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March 22, 2000 10:32 AM, EST

WILLIAMSPORT, Md. – When Robert Jackson graduated from a truck driver training school and got his commercial driver license, he was a truck driver in the eyes of the federal government, but D.M. Bowman Inc. saw things differently.

	Michael James - Transport Topics
	Robert Jackson, a newly minted driver, looks down the road in western Maryland to a career in trucking with D.M. Bowman.

The Western Maryland truckload carrier puts all its new employees through an orientation program, and drivers right out of school like Jackson go through an extensive training process that can last more than six weeks.

Training truckers who have already been through a driving school — driver finishing — is nothing new. Companies large and small have been doing it for years. But the practice is evolving and becoming more far-reaching as the needs of drivers change and standard-setting organizations get involved.

Many finishing programs simply involved having a novice travel for a few weeks with an experienced driver, but now many are more sophisticated.

The Professional Truck Driver Institute, an organization that establishes standards for driver education, earlier this year set criteria for accrediting finishing programs. Working with carriers, schools and insurers, PDTI set guidelines designed to improve the safety and performance of new drivers.

For the full story, see the Mar. 20 print edition of Transport Topics. .