Overcoming the Driver Shortage by Addressing Driver Detention

Abstract

In the United States, long-haul trucking is the main mode of transportation of goods. The trucking industry has been facing a shortage of drivers in the past few years and it is only increasing every year. Previous studies have found that multiple reasons are contributing to the driver shortage. These include underutilization of drivers’ working hours, unfavorable working conditions leading to reduced driver retention, the inability to attract new drivers due to high costs in acquiring licenses, and lower income compared to other comparable jobs in the market. The current study focuses on addressing the driver shortage issue by studying factors causing underutilization. Driver utilization is calculated using the number of hours a driver drives on a typical working day and comparing it with the federal hours of service regulation. The data analyzed for this study was collected from a midsize U.S. transportation company. Specifically, this is the driver log data from the truck's Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs). Statistical data analysis showed that the driver detention time or dwell time at warehouses for loading and unloading contributed to the underutilization. More significantly, it was higher during the weekends than the weekdays. Through interviews, this capstone has identified the major factors affecting the dwell time during the weekends: having inexperienced personnel during weekends, lack of communication, training of personnel, and the scheduling of the trucks. By acting on these factors and improving warehouse operations, the industry can achieve valuable improvements in truck driver utilization. These improvements can help warehouses with efficient load operations and also address and alleviate the driver shortage problem by approximately 20%.