Truckers push for more highway spending
Last month truckers pushed Congress to increase investments to America’s highway system noting that cargo shipped by trucks was expected to increase sharply over the next decade; the American Trucking Association (ATA) recently predicted that by 2022, there will be an overall increase of 24 percent in freight transportation; of that 24 percent, the trucking industry will see its cargo load increase by 70 percent.
Last month truckers pushed Congress to increase investments to America’s highway system noting that the percentage of cargo shipped by trucks was expected to increase sharply over the next decade.
The American Trucking Association (ATA) recently predicted that by 2022, there will be an overall increase of 24 percent in freight transportation. Of that 24 percent, the trucking industry will see its cargo load increase by 70 percent.
In contrast, domestic waterborne transportation is only expected to grow 2 percent while rail transportation will actually fall as much as 15.3 percent.
Based on these projections, ATA argues that Congress needs to spend more to ensure that the nation’s highway system is properly maintained.
“Highways are the lifeblood of the economy,” said Bob Costello, the ATA’s chief economist. “And this study shows that we should make sure we invest in highways and bridges.”
In particular, Costello said truckers are concerned about crumbling infrastructure.
“We’re very concerned that infrastructure is decaying,” he said. “We can’t ignore investments in infrastructure, because they’re too important.”
