How Did the Driver Shortage Happen?
The current driver shortage didn't happen overnight, but to carriers facing the oncoming crisis that's coming - well, like a speeding truck - it can certainly feel that way. A "perfect storm" of detriments has created a void in the normal flow of potential drivers, from baby boomers eyeing retirement or alternate jobs that keep them closer to homes and families to millennials that consider the demands of truck driving a poor match for their desired lifestyle. In terms of truck-driving demographics, those edge-of-retirement baby boomers are also being pulled off the road by stiffer regulations on medical conditions like sleep apnea, which could affect alertness or even response time out on the road.
Why
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Is It Such a Big Deal? A staggering 70% of all freight transported within the United States travels by truck according to the latest statistics from the Bureau of Transportation. Forbes' Kevin O'Marah notes the current shortfall of truck drivers is estimated to be 50,000 of the 850,000 currently on the road, which means that nearly 6% of needed drivers simply don't exist, leaving almost 5% of truck-transported freight without a delivery channel. What's worse, the ages and retirement likelihood of those remaining drivers point firmly in the direction of the problem getting much, much worse in the next 5-10 years. Fever-pitch competition on hot products and raw materials doesn't mesh well with a lack of bodies to get those commodities from point A to point B - so what happens now? Can anything be done to stop the bleeding and get more trained pros in driver seats that are already empty, or well on their way to being so? Thankfully, the answer is a firm yes. Technology Can Pave the Way While hassles like paper log systems might not be the main reason that veteran drivers are leaving the field, they're definitely a contributing factor to the jaw-dropping BoT-cited 90% first-year turnover rate for domestic trucking companies.
If 9 out of 10 drivers are opting out of the industry before they've even been in a year, it's not a stretch to think that user experience is to blame for at least some of them. Happily coinciding with a December 18th mandate, ELDs - electronic logging devices - are making the much-maligned paper log a thing of the past, allowing drivers to travel through many states nearly seamlessly. With ELD features like mobile device interfaces and safeguards to prevent text-alert distractions on the road, the cab is no longer an unfamiliar, caught-in-time platform for forward-thinking millennials.During the actual drive, emerging practices like platooning - the high-tech linking of two trucks that allows for a very close following speed and near-simultaneous braking in the rear truck without driver input - help cut down on wind resistance and fuel consumption. This makes hauls more profitable for busy drivers, and also ensures a level of safety for both truck drivers and the other vehicles that they share the road with. This practice also lowers the difficulty level for newer truck drivers, though they should receive training and ample solo time on their own hauls before linking up in a platoon formation to avoid …show more content…
accidents. Visibility is Key In terms of high school-aged young drivers-to-be, they might dismiss truck driving out of hand, mainly because they don't realize how much money there is to be made in the profession.
Outreach, though not a new or revolutionary concept in and of itself, is absolutely necessary to infuse the trucking industry with the talent it needs to weather out the coming driver-shortage storm. If your company doesn't currently do career day outreach or produce brochures for the counseling office or job center, there's never been another time to start. By the time your interested parties graduate and hopefully get a little experience under their belt, you'll have a rich crop of potentials to consider, some of whom might even already have commercial driving experience. The cost of retaining your existing drivers and finding new ones might feel a little exhausting, but there are a large amount of free resources - including our powerful Freight Costs eBook - here to help. Listen and learn from industry experts, ensure your staff feels welcomed and appreciated, and soon you'll have a fleet of drivers that you can depend on to pull through and perform through almost any condition - including the looming shortage. Start reading and start shoring up your fleet for 2017's changes: your clients will thank
you!
A Modest Proposal For Making Driving More Entertaining, While Creating The Same Risks For Everyone On The Road
Statistics show 16- to 17-year-old driver death rates increase with each additional passenger, which is due to distracted driving. Taking your eyes off the road for 2 (two) seconds, at 60 mph, means you have driven blindly for half the length of a football field. The risk of fatality is 3.6 times higher, when they are driving with passengers than when alone. For many years, the correlation between driving behavior and age has interested highway safety researchers and administrators. It is general knowledge that the greatest risk of motor vehicle crash...
