Truck drivers as young as 18 could make cross country trips as part of a federal pilot program aimed at easing the trucker shortage Nick gill is with the American trucking associations It's a great program We're going to get great data out of it to demonstrate that this can be done incredibly safely and that the opportunity for the next generation will be there Gill says most states already allow 18 year olds to drive big rigs this just lets them book more lucrative runs He says attracting younger drivers as the only way to end the shortage The average truck driver in this country is 47 or 48 years old that creates incredible attrition problems and certainly we have a truck driver shortage of about 80,000 right now and state motor vehicle departments could help in the near term There are waivers that have been provided by the Department of Transportation that allows states to relax some of the red tape We need DMVs throughout the country to take advantage of that From the Bloomberg newsroom I'm Jeff Bellinger on Just ahead on WTO P on this Sunday morning there's a renewed push for vaccinated Americans to get their booster shots ahead of holiday gatherings and the spread of the amaron variant 1257 for mother's diamond importers this is runny nervous Our success is built on radio and for that we thank WTP for providing a stable platform We're fortunate to have TOP as our lead radio partner for over 20 years When it comes to reaching decision makers and the influential people to make up the fabric of Washington nobody performs like W TOP That's why.