DOT takes steps to get more drivers in trucks

The U.S. Transportation Department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced two proposals that it said helps address the national shortage of qualified truck drivers.    The U.S. Transportation Department’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has announced two proposals that it said helps address the national shortage of qualified truck drivers.
   The agency said its proposed processes would simplify obtaining a commercial driver’s license (CDL) and help reduce administrative expenses to both driver applicants and state licensing agencies.
   “Taken together, these two proposals will help ease the entry for thousands of qualified individuals into career opportunities as professional truck and bus drivers – a critical occupation facing an acute labor shortage in our country,” explained FMCSA Deputy Administrator Daphne Jefferson, in a statement.
   The proposed processing changes, which were published as two notices of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register, call for:
     • Military licensing and state CDL reciprocity, meaning that state driver licensing agencies could waive the CDL knowledge test for qualified veterans and active duty personnel seeking to obtain a civilian CDL. (Since 2012, FMCSA has allowed states to waive the CDL skill test requirement for qualified former and active military personnel, which has resulted in more than 18,800 individuals to transition from military to commercial truck driving).
     • And commercial learner’s permit validity, allowing states to issue a CDL leaner’s permit with an expiration date of up to a year instead of the current six-month limitation. (The agency said the additional flexibility would eliminate costly paperwork requirements by the states and end unnecessary re-testing and additional fees incurred by individuals who seek an additional 180-day renewal of their CDL learner’s permit).
   “At the core of both proposals is safety of the motoring public,” Jefferson said. “We will continue to demand that commercial truck and bus drivers, and their employers, adhere to the safety standards that exist to protect all drivers.”