How the scarcity of truckers hurts manufacturing (and how to fix the problem)

According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA), at current trends the driver shortage could surpass 160,000 by 2030. ATA estimates that, in the next decade, the industry will have to recruit nearly a million new drivers into the industry to replace drivers exiting the field due to retirements, driver burn-out, compensation and poor benefits. These are the challenges facing transportation executives in securing a robust driver pool. However, the challenge of driver shortages does not end with the trucking industry. Rather, the scarcity of drivers directly affects the larger manufacturing sector.