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5 driver shortage myths debunked By Carolyn Magner Mason
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rucking faces the mother of all labor shortages, a fact that has pushed up freight rates, delayed construction projects, and left even the best fleets struggling to keep seats filled, much less add capacity. Right now, trucking is short more than 35,000 truck drivers, according to the American Trucking Associations, and with turnover rates averaging nearly 100 percent 18 | Bulldog | 2015 V1
in some market segments, the problem is both not enough new drivers and an inability to keep existing ones. Add to that a regulatory environment that cuts drivers’ productivity — meaning more trucks and drivers are needed to move the same amount of freight — while also making it more difficult to get a commercial drivers license and it’s no wonder that by 2020 ATA estimates the driver shortage will grow to 240,000 or more.
There are plenty of misconceptions about the root causes of the driver shortage, and no shortage of opinions about how to attract drivers, why they stay and why they leave. To separate reality from fiction, we’ve debunked five of the most common myths about the current state of the driver shortage and the steps fleets can take to lessen its affect on their businesses. After all, you can’t solve a problem until you have all the facts.
