In The News

Trucking in wait-and-see mode as to Obama’s transportation policies

The broadcast media always seeks those sound bites that grab listeners’ attention.

Thus it was on ABC radio after the Nov. 4 election that we heard President-elect Barack Obama say about repairing the economy and dealing with problems at home and overseas, that “We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight [election night] that we will get there. I promise you, we as a people will get there.”

The morning after the election, members of the trucking community — from those weary drivers parked on the “back 40” at the travel center to the shippers and receivers to the dispatchers to the company executives — all want to know where “there” is.

Obviously, we can’t answer that question, either, but we will offer some observations about the election and what lies ahead.

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Industry sources have long told us that with the combination of a Democratic administration and Democratic-controlled Congress, we’re likely to see the heat turned up on two front burner issues: Hours of Service and the cross border demonstration project.

Our sources feel there will be a push to set the driving limit at 10 hours instead of 11 as the current Interim Final Rule (and most likely the Final Rule to be issued in early 2009) allow.

Those same sources also believe that with a Democrat in the White House, they’ll be able to get the executive branch behind the push to scrap the demonstration project and probably keep the border between the U.S. and Mexico closed to free trade.

While he’s never [that we can find] talked about opening the border, Obama did say last June that he didn’t want to unilaterally reopen negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Obama told a reporter for Fortune magazine that be believes in “opening up a dialogue” with trading partners Canada and Mexico “and figuring to how we can make this work for all people.”

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Transportation was never listed as an “issue” on the Barack Obama Web site, so we had to do some digging to find out how he would handle one of the industry’s top priorities — the nation’s crumbling infrastructure.

A position statement on Obama’s Web site says that as America’s “society becomes more mobile and interconnected; the need for 21st Century transportation networks has never been greater.” Obama notes that too many of the nation’s railways, highways, bridges, airports and neighborhood streets are slowly decaying because of the lack of investment and strategic long-term planning.

So. Obama says, he will create a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank to expand and enhance, not supplant, existing federal transportation investments.

“This independent entity will be directed to invest in our nation’s most challenging transportation infrastructure needs,” he said. “The Bank will receive an infusion of federal money, $60 billion over 10 years, to provide financing to transportation infrastructure projects across the nation. These projects will create up to two million new direct and indirect jobs and stimulate approximately $35 billion per year in new economic activity.”

Obama said he believes that America’s long-term competitiveness depends on the stability of its critical infrastructure.

He said his administration would enter into a new partnership with state and local civic, political and business leaders to enact a truly national infrastructure policy that recognizes that we must upgrade our infrastructure to meet the demands of a growing population, a changing economy and the country’s short- and long-term energy challenges.

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Obama clearly was not the candidate of choice for a majority of the trucking industry.

At the recent American Trucking Associations Management Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans, a straw poll indicated a clear preference for Sen. John McCain.

In poll after poll conducted on thetrucker.com, truckers expressed a preference for McCain, generally by the same margin.

In March, we asked “if the presidential race is between John McCain and Barack Obama, for whom would you vote?”

McCain won 68 percent to 32 percent.

In June, we asked two questions: “If the election were held today, for whom would you vote?”

McCain won 68 percent to 32 percent.

But when ask whom they thought would win, it was McCain by only 53 percent to 47 percent.

In September, after both men had picked running mates, 59 percent felt McCain would win, 41 percent Obama.

Then on the day of the election, we asked for whom truckers voted and 70 percent said McCain, versus 30 percent Obama.

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One final tidbit.

One year ago, we asked who truckers would prefer as the Democratic and Republican candidates.

Sen. Hillary Clinton was the choice on the Democratic side and Fred Thompson for the Republicans.

Obama finished behind John Edwards on the Democrat poll, Mitt Romney, Rudy Guiliani and Mike Huckabee on the Republican side.