* DC - Trucking companies are pushing Congress to weaken age limits for drivers
-- Trucking companies, struggling to attract enough drivers, may soon be able to put more teenagers behind the wheel... Under federal law, states can grant anyone over 18 a commercial drivers’ license, the main qualification to drive a truck. However, few drivers start that young because they need to be 21 to haul freight across state lines... Trucking executives say the age limit is making it hard to find enough drivers, with the most severe shortage in long-haul trucking, which typically requires drivers to cross state lines... Mr. Rob Abbott, of the American Trucking Associations said, getting young people into trucking was near the top of the group’s list of priorities. Trucking companies need an additional 48,000 drivers to keep up with demand for freight transportation, the ATA said in a recent report, and many fleets have raised pay and other benefits aggressively over the last year to recruit drivers... Safety groups, including Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, oppose the proposal to lower age limits, which they say would make roads more dangerous because younger drivers are more likely to get into accidents. Many of these groups advocate for minimum ages to be raised for in-state trucking as well...
(PHOTO: BLOOMBERG NEWS - Trucking companies want Congress to make it easier for drivers as young as 18 to get behind the wheel) -- Washington, DC, USA - The WSJ, by ROBBIE WHELAN - Oct. 22, 2015Labels: safety roads, truckers shortage
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