Trucks and Trains

As you probably know, I'm a "long hauler." I drive my truck from one side of this great land to the other. Trucks are what keep this country going, regardless what you may hear to the contrary. Our big rigs make noise and are not allowed in some places because of the roaring of the engines and reefers. Some towns won't even allow us on certain roads. If your moving van needs to get your furniture delivered, they have to get special permits.

Many years ago, trains moved the cargo from one place to another. I love trains! They remind me of a simpler bygone age. In every town with railroad tracks you can find an old railroad station (or what is left of one). Back in those days we had "draymen" who loaded goods into horse-drawn wagons and rattled their innards down dusty, rutted tracks to their destinations. The towns were smaller then and the demand for goods was not as great. As time went by, the "draymen" got bigger wagons and more horses to haul the supplies for waiting customers and stores.

With the advent of motor vehicles, the old wagons were replaced by gas powered trucks, small at first, then growing with the increase in engine size and efficiency. The trucks took cargo from the rail yards to the buyers in smaller towns that didn't have railroad service. That's the way it was for many years. In the fifties, after World War 2, the highways became the main source of transportation. Vehicles became bigger and better during the war and then went to work, here at home. Trains still ran across the country, delivering to the main rail-hubs, but trucks took over the rest of the job.

Nowadays, trains still transport people and things all over the country (with government subsidies) but trucks handle the brunt of the work. New regulations make us deal with paperwork or get fined. They check our weight at every border. We don't get enough sleep sometimes and the whole world blames the trucker for every truck-involved accident. It ain't easy, living on the road, away from family and friends. But if all the trucks went on strike, you wouldn't like it. According to one study, it would take three days for all the stores to be empty. What would happen on the fourth day?

I'm not complaining, honest. It's my job and I'm very good at it. But every now and then, when I see a train going by, I think maybe I should have been an engineer instead of a trucker. People still seem to like trains. Remember this, "If you've got it, a truck brought it," the next time you hear someone complaining about truck drivers.