The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has finally published a proposed entry-level driving training rule to attempt to ensure that new drivers are as safe as possible, but the rule has met with mixed reactions so far.
Industry groups, safety groups, and even carriers have been calling for reform to CDL training for years and the FMCSA promised to implement rules that would ensure that drivers graduating with new CDLs would actually have the skills and knowledge necessary to keep themselves and fellow motorists safe.
“The Agency believes this rulemaking would enhance the safety of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) operations on our Nation’s highways by establishing a more extensive entry-level driver training (ELDT) protocol and by increasing the number of drivers who receive ELDT.”
The proposed rule would not require drivers to spend any specific amount of time in a classroom, but would require that every new Class A driver receive at least 30 hours of behind-the-wheel training – 10 of which must be on a practice driving range. Additionally, the rule stipulates that drivers must spend a total of 10 hours driving on public roads or at least 10 trips on a public road lasting no less than 50 minutes each.
While the ATA is generally applauding the proposed rule, they have expressed concern that there should not be a minimum number of hours required. This was a concern they also expressed as part of the Entry Level Driver Training Advisory Committee, a board made up of “25 industry stakeholders and FMCSA” which met to discuss what provisions should be included in the proposed rule. They and the National Association of Small Trucking Companies were the only two groups who thought a minimum amount of hours behind the wheel was a bad idea.
According Fleetowner, ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said that the “ATA is concerned that an arbitrary requirement centered on behind-the-wheel training hours distracts from a more important focus on performance and safety outcomes.” He went on to point out that some drivers will need more hours to “demonstrate proficiency” and others will need less.
Don Lefeve is the President and CEO of the Commercial Vehicle Training Association, the largest trade association representing truck driving schools. He agrees with the mandatory minimums, but while supporting it, highlighted what some in the industry are taking issue with.
“The proposal pretty much embodies all that we agreed upon,” Lefeve told Fleet Owner. “We all know that training works, and in our experience it takes a driver a minimum of 30 hours for proficiency.”
Lefeve’s claim that it “takes a driver a minimum of 30 hours for proficiency” showcases that the rule only calls for the absolute minimum that a driver might need to achieve “proficiency.” Some in the industry are concerned that for an entry-level driver training rule to be effective at keeping drivers and others safe, more than a minimum level of proficiency should be required before allowing new drivers on the road.
There are multiple other changes that have been made in the proposed rule, which you can read in its entirety here.
Source: regulations, truckinginfo, overdrive, fleetowner, fleetowner, fleetowner
ATA at it again. They should change their name to ANTI TRUCKER. AGENCY. They seem to be a branch of government out to screw truckers not a private pro trucker advocate. The proposed changes are a great MINIMUM starting point. They also should include a minimum 2 years experience for anybody driving with the new driver.
With the number of really bad drivers on the road getting into constant accidents.. More training is needed. I had a driver back into my truck last week because he was never taught to GET OUT AND LOOK he just kept backing up until he hit me. I think there should be a steep fine for companies who cut drivers loose that can’t even back up…”Ohh it’s OK if you don’t know how to drive,.. You’ll figure it out ” this needs to END!!!
I agree with you. Most new drivers need a lot of practice backing up. I once read most truck accidents happen in truck stops.
Something I have seen going on is these companies will put people in a truck and send them off down the road, just to get the freight moving. But, for example I have been driving since 1980. I was pulled from the road and put into the office environment helping with log audits, training in the classroom, etc.. Now when I applied for a driving position,I am told that being I do it have 12-36 months recent driving experience that I have to go out with a trainer to teach me how to drive. Really? What has this industry come too? I have 35/36 years experience and I need to be trained to drive because I was teaching new drivers how to do things right?
I had to ride along with a trainer for two months on paying loads after 2 weeks of classroom and 30 hrs in truck. After the two months were up that’s when the decision was made if I got to drive alone. There were people that didn’t make it. Driving with those trainers puts pressure on you and is a good way to test skills.
No not even close. It should be an apprentice system. Why rush these drivers out so you can have more idiots to haul cheap freight? We already have truck stops full of drivers who have no clue how bad they are being screwed.
There is a quality named talent. It usually comes coupled with another quality named affinity for machinery. The problem is affirmative action, equal opportunity placement of no talent people in control of a huge piece of mobile machinery. A sure recipe for trouble, quite possibly disaster.
So you disregard company greed in hiring the least experienced drivers at the least amount of pay and point to the underclass?
I agree a apprenticeship type program is needed, also there should be a set amount of hours of on the road training (40 with a loaded trailer ) , classroom (30 doing proper pre-trips ,learn about the air brake system disk and drum) or more, then at least 40 on a driving range split between driving forward (20) and reversing (20).
There is a lot more that could be done but this is a good start.
