Italy’s move to let truck and bus drivers work until 70 with biennial medical checks aims to ease driver shortages in the transport sector
Executive summary: Italy's Transport Minister Matteo Salvini announced a voluntary measure allowing truck and bus drivers to stay in service up to age 70, subject to medical examinations every 24 months. The policy addresses a growing driver shortage in road freight and passenger transport, potentially affecting labor costs and sector capacity.
Who is involved: Matteo Salvini (Italian Minister of Transport), transport industry operators, and driver unions.
Likely next (inference): The measure is expected to be formalized through a ministerial decree, with implementation details to be issued in the coming weeks.
Transport Minister Matteo Salvini announced a voluntary measure permitting professional drivers of goods and passengers to remain active until age 70, provided they undergo a medical check every two years. The statement was made alongside a comment from Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti about energy costs shaving 0.2 points off GDP. The proposal seeks to address labour shortages in the road freight and bus sectors while introducing a regular health‑screening requirement for older drivers.
What's next — scenarios
Inference: scenarios and probabilities are Beyond's assessment, not reported fact.
Base Case: Measured Adoption (55%)
Fleet operators will selectively retain experienced drivers to mitigate immediate staffing shortages, resulting in minor increases in administrative costs for biennial medical compliance.
- Passage of the decree extending the driving age limit without major amendments
- Stable uptake rates among drivers aged 65-70 over the next six months
Upside: High Retention Rate (25%)
Logistics and public transport companies will experience a significant drop in driver vacancy rates, stabilizing operational costs and reducing delivery delays.
- Over 30 percent of eligible drivers opting into the program within the first quarter
- Transport unions endorsing the medical monitoring framework
Downside: Medical Rejections and Pushback (20%)
Strict biennial medical screenings will disqualify a high percentage of older applicants, causing legal friction and failing to ease the underlying labor deficit.
- High failure rates during initial biennial medical check-ups
- Legal challenges from transport labor unions regarding age-based screening criteria
What to watch
- Official publication date and legislative text of the decree in the Italian Official Gazette within the next 30 days
- Transport union statements and strike threats regarding older driver safety over the next 45 days
- Preliminary data on medical check-up pass rates for drivers over 65 in the next 90 days
Timeline
- — Camion e bus, Salvini apre al lavoro fino a 70 anni: “Ma controlli medici su autisti ogni 24 mesi” (la Repubblica — Economia)
- — Enac, i sindacati a Salvini: “No al commissario, l’ente funziona” (la Repubblica — Economia)
- — Ferrovie, Salvini: “Lunedì avremo nuovo ad e squadra” (la Repubblica — Economia)
Key entities
Sources
- Camion e bus, Salvini apre al lavoro fino a 70 anni: “Ma controlli medici su autisti ogni 24 mesi” — la Repubblica — Economia
- Ferrovie, Salvini: “Lunedì avremo nuovo ad e squadra” — la Repubblica — Economia
- Enac, i sindacati a Salvini: “No al commissario, l’ente funziona” — la Repubblica — Economia
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