Two Groups Stage Demonstrations

March 22, 2000 10:46 AM, EST

Fewer than 150 truckers pulled into Washington, D.C., March 16, to protest a number of ills plaguing owner-operators. And when they arrived, they found two groups engaged in a cat fight to represent them.

	Michael James - Transport Topics
	U.S. Rep. Frank A. LoBiondo (R-N.J.) speaks at the trucker protest while NOOTA spokesman Doug Sorantino (center) and NOOTA Executive Director Charles Hentz (right) look on.

The result was a smattering of angry truck drivers in two clusters on Capitol Hill.

The protest was the second in Washington in less than a month. More than 200 dump trucks and tractor-trailers drove to the capital Feb. 22 to call for a suspension of the federal fuel tax, rebates on diesel fuel purchases, a release of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and a federal investigation into the fuel crisis.

During that rally, several drivers said they were sounding a wake-up call to Congress and warned that if their voices weren't heard, they would storm the capital with even more trucks this month.

For the full story, see the Mar. 20 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.