The trucking industry is short at least a record-high 80,000 drivers, according to American Trucking Associations' Chief Economist Bob Costello, due in large part to accelerated retirements in the wake of the pandemic and trucking schools that were shuttered or limited in their ability to infuse new CDL drivers into the workforce.
Costello's updated figure represents a significant upward adjustment from his previous estimation of less than 60,000. Costello noted the driver shortage improved in 2019 thanks mostly to an infusion of new talent and a stable freight environment, but industry-wide volatility brought on by the pandemic has boosted headcount needs by more than 30%.
The current estimation and its upward movement is likely no surprise as the White House struggles with ideas to reconcile the amount of goods that need to be moved with the lack of capacity to move it.
"This is sort of a warning to the entire supply chain," Costello said, noting that if current trends hold, trucking could be short 160,000 drivers by 2030. "I really do think the supply chain problems of today are a glimpse into our future if we do not fix this."
While it's easy to lay blame on the pandemic, Costello said all transportation players – from shipper to carrier to receiver – play a role in the labor problem, and that the current supply chain woes only pile on underlying industry issues like elevated driver age and lack of diversity in the driver force.
Shifting the driver paradigm: Winning with equipment, technology and culture
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