Page 38 - ATR 1 2013

flexibility to train as they see fit. Training Association (CVTA) and asso- of debate and discussion. The Federal
Maverick’s Valkovic said he would ciate vice president of driver school rela- Highway Administration determined
support minimum guidelines and stan- tions for Werner Enterprises, said the in the early 1980s that driver training
dards for entry-level driver training, 120 hours requirement is an arbitrary nationwide lacked structure and stan-
but he emphasized that students gain figure. Because it is below the current dardization and created a nonbinding
skills at varying paces and ways. “Even industry practice, it might lead to some model curriculum which formed the
our program here, we have minimums, schools actually reducing their training basis for much of today’s truck driver
but we don’t have any timeframes hours. training.
because everybody learns differently, Brad Ball, vice president of train- In 1986, the Commercial Motor
and we have a very specific standard at ing relations for Career Path, the par- Vehicle Safety Act established the com-
Maverick,” he said. ent company of Roadmaster Driving mercial driver’s license program, which
Valkovic said his drivers come from Schools, said that while his 12 schools included minimum testing and licens-
all over the country and that 80-85 per- require 160 hours of training, some stu- ing standards. But it did not specify
cent have less than six months’ experi- dents remain in school for 300 hours training, and concerns grew about how
ence. Most come directly from driving before they are ready to be tested. He effectively private and public schools as
schools. And he said he has never seen said it would be better to specify subject well as motor carriers were preparing
a correlation between the hours of areas and then assess the knowledge the workforce. So the 1991 highway bill
instruction those schools provide and and skills gained through the training. called for the secretary of transporta-
the performance of their students. A “Failing to state the specific number of tion to undertake a rulemaking process
few students even come to Maverick hours does not mean the hours will not on the need to require training of all
after training themselves. be received. It means that students will entry-level commercial drivers.
Representatives of driver train- be permitted to learn at their own pace A 1995 FMCSA study determined
ing schools said performance is more to reach established performance stan- that driver training needed to include
important than hours alone. John Frey, dards,” he said. behind the wheel experience, but the
associate vice president of driver school If the regulation is passed, it would final rule, implemented in 2004, relied
relations for the Commercial Vehicle represent the culmination of decades on knowledge and skills tests. That led

Most trucking companies
make (or lose) more

money on equipment than
they do hauling freight.

TRANSPORT ENTERPRISE LEASING LLC.

38 arKanSaS truCKing report | issue 1 2013