How are Schwarzkopf’s rules affecting what you do?
"The first rule is 'When in charge, take command.’ Even though I was appointed ‘interim’ president in July of 2001, I had no intention of sitting on the sidelines, waiting for the search committee to find my successor."

"We immediately got to work on issues I feel are important to the trucking industry and to the ATA. By the time the ‘interim’ title was removed, we’d already made significant progress."

ATA’s Federation Hall symbolizes the importance of unity among the organization’s state trucking associations.

What kinds of things were you working on?
"One of the most important things for the trucking industry and for the ATA in my view, is unifying the associations.

"To our government, ATA is the trucking industry. We speak with one voice, we look out for the industry and we make no secret of the fact that we’re pro-trucking. To that end, we immediately began working to strengthen the bond among our state trucking associations. We also began work to bring back organizations that had left us, and to make sure we held on to those who hadn’t. And, to gain new members.

"We’ve had success in all those areas, and we’ve even done some symbolic things along that line. For example, a section of our building, called ‘Federation Hall,’ had over the years been turned into ordinary office space, filled with cubicles.

"We took out the cubicles and rededicated Federation Hall to its original intent, a space symbolic of the unity of the many associations that make up the ATA.

"We also revived a tradition we had neglected. Every week, in front of our building, we fly the flag of a different state, and at the end of each week, we send that flag to that state’s trucking association. It’s another way for us to symbolize the fact that we represent trucking everywhere in America."

Each week, ATA flies a different state’s flag in front of its Alexandria, Virginia building, then sends that flag to the local state trucking association. During our visit, Ohio’s was on display.

What are some of the right things the ATA is doing?
"One of the most important is trying to take care of our members. That’s what we might call a ‘mission.’ And along the road to achieving that mission, there are many ‘goals.’

"For example, we are working with government, insurance regulators and insurance companies to try to solve the crisis of rising insurance costs for our members.

"It’s incredible that as an industry, we have improved our safety record enormously over the years, yet skyrocketing insurance costs are driving 300 motor carriers a month into bankruptcy."

Fatal crashes down 29% since 1992. Out-of-Service rate down 46% since 1992. Alcohol a factor in 1%of truck-related fatalities. (19% for automobile-related fatalities) Fatigue a factor in only 1.1% of truck-related accidents. How much has the record improved? "The large truck fatal crash rate is at its lowest point in modern recorded American history. There are only about 2.2 fatal crashes per 100 million vehicle-miles traveled. In the past 10 years, that number has dropped 29 percent. "Our industry’s out-of-service rate has fallen 46 percent over the same period. Alcohol is a factor in 1 percent of all truck-related fatalities, and in spite of all the focus on hours-of-service issues, fatigue is a contributing factor in only 1.1 percent of truck-related accidents. "And yet, insurance rates keep climbing, driving many truck fleets out of business."

ATA recently created this poster, symbolizing the willingness of trucking to combat terrorism here at home.

What kinds of things will help?
"Rate hikes must be based on reality, and we must have tort reform, so bad drivers don’t take good drivers down with them, while simultaneously driving up insurance rates for everyone. And, we’re working with law enforcement and the insurance industry to get truly bad drivers off the road.

"We know that up to 75 percent of the accidents involving a truck and an automobile are initiated by errors on the part of the driver of the automobile. And we know that aggressive driving, particularly excessive speed, was a contributing factor in 29 percent of all fatal accidents in 2000.

"It’s imperative that we start enforcing speed limits for all drivers, all the time."

Safety is our number one priority. Our people want to get home safely, just as much as anyone else.

We know that we could save 12 thousand lives and over 25 billion dollars in litigation costs and other expenses each year by enforcing speed laws. We simply cannot allow speeding and other forms of aggressive driving to be socially acceptable behavior.

"It’s a simple idea: enforce the law equally, for everyone, but I believe that there is enormous power in simple ideas."

If you don’t believe in miracles, you’re not a realist.


But some of those ideas won’t be very popular.
"We feel strongly about many things, but our emphasis is on being pragmatic. Our role is advocacy. We don’t want an adversarial role with government, insurance companies or anyone. We want to work things out, applying common-sense approaches, achieving great things, which I believe we can do. I often tell my 7-year-old son, ‘If you don’t believe in miracles, you’re not a realist.’ "

What about separate roads or toll roads for trucks?
"We don’t believe separate roads are practical or even possible. And besides, who would pay for them? The idea of imposing tolls on truckers is an insult.

"Truckers already pay the highest taxes of anyone using our highways. To have to pay a toll to use the nation’s interstates is like charging you rent after you’ve paid off the mortgage on your home."

To have to pay a toll to use the nation’s interstates is like charging you rent after you’ve paid off the mortgage on your home.

What are the prospects for trucking to recover from current tough times?
"Nothing is more clear than the ‘essentiality’ of trucking to the American way of life. Nearly 70 percent of our nation’s freight moves by truck. One out of ten Americans is involved with trucking. Three million Americans are truck drivers. And trucking accounts for almost 5 percent of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product."

How Essential Is Trucking?

"Look at what happened after the September 11 terrorist attacks: All of our airlines were shut down. People stayed home, afraid to travel. But America’s trucks never stopped.

"Even on that very day. My staff and I spent much of it in my office, watching events unfold on television, praying for our country, and for the safety of our colleagues, some of whom were in the World Trade Center at the time.

"The way our building is situated, we could look out one window and see the smoke rising from the Pentagon. From another, we could see trucks moving along the interstate. It was a powerful, yet encouraging image.

"Terrorists tried to shut us down as a nation, but succeeded only in strengthening our resolve. We were reminded of ads the ATA ran during the Second World War. The headline said, ‘They’ll Never Bomb Us Out.’ We re-ran those ads this past year, to assure America that trucking is indispensable, and that try as they might, terrorists can’t stop this industry."

Your tenure as ATA president ends in January. What are your plans for the future?
"I honestly can’t say. Things have changed so fast in recent times that I often think of 3 days ahead as a ‘long-range plan.’ I often tell my son, ‘If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much room.’ I’m not against long-term planning, but I believe we have to also ask ourselves, ‘What are we going to do today to make things better?’

If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much room.

"I will be delighted to turn this job over to Governor Graves. He’s a great friend of trucking, and his family has been in the trucking business. I’m sure he’ll be the right person to represent our industry in Washington and in the 50 state capitols.

"I’ll have many things to think about. I have a wife, two children and a home in Alabama, all of which I love. And with whom I’d love to spend more time. But I love this industry and working in intergovern-mental affairs too. I’m sure God has a plan for my future, and that it will all work out for me, just as it will for this industry."