INDIANAPOLIS, Ind- Seventy-eight truck drivers drove in a single-file line around I-465 today, going 5-10 miles an hour under the speed limit. The “slow roll” was meant to bring attention to regulations they say are hurting their business.
“You can call it a protest,” said Mike Landis, CEO of the United States Transportation Alliance. “It’s basically just a slow moving convoy of trucks.”
Driving two laps around 465, Landis said the loop along with the central location made Indianapolis the perfect spot for the event.
“It seemed like a good place to drive around a loop I guess,” Landis said with a smile.
Traveling from California to Oklahoma, truck drivers converged on the circle city to take up a lane of traffic, going at a lower speed to raise awareness.
Landis said they’ve tried other means of voicing their concerns, but those didn’t work quite so well.
“These truck drivers, they only have so many ways to get people’s attention,” said supporter Jesse James Dupree. “They’re just desperate to get people’s attention.”
The drivers are tired of certain government regulations, especially the legally required electronic logs now tracking their every movement.
“We’re supposed to be a free people,” said Landis. “That’s less than free in my opinion.”
Landis is a third generation truck driver operation his own business. He used to keep his own manual logs, showing he is complying with laws that require him to drive less than 14 hours a day, and take breaks for ten consecutive hours. Since electronic logs give no leeway, he says it creates problems for drivers. If he only has an hour left to drive but knows the next truck stop is an hour and five minutes away, he’d have to stop early.
“If you wrote in there five minutes later than your time, no harm no foul right? Because traffic slowed down a little bit or something,” Landis said of the logs. “You can’t do that now.”
So as truckers traveled down 465, honking their horns for approval, some Indy drivers welcomed the display.
“I think they should do it,” said George Lamb.
“Truckers were passing me up,” said Kenny Limeberry as he filled up his car at a nearby gas station. “So yeah, I didn’t have no problem with it.”
Indiana State Police were made aware of the protest in advance and monitored the situation. They said there were no issues throughout the event.
