Alaska's 'economic backbone': trucking industry thrives despite hit in pocket.

• Author: Bohi, Heidi
• Position: ATA SPECIAL SECTION

Fill the car with gas, buy groceries, pick up dry cleaning, mail a package--these are all typical entries on most Alaskans' list of things to do and they are all possible because of the trucking industry, or as the American Trucking Association adage says, "If you bought it, a truck brought it."

In Alaska, where it is estimated that more than 15 percent of all inbound freight arrives by truck, this is especially true. While 85 percent of goods first arrive at the Port of Anchorage by ship, and a small portion comes in by rail, the remaining consumer goods roll up to warehouse loading docks in containers that ride in on anywhere from four to 18 wheels helping businesses manage fluid inventory needs and meeting "just in time" delivery strategies that no other transportation mode can accommodate.

PROMISE DESPITE FEARS

While the Alaska trucking industry currently faces some of the most uncertain times in its history--diesel prices are more than $4 per gallon and could continue to creep up, there is an increasing shortage of truckers compounded by a spike in new trucking-dependent resource developments, and lack of funding for road maintenance and improvement continues to add expense and logistical difficulties to each load--at the same, trucking companies and industry leaders say Alaska's trucking industry remains one of the strongest in the transportation sector and continues to show great promise for continued growth and contributing to the state's thriving economy.

"Everything bought in Alaska that is not shipped by air is hauled by truck," says Aves Thompson, executive director of the Alaska Trucking Association (ATA). "As an example, gasoline stations hold about a 1 1/2-day supply of fuel. Some high-volume stations get more than a load per day of fuel. This is all done by truck. Trucks are essential for everyday food and supplies--without trucks, Alaska stops."

SOME HISTORY

Development of the industry's strong history can be traced back to World War II in the early 1940s when billions of dollars in defense spending came into Alaska during the eight-month construction of the Alaska Highway and the construction of military bases throughout the state, along with one of Alaska's first measurable population growth spurts of 75,000 to 233,000 residents between 1940 and 1943. The industry grew with the population and the increasing need to service ports, such as Seward and Valdez while also meeting the demand for interstate hauls. In 1959, the...