Mar 24, 2008 9:12 pm US/Eastern
Diesel Prices Push Local Truckers To Protest
VANDERGRIFT (KDKA) ―
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Independent truckers parked their trucks in protest of high diesel fuel prices.
KDKA
A group of local independent truckers parked their rigs in protest of the soaring price of diesel fuel.
At the same time, they're trying to raise the public's awareness, warning them about the potential for the problem to negatively affect everyone.
"There's a little saying, 'If you bought it, a truck brought it to you,' " Organizer Don Waltenbaugh said.
The truckers staged the protest outside Vandergrift along alternate Route 66.
With diesel prices well above $4 a gallon, some independent truckers are having a hard time delivering the goods and paying their own bills.
"We work on a 5 percent profit margin or less and with the increases of fuel our expenses we're having right now we can't make it anymore," Waltenbaugh said.
Within the next one to three months, some of the truckers believe they may not be able to drive anymore. Filling up a tractor-trailer can cost as much as $1,300 and drivers can shell out $200 for an oil change.
On April 1, independent truckers across the country are believed to be planning a similar protest.
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