4 things you didn’t know about the truck driving industry

The truck driving industry employs more than 3.5 million people in the U.S., where driving large tractor-trailers or delivery trucks is one of the largest occupations, according to census.gov.

In a survey by Food Logistics, over half of drivers said they feel proud to deliver essential goods and services to fellow Americans. For the right person who enjoys traveling and serving others, truck driving is an exciting and rewarding career that fosters a new lifestyle. Check out these three things you didn’t know about the truck driving industry:

1. Trucks sometimes carry obscure materials

While the general public is used to trucks transporting clothing, produce and other material items, there are instances when trucks transport more obscure items.

For example, Double D Distribution specializes in transporting soil and hot tar to deliver to contracting companies. These types of projects require enhanced safety standards and must be placed carefully in the bed and kept at a certain internal temperature. We make sure that we cover the top of the truck bed with a specially designed cover to deliver the best product possible. To learn more about our trucking services and the materials we transport, visit our website.

2. A typical U.S. commercial truck driver logs 105,000 miles per year

The combined mileage for all trucks making deliveries across the country is nearly 5 billion miles per year, according to Invoice Factoring. In fact, 15.7 million trucks are currently in use in the U.S., and the trucking industry makes up 5% of America’s GDP.

Trucks drivers keep our economy going as we know it, making modern manufacturing possible.

3. Trucking consumes about 50 billion gallons of gasoline every year

This is nearly 13% of our country’s total fuel consumption! While burning this fuel, truck drivers complete a variety of common routes to big cities like Miami to New York City, Seattle to Washington, D.C., Chicago to San Francisco and New Orleans to Denver.

4. Engine exhaust from truck driving has decreased by 95% over the last 19 years

That number will continue to decrease as we find more modern and sustainable ways to transport goods and services nationwide. Truck drivers are conscious of their idling unless it’s a necessity like keeping the truck warm in the winter.

We hope you enjoyed these lesser-known facts about truck driving. From dispatch to delivery, you can count on Double D Distribution to be your reliable partner since we’ve been in business since 1984. Stay tuned for the latest industry facts and job opportunities.