CANTON — SUNY Canton is now accepting applicants for its winter Commercial Driver's License Class A (CDL-A) training program.

The six-week program will begin Dec. 30 and is offered through the college's Career Ready Education and Success Training (CREST) Center. Training include 10 hours of classroom learning, offered 5:30 to 8 p.m. on Thursdays, and more than 40 hours of hands-on driving experience. Each session is limited to four students.

The college uses a 2013 Freightliner Cascadia 125 as a training vehicle, which was purchased with assistance from the St. Lawrence River Valley Redevelopment Agency grant administered by the St. Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency. The semi-tractor trailer recently underwent a visual upgrade, and now features the college's mascot, Roody Roo, clinging to the hood and bold SUNY Canton logos on the wind deflector and doors.

Courses are led by adjunct instructor Ryan Harrigan. Harrigan is a professional truck driver who worked for several area companies before joining SUNY Canton. He previously ran driver training courses through the Aim High driving school in Potsdam.

Truck drivers are in high demand in the immediate area. Local employers, including Renzi Foodservice, LeBerge and Curtis, Inc., Cazenovia Equipment Company, Inc., Ray Burns & Sons Trucking, Inc., and Pepsi-Cola Ogdensburg Bottlers, all are looking to recruit qualified drivers.

When the December training session fills up, the CREST center will begin recruiting students for a March 3 CDL-A training session. More information and program requirements are available through the CREST Center website.