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12
Apr
8 Facts About the Truck Driving Industry
On the surface of things, the truck driving industry can seem pretty tame: There are trucks. They carry freight. That freight is driven to various places. The end. However, scratch the surface of the truck driving field and you’ll find a wealth of facts and trivia that not only hold interest but often reveal just how necessary the truck driving industry is to our nation. Read on to find out more.
Fascinating Trucking Facts
- Trucking goes all the way back to 1896 when Gottlieb Daimler, a German company, created the first functioning truck-based automobile.
- While typical engines for consumer automobiles can last about 200,000 or so miles by design, commercial truck engines last around 1 million miles by design.
- Over 8 million people in the United States are employed in some capacity by the truck driving industry.
- The trucking industry accounts for 12 percent of all registered automobiles in the United States.
- The average trucker will drive over 100,000 road miles per year. That works out to nearly 40 trips across the United States.
- Despite their longer-than-average time on the road, truckers get in three times fewer accidents than non-commercial drivers.
- Want to save gas? Driving your truck at 65 miles per hour rather than 75 leads to 27 percent lower fuel usage.
- Since 1980, the trucking industry has reduced exhaust-based emissions by about 95 percent.
There are just a few of the many facts surrounding our wonderful industry. As truckers, we have a rich history full fascinating stories and a legacy of keeping this nation’s economy functioning through our hard work and service.
Ready to add to the truck driving history books? Start your career in truck driving today at America Truck Driving School! To learn more about our programs available, contact us at our main office in Santa Ana at 714-542-8660 or request an inquiry!