Truck drivers are predicted to be in short supply soon — which is supposed to be a sign of a recovering economy.
The source of this reported prediction is freight transportation research consultancy firm FTR Associates, whose analyst Noel Perry spoke at an trucking industry forum earlier this month and forecasted a shortage of truck drivers in both 2010 and 2011. In fact, he’s seeing a shortage of commercial truck drivers of around half a million next year (2011).
Baby Boomers are Retiring, It’s Not Just Growing Market Demand
The idea that the economy is bouncing back is great news for us all. However, delving into the big rig truck driver shortage also reveals that the retirement of Baby Boomer truck drivers is a contributing factor here, not just increased market demand for transporting goods. Maybe these numbers aren’t predicting such a big bounce-back for the economy.
Rookies on the Road Might Not Be Good News
And, the idea of 500,000+ rookie drivers on the road in the next 18 months isn’t all that great, either. Newbie truck drivers make more mistakes. Makes sense, right?
Added to that is the reality that all too often, truck drivers are not given adequate training — and that’s in the best of times. With the pinch-penny budgets of today’s trucking companies, you gotta wonder how much training those new rookie truck drivers are going to get.
Maybe this isn’t the best bit of trucking news after all ….
