It may be likely that when asked about your driving career and what all it involves, you’re able to rattle off some answers like: far from home, little sleep, heavy loads, big rigs, lots of waiting, gas stops, and rest stops. But there is so much more to the freight industry that you should appreciate yourself for.
#1 AND SO IT BEGAN
A German-American blacksmith, named Charles Freuhauf, invented the first tractor trailer back in 1914. He needed a way to transport his boat.
#2 NOW HIRING
In the U.S. alone, 8.9 million people have a job in the truck industry; 3.5 million of these are truck drivers.
#3 THERE ARE ROOTS WITH A GROWING JOB
The trucking industry is soaring and is projected to increase 21 percent by 2022. Since this is a multi-billion-dollar industry, it is worth serious consideration as a stable career for anyone looking for an exciting change and job security.
#4 YOU GO GIRL
Only 6% (or a total of 234,000) truck drivers are women. Women are rarely the first to come to mind when we think about truck drivers. But these tough women are embracing the new family dynamics the pandemic has presented to us all and taken on careers to keep their families and America running!
#5 TIME TO FUEL UP
There are about 15.5 million active trucks in the U.S. trucking industry and the average commercial truck consumes 20,500 gallons of fuel each year.
#6 LESS POLLUTION IS THE SOLUTION
Because of clean diesel technology, 60 modern-day trucks put out the equivalent emission of a single truck from 1988 and emissions from heavy trucks have been cut over 95% in the past two decades, due to EPA regulations. Thank you, science. We can all breathe again!
#7 SHOOT FOR THE STARS, YOU’LL LAND ON THE MOON
There are close to 16 million active trucks in the United States with over 3.5 million truckers behind the wheels. This means that if you could pile up the vehicles, they would reach the moon.
#8 HOME AWAY FROM HOME
Trucker drivers spend more than 240 nights away from home each year. Small businesses truckers drive more than 3 million miles in their lifetime, which breaks down to a yearly average of more than 115,000 miles.