favor of the waiver, the US military allows 18-year-old drivers to operate heavy trucks in interstate moves, Dowdy said.
As proposed by TCA, the request for a waiver calls for 48 weeks of intensive classroom and supervised behind-the-wheel instruction, leading to full time employment as a commercial interstate driver. The program is based on 22 weeks in an approved truck driving school, eight weeks in a motor carrier's driver finishing program, and 18 weeks of driving in a team with an older, more experienced driver. Participants in the program would be released to operate solo only if they meet stringent performance standards for the entire 48 weeks and have reached their 19th birthday.
As envisaged by TCA, the training program is almost four times as long as the average training for entry-level drivers. For instance, the entry-level program for 21-year-old students at Professional Truck Driver Institute schools is only six to eight weeks long. Motor carrier finishing schools, typically, are four to six weeks long compared to the proposed eight weeks. No additional training with experienced drivers is required after the finishing program for 21-year-olds under current regulations. One result of the proposed training program would be that 19-year-old solo drivers from the younger driver program would have received substantially more training than that now required for 21-year-old entry level drivers. Course standards for the proposed program were developed by PTDI.
To be eligible for the underage training program, students must be high school graduates, hold a GED, or meet the “ability to benefit” standards of the US Department of Education. In addition, students must have held an unrestricted driver license for at least one year and have no speeding citations for more than 15 mph above the posted speed limit. Citations or convictions for reckless driving or operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol will disqualify applicants. Potential students must pass all Department of Transportation physical requirements and be able to pass a drug screen.
“This program would actually give us the opportunity to train someone who has not failed or been dislodged from another career,” Dowdy said. “It can only be successful if we can enroll individuals in training at age 18 upon graduation from high school. It will fail if we must wait until the potential worker must wait until age 21 to enter a training program.”
The proposed program sets standards for motor carriers as well as for students. Carriers must have a satisfactory DOT safety rating and a reportable accident rate below the national average. Tractors must be governed for a top speed of less than 68 mph, and the carrier must participate in a “1-800-How's My Driving?” program.
In addition, carriers must agree to hire younger drivers who complete the initial 22-week training program. They must have a PTDI-certified eight-week driver finishing program and an insurance carrier willing to cover younger drivers in the program. Carriers must assign an older driver as mentor to younger drivers until they reach their 21st birthday. Younger drivers must not be assigned to haul placarded loads or hazardous materials.
Insurance Support Available
One insurance company has already agreed to cover younger drivers. Great West Casualty of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has endorsed the younger driver pilot program. Others should follow if the program gains federal approval.
Approximately 1,000 students would be needed to provide a large enough sample to determine if the program is effective. No geographic restrictions are anticipated for applicants. However, applicants must be US citizens.
If the program is approved, the first students should enter driver schools in June 2001. The first younger drivers operating solo could reach the highway by May 2002.
