Despite inflation and a rocky road for freight pricing, trucking continues to be a strong career for the drivers themselves. According to a recent report from the American Trucking Associations (ATA), wages for drivers have seen a strong increase in recent years.

The ATA’s research is the result of a survey conducted from 120 fleets, which included 150,000 company drivers and 14,000 independent contractors.

Their survey showed that the median truckload driver salary has increased by 10% in two years. This resulted in a median salary of $76,420 in 2023.

Drivers at private carriers saw a slightly larger increase. Their salaries grew by 12% from 2021 to 2023, with the median salary growing to $95,114.

Ironically, there were smaller referral and sign-on bonuses. Instead, tenure bonuses grew with more rewards going to existing and experienced drivers.

You can read the rest of the report at the link.

ATA President and CEO Chris Spear reiterated a key truth about truck driving. The career remains one of the few pathways to a solid middle-class income without the need for a four-year university degree and the immense amount of potential student debt that may come with such an investment.

Becoming a truck driver simply requires a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL), and the training to get that license can take as low as 4-8 weeks. Drivers can even get training paid for by trucking carriers in exchange for agreements to work for those companies in the future.

The job also has a degree of security because Americans will always need goods delivered, especially as ecommerce continues to show dominance over the economy. Ultimately, this research shows once again why trucking is a great career path and will remain one for the foreseeable future.