Just what Texas’ sprawling, harrowing, and permanently-under-construction roadways needed — more English literacy quizzes.
Truck drivers in the Rio Grande Valley are being questioned about their English literacy, just a week after an executive order took effect that reinforces English proficiency requirements for truckers. Forty drivers in Southern states — Texas, Mississippi, and Arkansas — have already been taken out of service for failure to meet the law’s standards, according to Border Report.
Under this new guidance, the penalty for not meeting these requirements is much higher. Per the previous policy, truckers who failed to pass language inspections would receive a citation — now, they’re at risk of losing their ability to operate on U.S. highways entirely. Roadside inspectors are instructed to conduct interviews and roadside assessment tests, all in English, to ensure drivers’ language skills are, at their discretion, up to par.
Current and aspiring drivers are now bracing for this new reality. In Juárez, a city in northern Mexico, transportation companies are sponsoring English classes for their drivers. A driving school in New Jersey is weaving English communication skills into its curriculum, AP reports.
This policy is intended to enhance and tighten existing road safety regulations, White House officials say. In reality, truckers are already able to identify traffic signs and understand motor vehicle rules, Valley Central reports. But those who learned English as a second language may be penalized for imperfections in their dialogue.
“I’m concerned because now for all the Spanish(-speaking) people it’s more difficult,” New Jersey-based driving instructor Paul Cuartas told AP.
“Tools to facilitate communication such as interpreters, I-Speak cards, cue cards, smart phone applications, and On-Call Telephone Interpretation Service should not be used during the driver interview,” the internal enforcement policy reads. “Those tools may mask a driver’s inability to communicate in English.”
