Although the American Trucking Associations panned a White House proposal to suspend federal fuel taxes over the summer, mom-and-pop outfits may not necessarily agree. Recent reports indicate some small outfits are barely hanging on while others fold under the weight of record-high diesel costs.
In California, diesel prices lead the nation to about $7 per gallon, while much of the country hovers in the $5.50 area. Reports indicate that small trucking companies and owner-operators are struggling to earn a living. Many cannot pass along the expense as easily as major carriers and big-box operations.
“When I leave, I’m gone for three days. I pack sandwiches — peanut butter and jelly — and that’s it. I’ve been living off of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches,” truck driver Frank Davilla reportedly said. Davilla also noted he’s had to withdraw funds from his pension to make ends meet.
Small fleets that lease tractors are also on the hook for wide-reaching peripheral business expenses. Rising diesel costs and an influx of scammers are forcing many to rethink their position as independent truckers and consider working for a corporation.
“Right now, it’s like the wild, wild west. Oftentimes, there’s a bunch of deception with the pricing and the higher percentage is going to the broker,” Kamard Johnson, CEO and owner of Richmond, Va.-based GTT Commercial Tires, reportedly said. “We need a trucking career to be more attractive, and, obviously, one of the biggest ways is the financial piece. It’s going to be tough. Truckers’ contributions are the conveniences of our everyday lives.”
Gary Langston, president of the Indiana Motor Truck Association, pointed out the freight hauling industry utilizes upwards of 45 billion gallons of fuel annually, and 80 percent is diesel. The price at the pump has beaten its own record week after week in recent months. Indiana prices recently neared the $6 mark.
“Everybody’s impacted by it, but we’re impacted by it first. Probably everything you have was on a truck at some point before you got it,” Langston reportedly said. “If you’re trying to run your own business, you’re really struggling. There are a lot of those folks who either have reached that point or are getting close to that point where they say, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ It’s really unfortunate.”
Jessica Warnke, CEO of Carter Express, runs an 800-truck operation now spending more than $750,000 each week on diesel. That figure rose by $200,000 weekly since gas and diesel prices exploded. She made an executive decision to raise driver fuel card limits by 20 percent and still worries that amount may not get the job done.
“We are in unprecedented times. This puts a squeeze on us financially while we wait to be reimbursed with our fuel surcharge, and it is forcing us to keep an eye on our growing line of credit. We aren’t sure that will even be enough for them to fill their tanks in one transaction,” Warnke reportedly said. “I think there is a price that at some point the industry can no longer bear, and customers will have to make tough decisions, and that will directly affect us and our drivers and our employees.”
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A country as rich in resources as our great nation, we shouldn’t have to rely on any nation for fuel, food or vehicle parts and services, so why are we? Try to buy a part for your truck, don’t be surprised of the words like, national back order what happened to the public servants service for our nation, why do career public servants keep filling there overseas investments account?
That’s what happens when you vote an idiot into office.
I agree it’s idiots that vote for idiots! And that’s what have now!
Biden ran on the promise of higher energy prices, end to fossil fuel, and taking millions of cars and trucks off the road.
That’s what he is doing, destroying the county.
He wants to pretend it’s not his fault but he’s doing exactly what he promise. Well his handlers are.
These are Evil people running the country right now.
Frank Davilla should eat canned meats, fish, fruits and vegetables. If he has an inverter, cook meat (it gets marked down at night on the sell by date) on a George Foreman grill or microwave meals in his truck. It’s cheaper, better for you and is quicker than waiting in line at understaffed restaurants. You can have a hot meal anywhere you park. Mini coffee makers work well on the little tables in sleepers and can also be used to make hot water for Ramen noodles and oatmeal. There’s plenty of storage space for all of that in most sleepers. Hopefully he has a side door for access to the sleeper. It makes loading those supplies simple by tossing the bags onto the bed. Before I head into a store, I put my pillows and sleeping bag against the driver’s side interior wall to sling the canned goods (or anything that won’t bust open and spill) against that padding. I call those items ‘heave-ables’ and I identify and sort those items at the checkout counter or in the cart parked next to truck. The empty bags can be repurposed for trash up in the cab. A cooler is handy for perishable items like meat and bags of frozen vegetables (heat those in the microwave while cooking on the Foreman grill) or resealable containers of yogurt or cottage cheese. When those thing are thawed out, I fill a water jug (another money saver) with ice, topped off with water (Love’s has soda fountains with an ice chute that works excellently with Ocean Spray cranberry juice jugs) and place that ice-water jug in the cooler to maintain temperature and prevent spoilage.
So the .18 is going to make that much of a difference? No wonder I quit driving!