Truck Shortage. . . continued from pg. 55
new norm to pay more for trucking services, to entice drivers to stay in and enter the business,” Kreis stresses. He says the new 2018 federal law requiring driver hours to be monitored electronically—the Electronic Logging Device (ELD) mandate—is not helping the current access to trucks. He added that this driver shortage and an electronic log connection are a matter more exacerbated by bad timing than the root of the problem. INDUSTRY ALREADY REELING “The law came at a time when the industry was already struggling for drivers,” Kreis says. “The main problem is that there is not enough of a workforce. This is not a lifestyle that a lot of the younger guys want.” Beyond increasing the financial incentive for drivers, it is believed by
many that trucking can become more efficient by allowing tandem trailers on U.S. highways. Permitting Canadian drivers to pick up loads in the U.S. would also ease the truck shortage, Kreis says. Kreis credits John Keeling, the chief executive officer of the National Potato Council for his excellent work to resolve these transportation matters. In the Red River Valley, a few growers can use rail service. “But that is not an option for all shippers,” Kreis notes. He added that rail service “is not as flexible or dependable as truck services.” Nonetheless, having some potatoes leave the Red River Valley by rail this winter has helped potato movement, he concludes.
Let’s get it straight.
Above: Ted Kreis, marketing and communications director for Northern Plains Potato Growers, says potato growers from around the country, including North Dakota, Idaho and Wisconsin, are facing a serious truck shortage this winter.
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