page_title: Truck
section_title: United States
hierarchical_section_title: Truck / Driving / United States
caption_attribution_description: English: Interior of an Navistar International 9400i truck. The small blue illuminated square near the center of the photo is the Cummins Icon Idle system which allows the engine and the climate control to turn on only when it is needed as determined by a thermostat inside the truck. Switches on the dashboard (starting with the top left) include marker lamps, headlights, panel dimmer, windshield wipers, and fridge on/off; cruise set, cruise on/off, and powered mirror (passenger side only); engine brake power select (1, 2, or 3), engine brake on/off, diagnostics, and mirror heat. The large red octagonal knob is for the trailer brakes, and the yellow square one is for the tractor. Below the two knobs is the power divider switch, which engages both drive axles on the tractor (similar to a 4-wheel drive switch, although it is not recommended to operate interaxle differential switch at speeds over 35mph). At the bottom of the windshield, the large blue box which reads "E-ZPass" is an electronic toll collection transponder, for use on many of the toll roads on the East Coast of the United States. Other options (added by the driver) include, digital time, date, and exterior temperature. The paper taped to the dashboard is a list of the driver's favorite terrestrial radio stations from major cities across the continent.
context_page_description: A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration. Smaller varieties may be mechanically similar to some automobiles. Commercial trucks can be very large and powerful and may be configured to be mounted with specialized equipment, such as in the case of refuse trucks, fire trucks, concrete mixers, and suction excavators. In American English, a commercial vehicle without a trailer or other articulation is formally a "straight truck" while one designed specifically to pull a trailer is not a truck but a "tractor".
  Modern trucks are largely powered by diesel engines, although small- to medium-size trucks with gasoline engines exist in the US, Canada, and Mexico. In the European Union, vehicles with a gross combination mass of up to 3.5 t are known as light commercial vehicles, and those over as large goods vehicles.
context_section_description: In the United States, a commercial driver's license is required to drive any type of commercial vehicle weighing 26,001 lb (11,794 kg) or more. The federal government regulates how many hours a driver may be on the clock, how much rest and sleep time is required (e.g., 11 hours driving/14 hours on-duty followed by 10 hours off, with a maximum of 70 hours/8 days or 60 hours/7 days, 34 hours restart ) Violations are often subject to significant penalties. Instruments to track each driver's hours must sometimes be fitted.
  In 2006, the US trucking industry employed 1.8 million drivers of heavy trucks.
  There is a shortage of willing trained long distance truck drivers. Part of the reason for this is the economic fallout from deregulation of the trucking industry. Michael H. Belzer, associate professor, in the economics department at Wayne State University and co-author of Sweatshops on Wheels: Winners and Losers in Trucking Deregulation, argues that low pay, bad working conditions and unsafe conditions have been a direct result of deregulation.  The book cites poor working conditions and an unfair pay system as responsible for high annual employee turnover in the industry.
caption: Inside a Navistar 9000
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