TEXAS, USA — After Monday Feb. 7, The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) is requiring applicants for a commercial driver license (CDL) or certain endorsements complete the Entry Level Driver Training (ELDT) requirements.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) oversees the ELDT regulations, which are designed to improve highway safety by ensuring entry level drivers of commercial motor vehicles complete minimum federal training requirements before being permitted to take certain CDL tests.
Western Texas College Director of Workforce Development & Continuing Education Margo L Mitchell says this is a long overdue update for several reasons.
“There were a lot of technology improvements that needed to be made at the local DMVs. They had to be able to interact with this new registry. Implementing these new requirements really helped to speed up that process,” Mitchell explained.
She also mentioned how they modeled the new training to how nurses or physicians get their license.
More than 3.5 million people work as truck drivers and that number is expected to grow. In fact, driving 18-wheelers or delivery trucks is one of the largest occupations in the United States.
With supply chain issues impacting business nationwide, Mitchell has already installed an updated program for Western Texas students to be able to get the proper training and get on the road.
“At first, we had a number of employers walk in the door this week asking what just happened. I sent this guy down here to get his test and he can't take his test. So larger companies are looking at making themselves into meeting the federal requirements to be a training provider and that's possible but for a lot of smaller companies that's not gonna be possible. There’s advantages to it. They have to go through the training to make sure that everyone understands how to safely and properly drive those trucks."
Western Texas college as well as a few West Texas schools are already providing the training. If you're looking into getting your certified driver’s license, training information can be found on the Texas DPS website.