More Than 70,000 Expected at MATS This Week

More than 70,000 trucking industry professionals from around the world are expected to attend this week’s Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky., the Louisville Courier-Journal reported.

The annual trucking show will be held at the Kentucky Exposition Center, and the Kentucky State Fair Board estimated the event’s local economic impact at more than $14 million, the newspaper reported.

The trucking show will be open from Thursday through Saturday, with several pre-show events beginning on Tuesday.

Fuel economy is expected to be a major theme at the trucking show this year because federal fuel economy standards for trucks begin in 2014.

As U.S. retail heavy-duty truck sales declined from September through January, truck manufacturers and suppliers said they hope to spur slumping sales at MATS.