Date of Award

6-19-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Department of Operational Sciences

First Advisor

William Cunningham, PhD

Abstract

The United States trucking industry has been struggling with a driver shortage for decades (Mittal et al., 2018).Trucks are one of the most important modes of transportation in getting domestic freight from one point to another. The current shortage is expected to continue to grow at an alarming rate if nothing is done to change it (American Trucking Associations, 2017). Having a shortage of drivers will increase transportation costs and lead to delayed shipments. There has been a push to change the public policy to lower the age requirement for a Commercial Driver’s License to 18. This research explores how lowering the federal age requirement can help alleviate some of the truck driver shortage and add economic value to the 18-20 age group. Data was collected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and United States Census Bureau to identify the number of truck drivers that would be added to the profession and benefits to the 18-20-year-old age group. The results from this research can be used to make recommendations for implementing a program or law to lower the age requirement for a commercial driver’s license.

AFIT Designator

AFIT-ENS-MS-19-J-038

DTIC Accession Number

AD1079720

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