ROANOKE TIMES 

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, November 19, 1993                   TAG: 9311220113
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Journal of Commerce
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

TRUCKERS KEEP ON STRIKIN'

The shutdown by truck owner-operators, originally scheduled to end Wednesday, will continue indefinitely, organizers say. But while the shutdown affected freight movements in some areas of the country, especially the Los Angeles-Long Beach area, leaders acknowledge their organizing effort failed to articulate a coherent agenda.

``As far as the United Drivers of America [UDA] is concerned, the shutdown is not over, as it does not appear that the concerns of truckers have been addressed.

``We are attempting to establish communications with the appropriate government officials to present our views and make known the problems that have been escalating in the last few years,'' Bud Spaulding, a key organizer for the newly formed independent truckers' group, said in a statement.

Organizers, holed up in a Maryland truck-stop motel, said the nationwide truck stoppage had achieved a key objective in getting government and transportation industry officials to focus on independent truckers.

But they acknowledged they did not know the first thing about organizing in the political arena. Only vague statements of grievances were ever circulated, and no efforts to work within established political channels were made.

``This is all foreign territory to us. We're just truckers,'' one Dallas organizer said.

The shutdown, called by various loosely organized groups with such names as Quest for Freedom, Truckers Across America and Truckers of America, originally was slated for Nov. 11-17.

The grass-roots effort severely affected intermodal shipments in ports around the country, as well as steel haulers in the Midwest. Scattered violence also was reported, particularly in strong union states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Shippers in Western Virginia have reported little impact.

The truckers said they are upset over what they say is harassment by state police, proposed bans on radar detectors, possible job losses from the North American Free Trade Agreement and skyrocketing fuel prices. 


 by CNB