Falling numbers of middle-aged and EU truck drivers contributed to more than 50,000 people leaving the job in the last four years in the UK, creating the most acute shortage of drivers on record and disruptions for businesses and consumers.
The number of people working as HGV drivers in the UK peaked in the year ending June 2017, at an estimated 321,000. Since then, the total has fallen by 53,000, according to data by the Office for National Statistics, a 16 per cent decline.
The number of drivers aged 46 to 54 years old has since dropped by 39 per cent, or 34,000, the largest fall of any age group. Over the same period, EU truck drivers fell by 30 per cent, or 12,000 people.
Data shows that the drop in numbers is likely to continue as not many new drivers are entering the profession. In the year ending June 2021, there were only 16,022 HGV driving tests passed, a sharp drop from an average of 41,731 a year during the previous five-year period.
The fall in driver numbers comes at the same time as demand for goods has picked up as the economy reopened and ecommerce has taken off, resulting in soaring numbers of job vacancies.
There were 52,000 vacancies in transport and storage during the three-month period July to September 2021, the highest on record. HGV drivers account for about a tenth of those employed in this industry.
The ONS reported that more than one in five UK businesses said that lack of hauliers or logistics equipment was a challenge. Nearly a third of consumers were finding it difficult to get groceries, medication or other essentials.
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