Truck Driver Jobs

Trucking is a very important function in our country, even in a slow economy. The U.S. economy relies on commerce and shipping. We have goods and products, and we have the capacity to ship them.

Even with the economic downturn, people need goods and manufacturers need inputs. In order to keep us functioning properly, we need the trucking industry to get what we need to the place we need it.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, trucks moved 9 billion tons of manufactured goods and raw materials worth $8.4 trillion in 2007. This is more than two-thirds of the value and weight of freight shipped in the United States. While bulk goods, such as grains, coal, and ores, still comprise a large share of the tonnage moved across the country, lighter and more valuable goods such as computers and office equipment now make up an increasing proportion of what is moved.

Transporting goods increases their value by moving them to locations where they are worth more. Transportation also encourages competition, stimulates demand for good and services, and employs millions of people.

Many small towns would die off if it was not for trucking. Trucking supplies small towns with food and supplies from across the country. Think about how we used to move supplies and equipment over 100 years ago…everything was done on the river or by railroad. And while we're still moving supplies these ways, there are too many small towns that aren't accessible via water or rail; they’re only accessible by the highway.

Transportation and trucking is big business. There are more than 500,000 interstate trucking companies operating in the United States with more than 3 million truck drivers on the road. Reliability and predictability are a shipper’s most important criteria for freight transportation in an era of tightly integrated operations, limited inventory, and just-in-time manufacturing and retailing. Late arrivals can have significant economic costs for factories waiting for parts to assemble and for carriers who are missing guaranteed delivery times.

So when someone complains about those “jerks in those semis”, just remind them what their life would be like without them. They wouldn’t have anything they want or need, and it definitely wouldn’t be in a timely manner.