It would be nice when I pass a company truck they keep it on there side of the zipper
So after 30 hours of training their ready to go? It seems like their making backwards progress to me. When I got my CDL in 2000 I went to FFE school in Dallas. We did one month in a class room and driving range then 8 weeks with a trainer….so now it’s only 30 hours? Am I missing something?
That’s before they even get in the truck with their trainer.
So… 30 hours of training, 10 of which would be on a practice range.
Let’s break that down.
20 hours behind the wheel, on the road. That’s just shy of two 11 hour tours of duty OTR.
10 hours on a practice range. That’s basically 10 hours backing and maneuvering, say, in a truck stop parking lot.
Yep. Seems legit.
No matter how much training a person might go through… some folks just don’t have the common sense nor aptitude to drive a big truck – PERIOD !! But yet many of them are behind the wheel of a 40 ton rolling time bomb!
“some folks just don’t have the common sense nor aptitude to drive a big truck – PERIOD !! ” Well said Road Jouster . And another thing..the media claims “anyone dummy can drive a truck” That’s why a guy who works in an office loses his job to downsizing…can go into trucking with no training.
I have been in the truck driver training industry for twenty six years and 30 hours is definitely the absolute minimum for a quick learner with a background of similar experience. You have to start somewhere though so it’s better than nothing. I am from Canada and we have no minimum so it’s scary how easy it is to obtain a class 1. I have hoped we would adopt a minimum for years.
30 hours? When I got my AZ license in Ontario I had 90 hours of in class training and 90 hours of road time, most of it on public roads. When I passed my road test, I still would have welcomed more training. Luckily I’m with a company who is training me with a fine tooth comb and turning me into a true professional, because I see a lot of drivers who clearly had the bare minimum. I get that this is US legislation and not Canadian, but the principle should be the same. There’s no place on our roads for truckers who don’t know what they’re doing.
30 hours for proficiency??? How bout years??
So you’re telling me a little more than a day driving, ( 24 hrs) is time enough to become proficient? The FMCSA has been nothing but a yoke around the neck of the industry since it’s inception. Now they’re goung to justify their existence by turning loose drivers that haven’t got the skills to drive a rig and cause more truck accidents!
New drivers need to be with someone at least a 6 month ride along to show their skills before being cut loose on the open road , if the experienced driver doesn’t feel they cut the grade, well they probably aren’t made out to be commercial drivers, companies need to evaluate, and spend the money to have safer drivers out there. I also agree with the concept of GOAL. I practice this just to be sure, I don’t care if I look like a dummy. Too many variables out there to consider to make a bad judgement.
While I agree that more training is necessary, I disagree with your 6 month ride along apprenticeship idea. Speaking only for myself, I was ready to kill my trainer after 6 days – there is no way I would have made it 6 months. Most drivers wouldn’t.
Another problem that needs a good hard look is choosing trainers. With most companies, if you have 6-12 months total driving experience, and attend a 4 hour class, then Shazaam! You’re now a trainer. The vast majority of these company trainers are only doing it for the money and treat their trainees like “meat in the seat”. Certainly, trainers should be compensated fairly. But most trainers need more training themselves before they should be allowed to be resposible for a brand new driver.
Proper training has always been kind of a guessing game because everyone is different. Then that goes out the window when there is a loaded trailer sitting in the yard. The office lizards get all excited and want it gone period. They don’t much care who takes it as long as it goes.
I agree with running second seat for several months at least before going out solo but it should be with different trainers because people clash sometimes and it should never be up to one person when it comes to being trained for a career.
As for the 1st seat/ trainer there is no way someone with a years experience can train someone else because they won’t know squat being only a year on the road if that is the requirement for said responsibility. It is absurd to even think that would be possible.
Just as thinking writing this here will make a bit of difference is ridiculous because at the end of the day there is one thing and only one things that matters to the office lizards and it is not safety, or you that is of concern to them. It is money and that is the only thing that matters. So a loaded trailer in the yard? They will put a monkey behind the wheel and never give it a second thought because the loaded trailer is gone..
I went to school many years ago and spent more than 30hr backing less than 20hr driving. I agree that it is not something that you can put a number of hours to. It should be an apprenticeship; where the apprentice is out on the road for months. There is just so much that you can’t teach in the class room or yard. Even more so, for OTR.
I agree with an apprenticeship type training program idea. I can’t see that these 2, 3, 4 week programs are producing quality drivers with potential. How about training “new” drivers how to handle hill’s steeper & longer than the freeway off-ramp. How about training “new” drivers how to handle ice, snow and other inclement weather. How about driving in severely congested “big city” traffic, map reading skills (quite relying solely on gps, qualcom, ect.) . And, a great big yes to the big one, “Backing Up”. IMHO, there should be 30 hours minimum just on backing safely and without hurting someone or damaging property. I have been a cdl truck driver for 30 years and I am scared to death, seeing some of the “drivers” some of these outfits are allowing to pass and hired by the mega carriers who are only beholden to the dollar.
