Think about it. Those apples you buy at the grocery store. The fuel you pump into your vehicle. The wood that frames the sprawling new apartments along the river. Nearly everything you encounter in your day-to-day life spent time on a truck.
Professional drivers hauled more than 10.55 billion tons of freight last year. That’s more than 70% of the total U.S. freight tonnage. And since nearly 80% of communities across the nation rely exclusively on trucks to receive all their goods, it’s safe to say that the trucking industry is the backbone of our economy.
We owe a great deal of thanks to professional truck drivers, and it’s time we honor the 3.5 million road warriors who are dedicated to safely delivering all the items that make our quality of life possible. To help celebrate National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, September 10-16, here are some interesting facts to consider:
- Professional truck drivers drive over 279 billion miles per year, more than double the total logged 25 years ago
- 1 out of every 16 people employed in the U.S. works in the trucking industry
- A new truck produces one-tenth the emissions as a similar truck manufactured just seven years ago
- The trucking industry paid $18.4 billion in federal highway-user taxes
- There are more than 11 million registered commercial trailers
So, this week when you walk down the grocery store aisle and see the huge variety of products on the shelves, think about the professional truck drivers that got them there. When you sit in your living room, office or classroom, look at the tables, chairs and electronics and realize that all of those items spent time on a truck.
The staff at DriveSafe Online® encourages you to take a moment to acknowledge truck drivers and understand that without them, our tables, closets and stores would be empty.
Share this message with your friends and family and join us in saying “THANK YOU” to professional truck drivers everywhere.
Patrick M. is Editorial Director for the always expanding DriveSafe Online library of courses. With over two decades of experience developing award-winning training, he now focuses on innovating online driver safety training. Pulling from his background in journalism, he steers the wheel behind the creation of top-tier content that promotes a better journey—whether on the digital highway of learning or the real roads we travel every day.