Province providing more support for Alberta truckers with commercial driving grants totaling over $30 million over three years.

Minister of Transportation Rajan Sawhney made the announcement on Thursday claiming this will help support unemployed and underemployed Albertans returning to work.

“We are building on the success of the Driving Back to Work grant program that has helped hundreds of Albertans retrain for a career in the transportation sector,” said Sawhney in east Edmonton on Thursday.

Annual funding of $10 million over three years will be split up with $6 million towards the Driving Back to Work grant, $3 million to support women returning to the workforce, and $1 million towards developing online virtual training.

Starting in 2023, commercial drivers will have the option to do their Class 1 road test in either automatic or manual transmission vehicles.

The Alberta government predicts that by 2023 there will be a shortage of 3,600 commercial drivers in the province.