During the winter of 1973-74, with U.S. transportation already severely disrupted by a growing fuel crisis, a violent strike by independent truck owner-drivers disrupted freight deliveries and served as a graphic reminder of the nation’s increasing dependence on the trucking industry. In the early 1970s the U.S. motor truck fleet numbered some 19.7 million vehicles and annually carried 455 billion ton-miles of freight (a ton-mile equals a load of one ton carried a distance of one mile). Operating revenues for 15,000 truck lines engaged in interstate commerce reached $19 billion yearly, considerably more than the freight revenues of all U.S. RAILROADS. The industry employed more than 9 million people whose wages totaled about $72.5 billion, and consumed 27.5 gallons of motor fuel.
The U.S. trucking industry has grown remarkably since its beginnings in the early 20th century a growth spurred by that of interstate highway system under the various FEDERAL AID TO HIGHWAYS acts passed between 1916 and 1956. Between 1904 and 1915 alone the number of trucks in the U.S. increased from 700 to 158,0000; by 1935 the total was more than 3.6million and by the mid-1960s it was 12 million.
During the 1920s and 1930s the commercial trucking industry expanded rapidly as the increase in hard surfaced road mileage enabled shippers to send freight door to door. Regulation of motor freight lines, however, was left to the states, which passed a chaotic series o conflicting regulations governing both intrastate and interstate trucking until the U.S. SUPREME COURT ruled that state regulatory agencies were not empowered to restrict or restrain interstate carriers. This was the signal for an uncontrolled rate war among interstate truck lines, which was finally halted by the Motor Carrier Act of 1935. The act empowered the INTERSTATE COMMERCE COMMISSION to regulate rates, safety standards and employees” maximum hours of service for all common, contract and private carriers engaged in interstate commerce. Of these, the common carriers-scheduled trucks, carrying freight over regular routes between designated terminals0form the largest part of the industry, competing directly with the railroads. Among other important carriers are contract carriers of heavy machinery and agricultural commodities.
By the mid-1960s about 75 percent of all goods transported in U.S. commerce were hauled at least part of the way by truck, and local freight was virtually monopolized by the industry. Some advantages of truck transport over railroads are faster deliver, the flexible routes and versatility of design-through these advantages may eventually be out weighted by the rising cost and increased scarcity of motor fuel. Even though truck transport rates are sometimes higher than those of the railroads, shippers often prefer the door-to-door delivery afforded by trucks. In the past decade airfreight has become a strong competitor for long-distance hauls, and the trucking industry has moved toward closer cooperation with the rail lines through the “piggy-back” system-in, which loaded truck trailers, are delivered to a city by rail and then hauled by truck tractor to their final destination. Similarly, airfreight is delivered both to and from airports by truck.
Most drivers and other workers in interstate trucking are members of the Teamsters’ Union. Truck operators are represented by the American Trucking Associations, Inc., a trade organization founded in 1933 and based in Washington, D.C.
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