THE LATEST European report from the IRU points to the commercial freight driver shortage on the continent rising to 36% in 2020, that’s a 13% increase in this year alone.
According to IRU’s report, Poland and Romania are two of the most heavily impacted European countries. In Poland, driver shortage stands at 22% and is expected to jump by 15 points this year and in Romania, the situation is even more critical as the 50% driver shortage recorded in 2019 is foreseen to reach 62% this year.
Interestingly Poland and Romania have the lowest rates of female drivers in Europe with only 2% of their commercial driver workforce. Reasons deterring women from entering the profession include difficult working conditions, a lack of safe and secure parking areas, and long periods spent away from home, says the report.
In Romania, a key cause of the driver shortage is down to high numbers of the population emigrating.
The driver shortage remains a universal problem, across Europe and beyond, and one that IRU is aiming to help solve.
Some of IRU’s proposed solutions include:
• Lowering and harmonising minimum age to become a professional driver.
• Development of a joint charter together with the European Shippers’ Council (ESC) to improve treatment of drivers at delivery sites.
• Creation and funding of more and better safe and secure truck parking areas.
IRU is already making significant progress in tackling the European driver shortage, securing €60 million worth of EU funding for the development of Safe and Secure Truck Parking Areas (SSTPAs) and setting up the Women in Transport Talks initiative to encourage more women into the profession.
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