Commercial Driver License Program Still Evolving

March 22, 2000 10:26 AM, EST

The 13-year-old commercial driver license program is good, but it could be even better, government officials and trucking groups say.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is considering a proposal for an apprenticeship program that would pair new graduates of truck driving schools with experienced drivers. The agency is also working to develop standards for the entry level training of drivers.

At the same time, the agency is implementing a new law requiring a more detailed check of a CDL applicant’s background and an expansion of the offenses for which drivers can lose their license. The measure also allows FMCSA to withhold funding for roadside inspections for states that fail to maintain minimum standards for their CDL testing programs.

The CDL program created by Congress in 1986 prohibited drivers from having more than one license, required states to adopt uniform testing and licensing standards for trucks, and created the Commercial Drivers License Information System to serve as an electronic clearinghouse of data on CDL holders.

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