trucking history

The trucking phenomenon had waned by the start of the 80s, because of the rise of cell phone technology, the CB radio was no longer popular in mainstream culture outside of trucking.

Weight Limits For Semis The Federal-Aid Highway Amendments of 1974 established a federal maximum gross vehicle weight of 80,000 pounds. It also introduced a sliding scale of truck weight-to-length ratios based on the bridge formula. However, no federal minimum weight limit was established during this time and consequently, six states in the Mississippi Valley refused to […]

Fresh out of WWII, America was buzzing with possibilities and there were plenty of trucking advancements made during this time that reflect that vigor.

In the years beyond 1920, rural roads were the first of many improvements that lead to the spread of business. This was when mom and pop local stores began using the new trucking technologies available to spread their business outwards.

Prior to 1900, the large majority of freight transported over land was carried by trains along railroads. As you can guess, trains were highly efficient at moving large amounts of freight, however, they could only deliver that freight to centralized urban centers. The products were then further distributed by horse-drawn transport.

Beginning of Trucking: 1890s The evolution of the trucking industry has come a long way since it first began. Before there were many paved roads, let alone highways, trucks traveling on the roads were no larger than delivery trucks. They used crude solid rubber tires, making the trip very rough and slow. Most didn’t have […]