18 Year Old Truck Drivers on the Roads in Illinois and Indiana
The human brain is amazing in its ability to collect stimuli and data; process the information; and determine appropriate responses (reactions or inactions). However, researchers confirm that the brain’s development continues throughout childhood. For teenagers, their frontal lobe may not be as readily advanced as older drivers on our roadways. This is concerning, since the frontal lobe controls decision-making and advanced behavior (think of all the things that go into driving a car, much less a huge and heavy semi-truck).
As the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children’s Hospital in Pennsylvania explains, the frontal lobe is responsible for three things “crucial to safe driving,” and that all too often teenagers are not sufficiently advanced in these functions to avoid “negative driving outcomes.” Also read: Walshe EA, Ward McIntosh C, Romer D, Winston FK. Executive Function Capacities, Negative Driving Behavior and Crashes in Young Drivers. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2017 Oct 28;14(11):1314. doi: 10.3390/ijerph14111314. PMID: 29143762; PMCID: PMC570795; and National Research Council (US), Institute of Medicine (US), and Transportation Research Board (US) Program Committee for a Workshop on Contributions from the Behavioral and Social Sciences in Reducing and Preventing Teen Motor Crashes.
Nevertheless, each and every day here in the Crossroads of America, we may be driving alongside large, fully loaded commercial motor vehicles that are being operated by truckers as young as 18 years old.
Teen Truckers on Our Roads
Truck drivers operating large trucks in our part of the country must have a special type of driving license: a “Commercial Driver’s License” (CDL) or a “Commercial Learner’s Permit” (CLP). Truckers are professional drivers, who must demonstrate knowledge of things like core understanding of the job, as well as specifics like air brakes (if applicable).
Teens can be truckers here. Truck drivers of big rigs, semi-trucks, flatbeds, tractor-trailers, etc. on our roads can be as young as 18 years old in both Illinois and Indiana.
1. Federal (Across State Lines)
Having drivers under the age of 21 years behind the wheel of large commercial trucks or buses has been part of a federal government endeavor for several years. In 2021, a federal law became effective that would allow 18-year-old drivers to operate big rigs across state lines subject to oversight by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. See, Safe Driver Apprenticeship Pilot Program To Allow Persons Ages 18, 19, and 20 To Operate Commercial Motor Vehicles in Interstate Commerce; Revision to Program Requirements, notice published by the Federal Register on May 14, 2024; and read, Teen Truckers in Indiana and Illinois: Congress Writes FMCSA and DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
2.Indiana
In Indiana, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles oversees the process where someone who is at least 18 years old needs a CLP to transport property within the state. They must be “…accompanied by the holder of a valid commercial driver’s license (CDL) who has the proper class and endorsement(s) necessary to operate the commercial motor vehicle.” The young driver is also eligible to obtain a CDL in Indiana that allows the 18-year-old to “operate intrastate” with proper requirements (testing; fees; medical certification; etc.)
3.Illinois
In Illinois, an 18-year-old driver can operate a commercial motor vehicle within state lines as long as specific conditions are met, according to the Illinois Secretary of State. The young driver is eligible for either a CLP or a CDL. This includes testing; having a valid Illinois driver’s license; and “proof of legal presence.”
Truck Crash Dangers From Teen Truckers
Back in 2019, when the federal regulations allowing teen truck drivers was being debated, the Truck Safety Coalition formally opposed having truckers on the roads under the age of 21 years. The TSC, joined by the Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways (CRASH) and Parents Against Tired Truckers (PATT), explained then that:
- Truck crashes, injuries, and deaths continue to increase;
- The available data shows that 18-20-year-old drivers are more likely to crash;
- The impetus for this change – a shortage of truck drivers – is a myth perpetuated by those with a pecuniary interest in lowering the legal age for interstate truck operations; and
- The FMCSA has not analyzed data from the 48 states that could provide insight on the safety records of 18-20 year old drivers who currently operate in intrastate commerce.
Today, statistics do not support deviation from the concerns voiced by the TSC regarding a higher risk of truck accidents when truckers younger than 21 years of age are behind the wheel.
Trucking remains one of the most dangerous occupations in this country. The number of truck crash fatalities remains unacceptably high. This dovetails with the reality that all teenaged truck drivers have cognitive concerns since their brains are still developing, coupled with the inexperience they face as they enter the profession.
Read, What Is The Most Dangerous Job in Indiana and Illinois? and Shocking New Fatal Crash Statistics: 52% Jump in Deadly Commercial Truck Crashes; and see Driving, the Brain, and Serious or Fatal Injuries: The Neuroscience of Driving in Car Accidents and Truck Crashes.
Large trucks driven by any trucker must be respected for the increased risk of injury or death in the event of an accident. This risk only increases when that truck driver is 18 – 19 years old.
Accidents Involving Teen Truckers in Illinois and Indiana
For safety organizations, regulators, and advocates for accident victims and their loved ones, the risk of being involved in a catastrophic or deadly truck crash is especially concerning when the truck driver is under the age of 21 years. The danger is particularly great here in our part of the country, where our transportation routes feed the national trucking industry with a great volume of semis, tractor-trailers, reefers, 18-wheelers, big rigs, flatbeds, etc. and other types of commercial trucks rumbling alongside sedans, motorcycles, SUVs, and minivans. Read, Huge and Growing Freight Truck Traffic in Northern Indiana: Increasing Danger of Semi-Truck Crashes and Big Trucks in Chicago: Dangers of 18-Wheeler Accidents in Chicagoland.
Teen truckers will not have as much experience on the road as their older trucker colleagues. Teen truck drivers, no matter how well they did on their testing, will still be newbies to things like inspections of their trucks; understanding subtle warnings that something may be wrong while driving; dealing with aggressive drivers on their route; and more. This may lead to accidents.
And conversely, the teenager may be overly confident behind the wheel, as many teenagers are. The teen trucker may be more prone to misjudge risks or to do things like speed to make a deadline.
For anyone who is involved in a truck crash in Illinois or Indiana, special consideration must be made when the truck driver involved in the accident is a young driver. Accident reconstruction experts may be able to discern how the age of the trucker alone may have contributed to the event, and to also point to others that may share legal liability as a result. This might include the trucking company or carrier who placed the teen truck driver in the driver’s seat of that rig.
Read:
- Teen Drivers, Adolescent Brain Development, and the Danger of Deadly Car Crashes
- Will Teen Drivers 18 & 20 Years Old Be Driving Semi-Trucks on Indiana and Illinois Interstates?
- Fatal Teen Driver Accidents: New Teen Driving Safety Technology
- Negligent Supervision by the Trucking Company and Semi-Truck Crash
- Negligent Training of Truck Drivers as Basis for Truck Crash Injury Claim.
Teen drivers face a higher risk of being involved in a crash than older drivers. Teen truckers are a special and specific danger here in the Crossroads of America. Please be careful out there!
