Truckers Seeing Recovery Signs, Times Says

In positive indication of the economy’s direction, truck drivers are beginning to see an uptick in their business, the New York Times reported Sunday.

Often times, commercial trucking sees an increase in business as factories begin boosting production and stores and consumers begin purchasing goods again.

Several drivers at truck stop in Oklahoma City told the Times that they have seen the frequency of their loads begin inching up, suggesting the nation’s economy is starting to climb out of its recession.

Citing American Trucking Associations’ figures, the Times said that trucks haul 67% of domestic freight in the U.S. by weight and 87% by value.

ATA economist Bob Costello told the paper that trucking reached a peak in total weight hauled in December 1999, but the industry saw a decline of 17% in that figure by July 2000, foreshadowing the recession.

Not all drivers that the Times spoke to were seeing better times. Some said that shipments of capital goods, like I-beams, assembly-line machinery and factory air-conditioning systems, had yet to materialize.

Other drivers said that they have had to scale back their operations because of increased debt and fewer shipments as a result of factory closures and reduced consumer spending.

The majority of drivers interviewed, however, said they felt good about business and the prospects for an economic recovery. One owner-operator who works with automobile carrier Allied Automotive Group told the Times that not only have all of that company’s former employees been called back after layoffs, but that Allied was looking to hire more drivers.

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