The owner of a trucking company in northern Idaho says he is closing the business in part because good drivers are ” a dying breed.”

Wes Olson Trucking was founded by Wes Olson near Sandpoint, Idaho. Olson got into trucking in 1958 and bought his own 1955 Mack in 1961, when he started his own independent operation. Olson then grew his trucking operation into a family business that owned and operated 30 tractors, hauling timber across the region. In the 1970s, Wes and his son Jim even ran a convoy of six semi trucks over an ice bridge along the Yulkon River in northern Alaska. 

“We were ice road truckers before they even had a name for it,” Jim said to Bonner County Daily Bee. “If you like it, it’s a pretty good job,” he said. “You’re on your own and you don’t have a boss over your shoulder.”

In the 1990s, Olson handed the business down to his son Jim, who operated the company until this year. The company ran its last route in March, and is currently offloading its remaining fleet of semi trucks as Jim prepares to retire. 

Both Jim and Wes say that several challenges have contributed to the decision to close the company, including a lack of good drivers, increase in operating costs, and tightening regulations. 

“The biggest thing is common sense,” Wes explained. “Some guys have it and some guys don’t.” 

They are “a dying breed. They’re just not out there,” Jim added. Jim says the company was able to find good drivers, but was unable to find enough good drivers to keep up with freight demand. 

“We’ve had a really good crew the last few years — but just not enough of them,” Jim said. 

In addition to hiring struggles, Wes Olson Trucking experienced a fire on their property in 2023, which caused their insurance rates to rise astronomically. 

“We were paying $300,000 a year last year, just for insurance,” Jim said. “You can hardly pay for that.” 

On top of the high rates, the company could not get insured if they hired drivers under the age of 25, further narrowing the hiring pool and adding to the difficulties of operation. The two men, now a part of “a dying breed,” say that they had a good run, but it’s time to hang it up. 

“We’ve had a lot of people come through here,” said Jim, “There are so many people to thank.”

Jim, says he’s looking forward to retirement so he can “go fishing. Wherever, whenever.”