Since it seems like lots of the big outfits are putting new drivers into rigs and sending them up and over the Rocky Mountains in winter conditions, even if they’ve never driven in ice/snow, I hope a longer apprentice style training program will become a requirement. If it doesn’t, we’re likely to keep seeing innocent people being killed by rookie truck drivers.
Not even a week behind the wheel? Good grief.
Wouldn’t it be fun if the CEO of the trucking company had to ride along with one of the new drivers for a couple of weeks!! Lol
Do they still teach students how to do paper logs in the event the electronic logs quit working?
If the people and government want safer roads then I suggest……
Raise the drivers license age
Stop allowing children to have high powered vehicles.
Install signal jammers in cars of people under the age of 25 that block cell phone signals while the vehicle is in motion. Over the age of 25 make cell phones work hands free only while vehicle is in motion.
Also raise penalties for driving offenses for drivers under 25 years old.
Truck drivers don’t cause all the accidents on the road and I bet the majority of trucking accidents involving cars were caused by the driver of the car. It just couldn’t be proven.
What needs to happen is a new driver should get his/her TIP (temporary instruction permit). Those are good for 6 months, now they get in a truck for some real “on the job training”. Minimum of 90 days with a Senior driver, a Journeyman. In those 90 days they will be scored on proficiency with a Pass or Fail system. This way if they are ever involved in an accident, a number system could not be used against them in court. Once the apprentice has passed all his/her proficiency tests, than they can go take the road test to get their unrestricted CDL.
YOU CANNOT LEARN TO DRIVE TRUCK IN 16 DAYS!!!!!!!
You can however, learn to pass the road test required to get your CDL and to join the thousands of unsafe new drivers on the roads today.
Been on the road 30 years in the big trucks and strangly I see more bad habits, road rage and unsafe driving practices from older experienced drivers then a lot of the rookies I’ve trained and driven with. Many new guys in my opinion are fairly safe in the first 6 months, after that they start thinking they got it all figured out and start pushing it. Another thing is mountain braking, many times a year I see trucks with smoke coming from their brakes because they where never told how to come down a hill. With the technology we have now adays to moniter driving performance a 1 year apprenticeship with constant monitering of heavy brake applications, speeding etc would probably do more in the long run for safety. But I’m wasting my breath, truck laws are so political now a days its more what the lobbiests, polititians and law enforcement think then anything that will actually work and make sense. I wish the law makers would just leave us alone for a few years and go bug the airline pilots for a while.
I didn’t see anybody comment on the experience level of many driver trainers. The comments above that reflect the age and experience level of CDL holders don’t mention that many of the trainers are mere rookies themselves… how does this make the industry safe?
1 to 2 years is all you need to be an ignorant rookie trainer.
Ya know I’ve been doing some thinking about this in the past few days.
There’s an old commercial that stated “DON’T FOOL WITH MOTHER NATURE”
We’re not robots and the more regulations, macros and stupid ass ! Rules tryin to perfect what just is , is ludicrous.
How about companies not receiving government tax based subsidies for hiring just anyone off the street?
How about the government get the hell out of the way and let us do our job ?
How about shippers and receivers as well as companies taking responsability for once !!? And being actually held accountable.
What fines do any of them receive that actually make a difference without the driver having fear of losing his job ?
I’ve never seen more damn stupidity in all my life than in this field of work ever since I got involved.
Mostly from Govt and Corporations.
You are the cause not the drivers.
It used to be a respectable position and profitable to be a driver before all the money got dulled out to big business etc. ..
So many unnecessary positions of office personel suckling the tit off the drivers completely dry not to mention the fines by DOT
It’s all about revenue not income for the drivers !!!
There is another saying “don’t bite the hand that feeds you”
But that is all you do.
Sincerely;
Troy Dodge
YOU TELL THEM TROY! You are 100% correct.
The trainers have to understand that subiste can Driver a truck from point a to point b, bit mostrar of new drivers don’t have a clue how to back into anything. I had to puf my self for almost seven months four trainers and none of them had a clue how to train. So i too my Phone and recorded all moves and maneuvers and when I leased my first truck, two days to practice all of them. Usually trainers they cash On trainees and don’t even teach the basics. Companies should have to do a final test but they only take trainers word to be approved
Then they have to somehow make trainers more responsible for the rookies they train; is what you are saying.
30 and 10? Dam! I spent about 90 hours in the truck when I went to school in North Carolina. Granted, only around half of this time was behind the wheel but we were on the “real road” the whole time while doing this. No closed courses at all! All and all 45 or so hours in the yard and the other 45 on the HWYs & streets.
30 hours?! Lmao. I was barely ready after 200 hours of truck school, and felt a little confident after 6 months on the job.
So little training wouldn’t be acceptable for any other dangerous job.