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Truck drivers at the Port of Brownsville are a vital link moving goods from vessels to businesses across Texas and the nation, keeping commerce and industry thriving. This month, the Port of Brownsville will join the American Trucking Associations in celebrating National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, which runs from September 14-20.
According to the American Trucking Associations, truck drivers safely transport more than 11 billion tons of goods and products every year, which accounts for nearly 73% of America’s total annual freight. Eighty percent of U.S. communities depend solely on trucking to deliver goods.
In 2024 alone, the port recorded 450,000 truck movements, transporting essential goods for industries such as steel, shipbuilding, wind energy, and others.
The port’s educational partners, including Texas State Technical College (TSTC), Texas Southmost College, and Texas A&M, develop and implement programs that train the regional workforce to meet the growing demands for skilled jobs.
"Without truck drivers, America stops," said Juan Hernandez, lead instructor at TSTC’s Professional Driving Academy in Harlingen. "They are the ones who move the goods from the ships and warehouses at the port to where they need to go across Texas and the United States."
Hernandez knows the industry firsthand. Before becoming an instructor, he spent eight years driving across 48 states and Canada.
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