For Immediate Release
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association
1 NW OOIDA Drive, Grain Valley, MO
E-mail:ooida@ooida.com
Web site: www.ooida.com
Phone: (816) 229-5791 Fax: (816) 427-4468
Contact: Angel Burnell (800) 444-5791
Friday, October 20, 2006
Call for speed limiters on trucks a ‘Trojan horse’
Proposals being offered by an association representing the interests of large trucking companies to federal agencies are nothing more than an attempt to limit competition cloaked in safety propaganda, according to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA).
An Oct. 18 press release announced that petitions will be submitted to transportation agencies that will force the federal government to impose mechanical limits on the speeds of privately owned commercial motor vehicles.
“These petitions are intended to be a Trojan horse for the true objectives of big trucking companies – doing away with current truck size and weight restrictions as well as increasing their importation of cheap, less qualified foreign drivers,” said Todd Spencer, executive vice president of OOIDA. “They are aimed at limiting competition from the small trucking companies that make up the vast majority of the industry.”
This is part of a broader strategy to create a more conducive environment for other, more worrisome intentions, according to Spencer.
“It is no secret that large trucking corporations want to maximize their profits by opening all national highways to heavier trucks as well as double and triple trailer combinations. Those folks also wish to pad their bottom lines by bringing in exploitable foreign labor instead of paying appropriate wages to American citizens,” Spencer explained.
OOIDA contends the driving force behind the speed limiter proposal is money and has nothing to do with safety.
“A critical fact totally ignored by these petitions is that reduced speed promotes safety only if all vehicles are moving at those same reduced speeds,” Spencer continued. “Ironically, should these petitions come to fruition, America’s roads will become much more dangerous to motorists and truckers alike.”
Currently, 30 states have speed limits of 70 mph or higher on their interstate highways.
In addition to needing to be able to drive with the flow of traffic, there are times when a truck driver would need to call on additional speeds to avoid potentially dangerous situations.
“Technology cannot take the place of a well-trained driver. If the big trucking corporations were honestly interested in promoting safety, they would be petitioning for a requirement for comprehensive training for all new truck drivers,” Spencer said. “No such training requirements currently exist and those big companies have worked hard to keep it that way.”
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About OOIDA
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) is the national trade association representing the interests of small business trucking professionals and professional truck drivers. Small business truckers (companies operating six or fewer trucks) comprise close to 90% of the motor carrier industry. OOIDA represents more trucking companies and more truck drivers than any other association in that industry. The Association currently has over 145,000 members from all 50 states and Canada.
Founded in 1973, the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) is composed of more than 143,000 owner-operators, professional drivers, and small business truckers from all 50 states, and Canada. OOIDA represents the interests of this nation's more than 350,000 small-business trucking professionals in the legislative and regulatory processes at both federal and state levels.