Ideas from the CBC: The Way of the Trucker

"On the open road, there's only one person in command. You." So begins a sales pitch to potential new truckers, published by the Canadian Trucking Alliance. The romance of the long-haul route and the solitary life, in charge of a giant machine, draws a certain sort of person. Someone who relishes facing a battle against the forces of time, distance, and weather. But it may not draw enough people. An Ontario trucking union predicts a shortage of 30,000 truckers in Canada as old hands retire faster than new ones take on the job. IDEAS producer Tom Howell visits a trucking school in northern Ontario, where new recruits consider their options, and the road ahead.