Editorial Board
A Trucker Shortage? Bring on the Robots.
Autonomous trucks will be safer, cheaper, faster and greener. They’ll also create tens of thousands of new jobs.
Over and out?
Photographer: Karen Bleier/AFP/Getty Images
Few occupations are as essential to the U.S. economy as driving a truck. Unfortunately, not enough workers still want the job. Should robots take the wheel?
Trucking employment fell markedly at the start of the pandemic and has yet to fully recover, even as demand for freight has soared. Industry analysts reckon the current shortage at 80,000 drivers — a record high — and expect it to reach twice that over the next decade. Nationwide, this deficit has worsened congestion at ports and warehouses, while helping to suppress growth and push up prices.