Advancing a program to allow adults under 21 years old to transport goods and materials across state lines on semi-trucks has become something of a head-scratcher. That’s largely because the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) recently asked the White House Office of Management and Budget for “emergency approval.” But a mirror pilot program had already been conducted in 2018 for military personnel and reservists under 21 who possessed a CDL equivalent.
“This program will allow our veterans and reservists to translate their extensive training into good-paying jobs operating commercial vehicles safely across the country, while also addressing the nationwide driver shortage,” former Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao reportedly stated in 2018.
One would imagine that the successful pilot program under Section 5404 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act would have set a national program in motion before the country struggled to fill a reported 80,000 truck driver shortfall. The FMCSA reportedly sought 200 truckers for the study to compare safety data with overall trucking statistics. At the time, outfits such as the Teamsters union, Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways (CRASH), Public Citizen, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) were reportedly against approving the measure.
“We feel if they want to make a 150-mile radius that’s fine, but this deal of letting younger people just go all over the country, it’s unsafe, it’s crazy. We all know that younger people crash more. They have more accidents,” OOIDA executive vice president Lewie Pugh reportedly said at the time. The OOIDA also argues that no truck driver shortage exists.
With no clear leadership at the FMCSA, after Meera Joshi abruptly resigned to take a post in New York Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, interim officials are trying to drag the pilot program across the finish line. Under the DRIVE-Safe Act, part of the recent $1.2 federal infrastructure spending package, under-21 CDL holders will again be studied to determine whether a younger workforce can safely buoy the industry.
What seems counterintuitive is that the 3-year, under 21 military pilot program should already provide sufficient data to pull the trigger and move forward. But like many Washington, D.C., solutions, the FMCSA appears to have taken a step backward.
“The request for emergency (Office of Management and Budget) approval was issued to help meet deadlines for establishing the apprenticeship program outlined in the bipartisan infrastructure law, also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” an FMCSA spokesperson reportedly said. “At this time, nothing is being requested from the motor carriers. This (information collection request) is informing the public of the information collection and the opportunity to comment.”
The latest pilot program only allows truckers with intrastate CDLs to participate, much like the previous military one drafted about four years ago. In many ways, the recent FMCSA moves are like déjà vu all over again.
Sources: ccjdigital.com, tttnews.com
putting kids behind wheel of 80,000lb vehicle travelling 60mph is truly incredibly idiotic. there isnt a driver shortage. the problem is the current job structure SUCKS. paid by the mile = go go go become slave to the truck.
build a structure that doesnt make you choose between providing for family and spending quality time with them
Lets not forget hazmat and your spot on with being a slave to the truck. OTR is a life style not a job. You spend your down time in a sleeper that is smaller then a jail cell and you are putting up with shippers, customers and the general public that has no respect for the job you do and even drive recklessly trying to get in front of you because heven forbid that they take 30 seconds longer to get to wherever. There is no driver shortage. There is way more then 80k CDL holders but they refuse to be torn from their families for a job that pays less then minimum wage. Pay drivers for a 24 hour day for each day out and then you will have the 80k drivers and you won’t need to hire kids to run semis.
18 year old kids can serve and defend our country but they are not good enough to drive a truck? Not every kid will be STUPID ENOUGH or LAZY ENOUGH to want to drive a truck.
@ STUPID, LAZY Bob Lee: I was U.S. ARMY MOTOR POOL (63B) @ 17 Yrs. old for 4 yrs. I had to wait until I was 21 regardless of military background to get my CDL. Looks like someone’s one of those butt hurt, ‘brake checking’, failed CDL holding WOKE loonies who thinks everyone’s ENTITLED to something. YOU yourself call them KIDS < (Open mouth, insert foot!) NUFF SAID!
Well, I see wee have an idiot in the room. When you go in the military, you have boot camp, and a lot of other training that pertains to your job, your rate, your MOS, or whatever you want to call it. It only take 3 weeks to get a CDL. 3 weeks with a trainer if you’re lucky, and then boom out on the open road. Your comparison is ignorant and idiotic. I served in the Military, and then started driving a truck when I got out in 1999. Maybe I’m one of those “lazy” folks that you eluded to in your comment. I know this with out a doubt, my family wants for nothing, Nothing at all, because I’m a lazy truck driver.
