Sen. Tom Barrett on Friday applauded a recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Transportation to launch a pilot program to lower the age requirement for commercial truck drivers to cross state lines.
“While this well-advised policy change will not do everything to alleviate the historic supply chain issues that are being experienced across the country, it is a commonsense measure that will alleviate some of the pressures — this is exactly why I introduced Senate Resolution 89 last year,” said Barrett, R-Charlotte.
Barrett’s SR 89 was adopted by the Senate last November to encourage the federal government to lower the age for CDL drivers from 21 to 18 for interstate travel.
The new federal program will make it possible for drivers as young as 18 to transport cargo from state to state; the legal age for truckers who drive across state lines is currently 21, but those 18 and over can drive commercial trucks within state lines everywhere in the United States except Hawaii.
“A well-trained certified CDL driver between the age of 18 and 21 who is permitted to drive from Monroe Country to the western edge of the Upper Peninsula should be able to take that same load from Monroe County the much shorter distance to Toledo,” Barrett said.
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