Letter to Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General - Concerned About American Workers as Vehicles Become Automated

Letter

Dear Comptroller General Dodaro:

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about 94 percent of roadway fatalities can be attributed to human error, including driver impairment, distraction, and judgment error. With the increased use of automated vehicles, the safety and reliability of transportation could be greatly enhanced by minimizing the human element of the effort. For example, in the near future, automated vehicles may be used to provide personal transit services, similar to taxis, for individuals or small groups. However, their use in providing reliable freight transit may be adapted sooner -- possibly, as predicted by researchers, in less than a decade.

The transition to the greater use of automated vehicles raises questions about the future of our national and regional economies and workforce. Currently, nearly two million people earn their living operating and repairing heavy trucks and tractors, and they must invest in post-secondary education to gain the certification to legally conduct their trade. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, these occupations also allow workers to earn a middle-class income, with median annual salaries around $40,000. Heavier concentrations of these workers tend to be in more rural states where employment options may be limited, and therefore, if these workers and the federally funded programs which support them are unprepared for the technological changes involved in the use of automated vehicles, certain individuals and regional economies could be severely impacted.

Programs authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) serve as a foundation for the nation's employment and training system. These programs, administered primarily by the Departments of Labor and Education, provide a variety of services to prepare individuals for work and help them improve their prospects in the labor market. For example, the WIOA Adult program provides services including occupational skills training, career counseling, and job searches to adults age 18 and older and the WIOA Dislocated Worker program provides the same services to individuals who anticipate being or have been laid-off or who were self-employed. Eligible service providers for the employment and training system include those who provide training in the skilled trades, including those in the transportation industry. State, regional, and local entities administering employment and training programs are required to strategically plan to align their services with the needs of job seekers and employers and, among other things, use labor market information in this process.

Given the effects that automated vehicles may have on the transportation workforce, we would like GAO to answer the following questions:

What is known about the speed at which automated vehicle technology may be adopted by businesses to replace the current fleet of vehicles used to transport goods and deliver services? To what extent is the adoption of this technology expected to affect employment levels in related occupations?
What is known about differences in the skills and training that will likely be needed by those who operate and maintain vehicles that are automated versus those who operate existing vehicles using a Commercial Driver's License (CDL)?
How are federally-funded employment and training programs, particularly in the regions most likely to be affected by these changes, preparing to assist professional drivers with CDLs whose jobs may be affected and other job seekers who seek training and licensure for the professional driving industry?
Thank you for your assistance in addressing this request.

Sincerely,

Sen. Susan Collins Sen. Jack Reed

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