Truckers Struggle with Rising Diesel Costs

The cost of diesel fuel in the Rogue Valley is down $0.05 from its record high set earlier this week. But that's little consolation for many truck drivers.

Despite the small dip in diesel costs drivers are paying nearly $2.00 a gallon more for diesel than they were a year ago. For those who own and operate their own trucks that's huge.

On Monday the average cost of diesel in the Medford-Ashland area hit an all time high at $4.99 a gallon, just a penny short of the five dollar mark. And though it's dropped a nickel in the days since some drivers still feel they're being gouged at the pump.

"Just in the past year my fuel bill has doubled, actually. So it's really affecting me because i'd say more than half of my income goes for fuel," says Frank Kuznetsov, owner of FLK Trucking.

Many larger companies cover their drivers' fuel costs but as an owner operator, it's up to Kuznetsov to keep his truck rolling.

"I've got two 100 gallon tanks, so one fuel up is $900 and I'm good for about 1200 to 1300 miles; two and a half days. So then you gotta fuel up again," he says, which works out to be a good $7,000 a month just for fuel.

Back in April we talked with Robin Turner, who owns a local trucking company. In that interview Turner said he was struggling to stay profitable and was thinking about leaving trucking altogether.

"I'm on the verge. I've been on the verge for the last three months. It's just inevitable if the costs keep going up like this," Turner said.

We spoke with Turner on the phone Thursday. He says he had to close his doors for two weeks while he made some business adjustments. He now only runs three of the ten trucks he used to and says it's still challenging to keep his trucks on the road.

Many trucking companies are passing the higher costs on to their customers in the form of a fuel surcharge. One driver we talked to at a fuel stop Thursday said his company charges a 29-percent fuel charge which still only covers about a quarter of his fuel costs.

Southern Oregon continues to have the highest average diesel price in the state. The average price for diesel in California is $5.06 a gallon.