The eighties movie Lola ‘the trailer’ put a woman at the wheel of a cargo truck for the first time. The character became popular for performing a traditionally male job, while facing drug traffickers operating on the border between Mexico and the United States. But this fictional character has not crossed the big screen.
Data from the International Road Transport Union (IRU) reveals that of all truck operators globally, only 3% are women. In China (5%) and the United States (8%) the proportion is slightly higher, but in Mexico it is lower (2.4%).
“We have to promote them, but there are barriers such as insecurity, the lack of adequate rest facilities and even the fact of having to be away from home for a long time,” says Ramón Medrano, president of the National Chamber of Freight Transport ( Canacar), in an interview with Expansión .
In Mexico there is not a single exclusive hostel where women who work in this area can rest, in addition to the fact that theft with violence in freight transport is on the rise, a situation that distances men from this activity and even more to the women .
Martin Rojas, representative in America of the International Road Transport Union (IRU), highlights that there is concern about the issue of security in the country. “Before they stole your cargo and that’s it, but now they steal your cargo and hit the driver. They can leave him pretty bad. There is a very strong concern. We must do something with the authorities and reinforce national security in this area,” underlines in an interview with Expansión .
The private initiative begins to take action on the matter. Scania, a manufacturer of heavy vehicles, launched on September 8, within the framework of the Canacar 2022 Annual Convention, a program to encourage the participation of women as drivers , through training and economic incentives.
Freight trucking has the lowest participation of women among the different types of transportation.
Data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography indicate that of the total number of people who work in this sector, including drivers, mechanics and other personnel, only 11.4% are women . In maritime transport the figure is 20.1% and in air transport it is 36.4%.
