Dozens of tractor trailers are parked on and around Constitution Avenue this weekend, and don’t be surprised if you hear them blaring their horns and making a ruckus. But it’s not because there’s a big delivery set to happen here. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The truck drivers have brought their rigs to D.C. in protest, saying low shipping rates could put many of them out of business.
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It’s another part of the economic fallout stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, where an initial boom in freight shipments has now subsided. That decline has left many of them with no shipments to drive or offers to drive at unsustainable rates. According to the shipping industry website Freight Waves, many of the drivers are blaming what are known as brokerage firms, which sort of act as middlemen, matching up drivers with freight loads. Similar protests are being held in other cities around the country as well. The one in D.C. is scheduled to continue until Monday.
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