Transport Topics: Trucking Moves America Forward Campaign Raises $500,000

The industry image campaign, Trucking Moves America Forward, said it has raised upward of $500,000, more than halfway to its annual goal of a million dollars.

The campaign is designed to inform the public and policymakers about the benefits of the trucking business to build support to grow the industry.

“The trucking industry is critical to the American economy; it injects more than $642 billion dollars into this country annually, and trucks exclusively serve more than 80% of our country’s communities,” Mike Card, campaign fundraising chairman and president of Combined Transport Inc., said in a statement. “The industry has made great strides in safety, innovation and technology and looks forward to sharing that with the American people.”

The campaign will use radio, television and print advertising, opinion columns, social media and murals on the sides of trailers to spread the message.

Officials from American Trucking Associations, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and industry suppliers kicked off the initiative at a press conference before the start of the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky, in late March.

Top-level donors include: Cummins Inc., Midsouth Truckers Group Inc., Trucking Association Executives Council Region IV, National Tank Truck Carriers, Great West Casualty Company and Allied Committee for Trucking.

“This campaign encompasses every person who touches the industry and therefore, every donation is appreciated. There is no amount too small as we are all working toward improving the industry and improving America,” Steve Ponder, campaign chairman and vice president of Great West Casualty Company, said in a statement.