New ATRI report says truck drivers are older, more educated

A new study from the American Transportation Research Institute says the American truck driver is changing.

The study reports key shifts in demographics, including age, race, education and employment types.

“The trucking industry is undergoing a significant demographic shift, reflecting broader societal, market and U.S. labor force changes,” the study states. “As the current truck driver workforce nears retirement, the industry faces both a challenge and unique opportunity: to resupply its ranks by actively engaging younger, more diverse and historically underrepresented populations.”

Changing demographics

The average age of a truck driver is increasing.

Government data reveals the average age for truck drivers is 47, older than the total U.S. workforce average age of 42. However, industry data shows a much older average trucker. That data puts the average age at 56 for owner-operators in 2024. Two decades ago, the average age was 50.

According to ATRI, younger truck drivers have different job priorities. They look for stable career paths, a healthy work-life balance, good company culture and stronger training. Researchers recommend that motor carriers adjust their job offerings to attract these younger drivers.

The study also found that 14% of truck drivers have a college degree, up from 9% in 2008.

Only 16% of truckers did not finish high school, down from 20%. Most have a high school diploma or equivalent as their highest education.

In June, OOIDA Executive Vice President Lewie Pugh spoke on a panel about truck driver recruitment called “Where’s the Next Generation? Addressing the Talent Pipeline Crisis in Trucking.” Pugh said that trucking has been able to recruit new truck drivers but is unable to keep them, pointing to turnover rates of 90% or higher at large trucking companies.

“As an industry, we have to admit our problems to truly make the job attractive,” Pugh said. “Who wants to come out here and give away 20 hours of free labor every week, try to find a safe place to park every night, not get paid overtime despite working 70 hours a week and missing your family? Lots of people come into the industry every year. The problem is that they don’t stay … Our industry needs to do a lot of self-reflection and self-repair.”

More diverse

Truck drivers are becoming more racially diverse.

In the past decade, the percentage of white truck drivers dropped from 77% to 63%. The overall U.S. workforce also saw a decrease from 77% to 72%. While this shift has been gradual, there was a noticeable drop in 2021 that continued into 2022.

Meanwhile, the percentage of Black and Hispanic truck drivers has increased over the same period of time. Most notable was an increase of Black drivers from 15% to 23% over the past 10 years. The percentage of Hispanic truck drivers rose from 19% to 23%. Both shifts occurred sharply in 2021.

Fewer employee drivers

Most truck drivers are employees, but there is a growing trend toward owner-operators and independent contractors.

According to ATRI historical surveys, employee drivers have accounted for 58% of truck drivers, followed by independent contractors at 26% and owner-operators at 15%. However, there were some changes that occurred around the same time as other demographic shifts.

Currently, 55% of fleets are one-truck operations. That’s up from 51% in 2016.

Gender gap

While many demographics are changing, one remains stable: the number of female truck drivers.

Women make up only 4% of truck drivers, a figure that hasn’t changed in the past 15 years. However, many women hold some type of CDL. In five states studied, women accounted for 4% of Class A CDL drivers. In contrast, 20% of Class B and 35% of Class C drivers were women. LL