Contenders Demonstrate Safe Habits Over Long Haul

The nation’s safest truckers descend on New Orleans this week for the 63rd annual National Truck Driving Championships.

	Did you know?
	The average contestant in this year's championships has: been with his present employer for 10.7 years. been in trucking for an average of 20.8 years. driven an average of 16.3 years without an accident. driven an average of 1.48 million accident-free miles.

Nearly 400 drivers from all 50 states will participate in the competition, established in 1937 by American Trucking Associations as an incentive for drivers to increase their knowledge of trucking and improve their driving skills. With the exception of 1942 to 1945, when the United States was fighting World War II, the competition has brought the “best of the best” together to determine the safest driver in the country. The competition is organized by American Trucking Associations and is sponsored by Exxon-Mobil Corp.

To compete in the national championships, drivers must be accident-free for at least one year. Additionally, they have to be state champions. Most of the 388 drivers have a stellar safety record, according to data analyzed for Transport Topics by ATA’s Economics Department. The average competitor has driven safely for an average 16.3 years and driven an average 1.48 million miles without a preventable accident (an accident the driver could have avoided).

While 388 drivers are scheduled to compete, data for only 381 contestants were available for analysis.

For the full story, see the Aug. 7 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.