What is the ATA (American Trucker's Association)

ATA supposedly represents carriers but their main interest is benefiting the megacarriers . OOIDA members are O/O's and company drivers . ATA and OOIDA are usually battling each other on issues . (ATA favors EOBR's and speed limiters , OOIDA opposes them )

 

ATA.....The Anti Trucking Association...The do nothin for the trucking industry but they do a lot of bad things to the industry.

 

Here's the breakdown of representation of the players involved:

OOIDA: drivers
ATA: big fleets
CRASH: railroad interests
FMCSA: typical big governent interests
DOT: revenue generation

 

There's quite a few more . You didn't mention Public Citizen and International Brotherhood of Teamsters . They are the ones that keep demanding changes in HOS .
Public Citizen was founded by Ralph Nader and headed for years by Joan Claybrook . Claybrook is the one that forced auto manufacturers to install airbags despite warnings of their danger to children .

 

Every year, the carrier I am with will hand out little patches and pins recognizing drivers for safety. They are all patches and pins from the ATA. I just hand them back and say "no thanks". I have no desire to have platitudes heaped upon me by an organization who really has no concern for me, and even espouses my demise. I have made it clear to every carrier who did these things that my view of the ATA is that it is nothing more than a front group for the Communist Party. After all, any group that will try to get government to limit the business of others is clearly does not hold the values of Americanism that we were founded on.

 

ATA... Annoying Truckers Again!

 

Anti Trucking Association

 

The ATA is a band of renegade Washington DC mutants who's mission is to destroy the individuality of the american trucker and put the owner driver's out of business.

 

The ATA does what it's "owners" want it to do. The ATA is funded by membership dues paid by member carriers. Yes, the big boys dominate the association, but they have hundreds of members of all sizes. To expect the ATA to represent the driver is akin to expecting AARP to represent the views of newborns.

The only way drivers will ever garner the political clout of groups like the ATA is to make an institution like OOIDA larger and more politically viable. Whether you agree with every position taken by a group like OOIDA or not the simple truth is that if their membership was in the millions politicians would take note. Millions of members, that prove they vote and will not be dismissed, would take a lot of lobbying clout away from those organizations like the ATA that routinely push agendas contrary to the well being of drivers.