Gander :
So me and a friend were talking about this yesterday when I saw this, and here’s how I look at it. There are multiple companies out here running 100+ trucks. We all know the big names: Swift, Knight, J.B. Hunt, Prime, Werner, just to name a few. Their whole business model is drivers in seats and trucks moving. They train you, put you in a truck and trailer, hand you a fuel card, and tell you where to pick up and where to deliver. The difference is, the company is paying for that fuel. These large fleets have contracts, buying power, incentives and discounts through major truck stops like Loves, TA/Petro and Pilot/Flying J. Some may also qualify for different government programs or incentives that smaller operators simply don’t have access to in the same way. Now take the lease operator or small owner-operator who’s paying a truck payment, insurance, maintenance, fuel and everything else out of their own pocket. When fuel gets this expensive, they’re the ones who feel it immediately. Some may have enough of a nest egg to keep running through it, but others are going to have to park the truck because they’re simply not turning a profit. And that’s where I have a hard time believing we’re going to see some nationwide shutdown over fuel prices. Big Joe with his paid-off truck, paid-off trailer and his own authority might decide it’s not worth running anymore. I could absolutely see some small carriers, owner-operators and lease operators shutting down or parking their equipment. But how many are actually going to do it at the same time? Meanwhile, Billy Big Bucks is sitting in a corporate office with 1,000 trucks running underneath him. His company is still moving freight because the trucks still need to move and the drivers still need a paycheck. I’ve been in this industry for 12 years, and it seems like every year there’s another protest or shutdown being talked about. Fuel is too high. Rates are too low. Insurance is too expensive. Drivers aren’t being treated right. We’re not making enough money. And every time, people say THIS is going to be the one that shuts the industry down. Then everybody goes back to work. That’s just my two cents.
2026-09-17 09:52:59