FMCSA seeking input on 18- 21-year-old driver pilot

Maria

Diet Coke
Staff member
WASHINGON — As required by the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is seeking public input on a proposed three-year pilot program which would allow a limited number of individuals between the ages of 18 and 21 to operate commercial motor vehicles in interstate commerce if they received specified heavy-vehicle driver training while in military service and are sponsored by a participating motor carrier.

The FMCSA said it is also proposing criteria for a working group to consult with the agency in conducting, monitoring and evaluating the pilot program.

The agency is seeking public input during the next 30 days on the pilot program as well as outlined procedural steps and a data collection plan.

During the proposed three-year pilot program, the safety records of these younger drivers — known as the study group — would be compared to the records of a control group of comparable size, comprising drivers who are 21 years of age or older and who have comparable training and experience in driving vehicles requiring a commercial driver’s license.

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if they received specified heavy-vehicle driver training while in military service and are sponsored by a participating motor carrier
Does the military teach them about traffic laws, vehicle inspections, HOS rules, backing up, etc. or just how to turn corners while playing "follow the leader"?


That's just a red herring though. If you read the article it says it's about the "driver shortage" that only exists in the minds of those who profit from the imbalance of supply vs demand for available hands.

David Heller, director of safety and security for the Truckload Carriers Association, which advocated a similar pilot in 2000, said TCA strongly supports the proposed pilot program.
Heller said if the pilot proves that drivers under 21 are capable of driving safely in interstate commerce, it would open the door for more recruiting efforts designed to lure high school graduates into the trucking profession
Yeah but we'll say "it's for VETERANS & wave a few flags around & all the dumb sheep will support it.. Because 'murica....
 
Does the military teach them about traffic laws, vehicle inspections, HOS rules, backing up, etc. or just how to turn corners while playing "follow the leader"?


That's just a red herring though. If you read the article it says it's about the "driver shortage" that only exists in the minds of those who profit from the imbalance of supply vs demand for available hands.



Yeah but we'll say "it's for VETERANS & wave a few flags around & all the dumb sheep will support it.. Because 'murica....
I read the article and never seen driver shortages anywhere in the article.But anybody with half a brain knows it is about adding more drivers to the industry.FMCSA is so ignorant to the real problem why there's a driver shortage and it's not the drivers that quits or gets fired the reason for the shortage either.
 
I read the article and never seen driver shortages anywhere in the article.But anybody with half a brain knows it is about adding more drivers to the industry.FMCSA is so ignorant to the real problem why there's a driver shortage and it's not the drivers that quits or gets fired the reason for the shortage either.
It's there.

Motor carriers, truck driver training schools, a trade association and an insurance company joined in the petition asking FMCSA to authorize a pilot program to determine if CMV drivers under age 21 could operate CMVs safely in interstate commerce, saying the pilot could help address the shortage of drivers.

Again, there is no shortage. There are plenty of people entering the profession.

Carriers choose not to pay a wage worthy of being gone all the time, and micromanage the drivers & disrespect them with things like video cameras facing them, and this runs them off.

The only "shortage" is PEOPLE who are willing to submit to what these carriers think is acceptable.

There's no shortage of qualified drivers. They've made sure if it with their constant whining that they need more drivers.
 
It's there.



Again, there is no shortage. There are plenty of people entering the profession.

Carriers choose not to pay a wage worthy of being gone all the time, and micromanage the drivers & disrespect them with things like video cameras facing them, and this runs them off.

The only "shortage" is PEOPLE who are willing to submit to what these carriers think is acceptable.

There's no shortage of qualified drivers. They've made sure if it with their constant whining that they need more drivers.
I know there isn't no shortage.Many drivers and potential drivers are more then willing to work but not under the conditions of today's trucking.I do think it serves companies right that can't keep drivers.They just keep looking for drivers to replace the ones that quit only to have those drivers quit.Then you get companies that fire drivers on hearsay crap.Then there's drivers that can't get hired because of csa dac or both.Its a no win situation for drivers all around.Drivers are a huge commodity in this his and the only ones that can see that are the drivers.Everyone else is too dam ignorant to what's really happening with this industry.I see it getting much worse too.I haven't drove for over a year for health reasons,do you think I miss it,hell no I don't.But yet i'm still getting calls as if I filled out an application.Got one today again.I finally told that recruiter I wasn't interested at this time and also said I don't know where you got my name.Recruiter emailed me back and sincerely thanked me.If these ppl would listen to the drivers instead of treating them like robots this industry could be a huge success nationwide.But theyd rather make things harder and zero common since so let them keep trying to figure out ways to find drivers,its never going to happen.
 
It is bad enough, trying to get back into society after doing military time. And with this economy, it can be daunting to find gainful employment beyond a bugger flipper job. Many of these folk's have been asked to do things that is criminal to make any human endure. But in typical fashion, people just look at age and not experience. As a VN vet, I am more than supportive of finding a way to get some of these folks into a productive career after they take off their uniform. One of the best ways to help a person deal with traumatic experiences is to get them busy and productive and responsible

Those that want to restrict these young folks from moving into something like trucking either have never experienced what they have, or it has been so long they forgot. I can still clearly remember the anxiety of returning home after dealing with things that no human should have to see and do. And that was in the early 70's. By getting right to work in a productive career was the best thing to get back into the grove and put my life back into perspective.
 

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