The public radio show Marketplace is interested in talking with truckers about what's happening with the economy. Who else has such an intimate knowledge of fuel prices, infrastructure, and the state of our nation?

Respond: americanpublicmedia.org/pin/truckingquery

In the media we tend to talk to experts and analysts about economic trends, but I believe we can get a better picture -- and go deeper into the issues -- by talking with the folks who have a practical, daily view of those trends through their jobs. We're interested in learning about:

FUEL COSTS -- What strategies do you employ to cope with rising fuel costs? Who pays fuel costs for the truck(s) you drive? If you're reimbursed for fuel costs, do you feel you get a fair rate? If not, what would make it fair? What's your stance on owner-operator strike plans?

THE ECONOMY -- Have you experienced or observed any changes to your routes, the loads you carry, standards, or safety in recent months?

INFRASTRUCTURE -- What, if anything, concerns you about the United States' transportation infrastructure? How does infrastructure affect your work?

AND -- Are you involved in any plans to strike?

Please teach us what only you can understand. Paste this address into your browser and share your trucking knowledge with us: americanpublicmedia.org/pin/truckingquery

Ok. I answered your questionaire.
Now what?

Bob,

We read every word that people say on the queries, and often follow up with more questions. People that answer these queries often end up on-air as sources in stories.

Thank you so much for sharing your story.

As a company driver I fuel where my company tells me to. Usually a Pilot Travel Center. Large companies usually will negotiate a discounted fuel rate based on a set amount of gallons per month. A volume discount if you will.

Unfortunatley Owner Ops do not have the purchasing power to compete in this arena unless they are leased onto a larger company. In the case of Schneider and Swift (the 2 largest truckload carriers in the nation) they have aggressive fuel purchasing programs and on site fueling options that permit steep discounts in fuel purchases. The lone wolf Owner op is a dinosaur and fading fast.

As for the economy it has been in a down cycle for the past year. Of course government bean counters say its just been the past 2 quarters and to this I say "hogwash!" The fact is there is an over capacity problem in regard to available trucks and therefore the freight rates have been depressed.
Large companies have figured out how to make buckets of money off of the naive wannabe o/o's that cannot afford to buy a truck on their own. These companies do little to nothing to educate these fellas and just rent them a company truck, let them run their tail off, pay for the fuel, and collect the profits from the load while the lease op has no benefits and actually takes home less than his company driver counterparts all because "he wants to do things his own way and be in business for himself."
These sorry drivers accept pay of .90 to 1.00 per mile plus a fuel surcharge (which in many cases is NOT passed on 100% to the lease operator). This brings their potential pay to around 1.25 to 1.35 per mile. Of course it costs them about .80 to .90 cpm to run that truck and that is without figuring in insurances, workers comp, or any other benefits. Many think they are making money until they find out they are supposed to be paying social security, medicare, federal, state, and local taxes out of that "settlement." Their naivete' and ignorance of common business practices is what these companies count on.

The infrastructure is decaying faster than it is being repaired and upgraded to accomodate the increases in vehicle usage (all types). The highway tax dollars and fuel tax dollars that were supposed to be used to maintain our highways have been diverted to "other" projects over the years and now we are seeing the results with bridges collapsing, rest areas closing, and the roads in a terrible state of repair over all.

As for striking NO! I did not participate nor would I. It is survival of the fittest. The owners with the best business plans are still making money in this economy. The foolhardy choices of many in business for themselves are now biting them squarely in the butt. Why should we bail out these fellas or even have sympathy for them? In many cases (not all mind you) these fellas have a huge square nose truck and run as fast as they can everywhere they go. They sneer at aerodynamics, business plans, and speccing their equipment for fuel economy. In many cases owner ops even sneer at the dot regs and figure they will make a profit on freight based on faster service as compared to a company that runs compliant with the regs. For those others that are indeed trying to do things right (in a business sense anyway) they will be squeezed out due to lack of leverage in purchasing power (for trucks, parts, fuel, and insurance).

__________________
Knowledge is Power

Hello,

Thanks so much for sharing information with us about fueling, your company, and your plans not to strike. Your thoughts offer a very interesting perspective that we have not seen yet, especially since a lot of the drivers we've been hearing from very adamantly want to strike. Could a reporter email or call you to hear more about this?

Thank you so much,

Public Insight Journalism
American Public Media

Fine by me. I did sign up to be a contact at your main site already. I am not currently a lease operator nor an owner operator but I was a lease operator (back in the late nineties) for a now defunct carrier that was named Trans-States Lines based out of Fort Smith Ar. The old terminal was located on Jenny Lind street (if memory serves me) before they got bought out by Burlington Motor Carriers who went belly up a year or so later themselves. I was naive and got suckered (just as the majority of lease purchase drivers find out in the end after their credit is shot and even lost their homes in some cases), so now I try to inform as many drivers about these scams (aka lease purchases) that I can. Being a veteran driver and good at hustling and making money does not necessarily equip one to make the transition to an owner operator. I think every aspiring owner op should have to take a business course and tax course to understand that side of the equation BEFORE signing for that truck. Having a solid business plan should be the next step rather than just jumping into a contract without fully understanding every aspect of what you just signed.

Of course I have not made many friends in the owner op side of things (here or on other forums) because some consider themselves to be superior (and different) to a lease purchase operator (even though from a tax standpoint they are identical) and I tend to group them together. The sad truth is most of these fellas cannot afford any benefits and in many cases feel compelled to operate illegally (beyond hos regs) in order to pay for all the truck expenses and still be able to pay bills back home. I do have sympathy for these fellas believe it or not but there is an old saying that fits this very well; "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

Forums such as this 1 actually create a huge database of inside information and experience that can help drivers old and new alike (if they take the time to read, question, and study that information they can enlighten themselves provided they have an open mind to the information offered).

In some cases there will be disagreements and contradictory information will be offered. To this I can only say weigh the arguments carefully and decide for yourself who has the more reasonable argument. What applies to one particular situation may not necessarily apply to all (as in an owner ops expenses for running his business).

__________________
Knowledge is Power

I also filled out your survey. I would urge you to spend some time on this site reading the posts and getting to know the individuals stories a bit. there is a ton of information available and most any of us would be willing to assist you in any way we can. Then again mabey it's just me since I'm a major public radio listener