Thousands of truck driving schools across the United States face potential closure following a federal review that uncovered widespread non-compliance with government standards. The Transportation Department announced that nearly 44 percent of the nation's 16,000 institutions could be affected.
On Monday, the department revealed plans to revoke the accreditation of approximately 3,000 schools unless they meet training requirements within 30 days. A further 4,000 schools have been warned they may face similar action.
This crackdown marks the latest step in the government's effort to ensure truck drivers are qualified and eligible for commercial licenses. The initiative follows a fatal Florida crash, which Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated was caused by a driver “not authorized to be in the U.S.” who made an illegal U-turn, killing three people.
Duffy has threatened to pull federal funding from California and Pennsylvania over the issue, and he proposed significant new restrictions on which immigrants can get a commercial driver's license, but a court put those new rules on hold.
“We are reigning in illegal and reckless practices that let poorly trained drivers get behind the wheel of semi-trucks and school buses,” Duffy said.
The Transportation Department said the 3,000 schools it is taking action against failed to meet training standards and didn't maintain accurate and complete records. The schools are also accused of falsifying or manipulating training data.
The list of schools being targeted wasn't immediately released.
