the country looking for those stories so they can then present them to local media outlets, legislators, and city and county officials. “Trucking is one of the only indus-
tries that has someone in every congressio- nal district and that serves every commu- nity in the country,” Barna said. “We want to tell the industry’s positive story.” The TMAF movement — “We’re call-
ing it a movement, because campaigns have a beginning and an end, and movements continue,” Barna said —has a website,
www.truckingmovesamerica.com, as well as a Facebook page, and a Twitter account (@TruckingFWD). Social media will play a huge role in the movement because it’s both effective and low-cost, Barna said. TMAF will put out a calendar each month and will work to coordinate messaging among dif- ferent member groups. The website features several videos that
talk about what truck drivers do and where they deliver. The videos are available to any state trucking associations that want to add their own logos and use the videos in their local media markets, Barna said. The web- site also features information about the trucking industry – statistics about the number of drivers and job openings as well as facts about the industry’s safety record and improvements in technology. Campaigns this large aren’t cheap, of
course, and TMAF members have set a goal of raising $1 million a year for the next five years. ACT 1 provided the seed money to help the movement get off the ground. So far they’ve raised over $700,000 this year, Barna said, with an additional $3 million- plus in in-kind donations. Some of the largest donations have come from ACT 1, Pilot Flying J, Old Dominion Freight Line, Jack Cooper Transport, and Love’s Travel Stops, which also put the Trucking Moves America Forward logo on its NASCAR car. The money will pay for the develop-
ment and creation of new advertisements, developing best practices for the industry, and for educational programs in schools and for the general public. It will also pay for education and outreach aimed at policy makers. “Advocacy is a huge part of it, from the federal to the local level,” Barna said.
TXTA President John D. Esparza presents the Foundation check to the Trucking Moves America Forward campaign.
“WE ARE PROUD TO BE A PART OF THIS LONG OVERDUE
CAMPAIGN TO CHANGE PUBLIC OPINION AND DEMONSTRATE THAT TRUCKING IS VITAL TO PROVIDING THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF LIVING.”
—DAVE MUSGRAVES, TXTA FOUNDATION CHAIRMAN, VP OF OPERATIONS, E.L. FARMER
“Really the main message is we’re essential, we’re vital, we’re safer than we’ve ever been, and we’re making a big impact on our car- bon footprint.” Reaching policy makers is extremely
important, Mason said. “We hope these messages will filter up
to Capitol Hill and the regulatory agencies so we’ve got an educated group of legisla- tors and regulatory folks,” he said. The more policy makers learn about
the trucking industry — including through in-person contacts like ride-alongs and vis- its to plants that manufacture trucks or truck parts — the better they’ll understand how changes they’re considering will affect the trucking industry, Barna said. Reaching the general public is another
main goal of the TMAF movement. “People have the wrong impression
based on a few bad apples in the industry,” Mason said. “They’ve either been scared on the road or scared into thinking about acci- dents, the ‘big bad truck.’ People don’t real- ize the importance of trucking economical- ly. Everything they wear, eat and buy has some kind of economic connection to trucking and the road. Trucking’s safety record has improved dramatically over the last 20 to 30 years compared to the auto- mobile population. And the industry has become environmentally friendly with improved emissions standards, cleaner engines, and use of natural gas. We’re safe, we’re essential and we’re sustainable.”
Winter 2015 41
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