After the Safe Driver Apprenticeship Pilot Program was signed into law in 2021, the federal government and trucking industry thought they had a viable solution to the country’s estimated 80,000 driver shortage. Any optimism was apparently premature. That’s largely because the data released by the Federal Motor Carrier Administration (FMCSA) at the end of 2023 indicates few freight carriers or young adults have shown interest in the program.
The pilot program was designed to allow a maximum of 3,000 apprentices between the ages of 18 and 20 to haul loads across state lines. The FMCSA also anticipated that upwards of 1,000 freight carriers would seek newly minted CDL holders to fill empty positions. But the added measures young adult drivers would have to perform seem to have proven too great an impediment. Unlike adults 21 and older, pilot program participants must complete 400 on-duty hours with at least 240 hours behind the wheel under supervision.
Only after those hurdles have been cleared could a young adult CDL holder work independently. Needless to say, being an apprentice does not necessarily offer the same good-paying compensation as truckers who don’t require a sidekick. These astonishingly low numbers are included in the FMCSA’s 2023 fourth-quarter report.
- FMCSA received only 112 motor carrier applications for the pilot program.
- Thirty-eight motor carrier applications were disapproved.
- Thirty-six motor carrier applications were pre-qualified for the program.
- Thirty-four motor carrier applications were approved.
What demonstrates the pilot program requires some form of revision or incentive stems from the fact that only 36 young adults applied to the driver apprenticeship program. All 36 were initially approved. One was later removed for safety reasons, three aged out after turning 21, and five quit the apprenticeship program. At the end of 2023, 13 drivers completed the program, and another 14 were still enrolled.
Along with the additional 400 hours of riding with a veteran trucker, some industry insiders indicate that personal intrusive measures have turned off the Gen Z crowd.
“The inward-facing cameras, in particular, pushed away at least one of our very large motor carrier members that would have taken a significant percentage of the overall level of apprentices,” Nathan Mehrens, vice president of workforce policy at the American Trucking Associations, reportedly said.
Officials at the FMCSA argue cameras are needed to gather real-time safety data. Members of Congress are currently considering removing the use of cameras in an effort to spark interest in trucking careers.
Sources:
https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/sites/fmcsa.dot.gov/files/2024-01/SDAP%204Q-2023%20PM%20SDAP.pdf
https://au.news.yahoo.com/teen-trucking-program-flat-tire-210725207.html
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