Commercial Truck Driving is a very important career it transport goods to companies to keep them going. Trucking has been a part of my family now I’m trying to make it a part of yours the world will forever need truckers. If you like to travel go to one of your local colleges and enroll today. Without truckers no stores will operate they will have no goods. Truck driving is a well needed career to help transport goods across the United States and our local area.
EVIRONMENTAL SCAN Social- • The trucking industry has grown over the years and does not discriminate on gender or race. The demographic of the trucking industry is across the board and it can appeal to older people as well. The people who are tired of the Fastlane and just want to work or the ones looking to take care of their family without having to be in the service industry working two jobs.
Worth noting, is the fact that most drivers are persuaded to the belief that they can send some messages without negatively affecting their driving capabilities. However, some important studies have revealed that drivers are not as capable of multi-tasking as they believe they are. Researchers have revealed that drivers who text ...
The current teenage generation is known for their use of cellphones while driving. Ever since they have been driving they have had cellphones and its second nature for them to answer it when it rings. Teenagers don’t have much experience driving in the first place, yet parents are buying cellphones for their...
Mark Borgard says that there is two reasons people use their cell phones while driving. The first reason is for multitasking. Nowadays, people think that they are supposed to be able to do many things at a time. Technology has revolved so much and made it easier to multitask. People think that the technology changing is a good thing, but it just makes everything more dangerous. The second reason is in consideration. Many people don’t think that there stupid ch...
Drivers that take road trips and drivers happen to work late night shifts are the tops contributors to sleep related car crashes. People that plan on driving for long periods of time should stop once they feel too tired and get a hotel room.
These technologies have made driving an easier and enjoyable experience, as well as reducing our chances of getting into accidents. The research presented in the following article “Driven to Distraction [in car technology]” provided surprising conclusions. Professor John D. Lee from the University of Iowa states the following issue: “Technology is changing very quickly. Many of these things coming into the car were not designed to be used in it. ”(Edwards 8).
Drivers who use their phone while driving create too many distractions for themselves and others,
Furthermore, silent alarms and enhanced radio communications with the dispatcher will allow the drivers to request for help in appropriate amount of time. A vehicle tracking device will too serve as an important indirect communication device when a driver is under distress and unable to communicate. Other minor changes such as improved lighting inside the cab to allow the driver to detect passenger activities and latches inside the trunk can also go a long way to ensure driver
“The Nation lost 35,092 people in crashes on U.S. roadways during 2015” (Traffic and Safety Facts 1). Though this number seems horrific, especially when one considers the sheer number of people on the road each day across the nation, new innovations are constantly being featured in our transportation, in order to reduce the number in deaths on U.S. roadways. The transportation industry seems to be constantly evolving and changing to keep up with the needs of its consumers. Ever since the emergence of the motorized vehicle, several innovative opportunists such as Elon Musk, Larry Page, and Tim Cook have understood the need for swift movement of peoples, and have built their careers on the advancement of the transportation industry. Due to their efforts, new technologies have been introduced onto the market that enables the creation of a fully autonomous car.
In modern times, people who work in the transportation/freight industry are responsible for getting products to various places all over the country. The majority of the produce and goods that we consume and use on a daily basis were transported to the grocery stores they were purchased at from far away, sometimes even overseas. Self-driving cars will take away these jobs and leave a dent in our workforce. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the introduction of self-driving cars will cause a potential loss of up to 2.6 million jobs in the United States. Of these jobs, 1.7 million employ tractor-trailer truck drivers, 650,000 employ bus drivers, and 250,000 employ taxi drivers (Hayes, 2015).
...the demands of driving, but the fundamental problem may be the behaviour of the individuals willing to pick up the technology" (Reimer, 2009).
“The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status, or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we all believe that we are above-average drivers” -Dave Barry, comedian. The number of accidents over the last ten years have drastically increased, drivers are paying less attention to the road itself. Many individuals behind the wheel of a car believe that their driving does not affect the road conditions, however it always will. The driving habits of today are catastrophic due to the reasoning that the driving will affect other lives through reckless or distracted driving, and disobeying traffic laws.