Isn’t that the truth. The whole system needs a overhaul.
Approving those under 21 is pointless if insurance companies will not insure them. There’s nothing the FMCSA can do to force it.
FMCSA is failing it’s duties. USDOT isn’t driving what’s important, it’s leaving people behind.
25+ should remain the driving age standard for commercial business & it’s liabilities.
I think comparing our well-trained military young men to over-the-road driving is pointless. No amount of military training prepares anyone for sitting behind the wheel hour after hour with your only reward being a nap in a small space, in a strange place, so you can get up later (day or night) and do it all over again,
And I wonder where this 80,000 driver shortage stuff came from. We’ve been hearing this for over a decade. How come our mighty government hasn’t fixed it YET?
An 18 year old doesn’t have enough real world experience and maturity to safely operate a big rig. It would be like throwing them in the deep end of the pool, and setting them up for failure. A lot of them will be left with scars, on their records and in their minds. As with so many proposals backed by the big players in this industry, at it’s core this is about money. They created their own mess with this so called driver shortage, and now they want the government to bail them out with desperate measures.
I recall getting a chauffer’s license at the ripe old age of 18. (40 years ago) I took a 20 question test and had a guy with a truck sign a waiver. You talk about 80,000 lbs. I ran lowboy at 13 foot wide and 135,000 lbs. Many loads snaking threw Seattle on I 5 & 90. I know a lot of young folks cant cut it, but I bet a lot could. If your cut out to do any thing in life, you will succeed.
Yep, got my commercial license when I was 17. My license just turned 50 this January when I turned a youthful 67. Plus at that time there weren’t any driver tests paper or driving. So I’ve never taken any tests for my license. Accident free for 50 years, both as an employee and O/O. Now since I just said that should probably be looking at getting outa this business.
They bitch about commercial drivers causing major accidents yet they want prepubescent teens drive 80k lbs machines. All this just not to pay better wages and drive less hours. That’s why big idiot companies like swift,knight,cr England ,Werner,crst,jb hunt, shcieder etc lie about driver shortages to get these stupid laws passed so they can pay drivers shit !!!
Most 18 to 21 year olds are more worried about smoking marijuana and chasing tail. A 23 year old just got put in jail for killing and injuring multiple people in an accident. 20 years ago you might have been able to do this but not with the worthless lazy kids today. Plus just because you offer them this and they start 99.99% will not stay doing it. So just more money for schools who won’t follow the rules in the first place. Fix the industry, get rid of the Elds, stop the discriminatory practices of unfair taxes, tolls, hos, etc. if you do you’ll bring back the experienced drivers that left the industry.
10’s of 1000’s of current & past commercial drivers (includeing Vets) had to WAIT UNTIL THEY WAS 21 to get their CDL. The DOT has been babbling about a driver shortage since the early 80’s. KEEP IT 21!!! Many current younger CDL holders already can’t drive or back up & run everyone off the road. What’s next? The FAA follows suit & starts giving 18 yr. olds Pilots license for commercial airlines.
Just like one of the big company’s recently learned, you run cheap, you lose. They refused driver rate increases for 8 years. 8 years of broken promises year over year in a certain dedicated fleet. They USED to have a lot of 20-30 yr veterans and mentor trainers. During the last broken promise year, they lost most of them. The veterans had told them it was the last straw and kept their word. 6 months later, they couldn’t get any new recruits to stay with the account after their orientation and mentorship entry period — most shifted over to other accounts, or left to work for other fleets. And even though the pay rate did indeed increase to almost double what it had been, no one is signing up or staying past their orientation period.
Gee, I wonder why…? I guess throwing money at the problem isn’t always the answer, especially when your reputation already sucks, people know you’re untrustworthy and a bald faced liar, and the fact that you just shelled out double means you could afford it all along.
“B-bu-but …DRIVER SHORTAGE!” *arms flailing*
Maybe there wouldn’t be a driver shortage, a cop shortage, etc, ….if the elites would stop treating the common folk like cattle just there to make money for THEM while they get treated like garbage.
This is a new generation. Parents are teaching their children to go to college or join the military. Most young adults want to be home with their loved ones without working a stressful and dangerous job. In that case they will find out quickly this is NOT the career for them.