July 2, 2004

Truckers enter third day of roadside protest in eastern Kentucky

Associated Press

 ALLEN, Ky. - Some coal truck drivers in eastern Kentucky have parked their rigs to bring attention to their calls for better pay and for legislation that would make coal companies share the responsibility for penalties for driving overloaded trucks.

Dozens of truckers have been protesting since Tuesday alongside U.S. 23 between Prestonsburg and Pikeville.

Truckers complained that they are often forced to overload their trucks by coal companies and trucking companies that want to move more coal faster, and that a crackdown by the Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement on overweight trucks is making it impossible for them to do their jobs.

"We cannot make a living hauling at legal weight," said Richard Naylor, a driver for Lawrence County-based Martha Trucking. "With fuel prices, tires and insurance, it's just impossible. We work 16 hours a day to make a living as it is."

Kentucky law limits trucks to 120,000 pounds at their absolute heaviest, but truckers said that weight is routinely exceeded.

Russell Engle, a driver for Tina C. Trucking based at Greasy Creek, said truckers want the state legislature to pass a law that would make coal companies liable for fines on illegal loads.

Jamie Harnett, owner of Ramco Trucking, said such a law has been effective in West Virginia in reducing the number of overweight coal trucks, and would be just as effective in Kentucky.

Beginning last month, Kentucky Vehicle Enforcement began cracking down on overloaded trucks, writing tickets and impounding some trucks. On Tuesday, the day the protest began, vehicle enforcement officers were conducting roadside weight checks along U.S. 23 from Pikeville to Ashland.

Some truckers reported being stopped and weighed as many as four times in one day.

Naylor said the coal companies will feel the effects of the strike.

"These coal companies will see how it is when there's no coal moving," Naylor said. "Eastern Kentucky will feel the effects of those trucks not rolling."

Information from: Appalachian News-Express, http://www.news-expressky.com