Trucking Crisis and CRE

Joel Ross

There is a severe shortage today of qualified truckers, especially ones who will do long over the road runs. Unlike some other low skill jobs, truckers need to not be on drugs and have skill handling a large rig. Long distance drivers have a lonely life away from home for long stretches, and sleeping in the cab or a truck stop room. These days there are better alternatives for many of these guys to earn a good wage and not have these other issues. Some of the big trucking companies are trying to schedule drivers on 200 mile or less trips so they can go home every night. The problem is getting worse as the economy grows and as demand for drivers increases.

For CRE in the warehouse distribution business there is also a shortage of qualified workers. The answer now is AI and robotics. Warehouses and distribution facilities are moving to mainly automated stacking, picking, shipping. The number of humans now working in these facilities if they are fairly new and modern, has declined by 25%- 50% or more. For CRE there are several implications. Warehouses need to be powered sufficiently, and fitted out properly to be able to have the digital capacity to control the robots properly. The other thing that has been an outcome is there is far less need for employee parking, and so the foot print can be larger. Towns are allowing variances for less parking per sq ft of building in many jurisdictions as a result.