WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Trucking Associations (ATA) continues to appeal to leaders in Washington to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserves and temporarily suspend adding to the reserve, a move the association said will help stabilize petroleum markets.

Swift Transportation vice-president Dave Berry testified to the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, on behalf of the ATA yesterday. Berry said that releasing oil from the reserves would restore “rational behaviour” to the market.

“We know that the SPR does not contain enough oil to permanently alter the supply of crude oil in the marketplace,” Berry said. “But we believe strategic releases from the SPR could temporarily increase the supply of crude oil and hopefully help restore rational behavior to the petroleum markets. This type of government intervention could drive speculators out of the market and help ensure that petroleum prices are once again driven by supply and demand.”

The North American trucking industry is currently suffering from the highest prolonged diesel prices in history. Other actions the ATA would like to see taken by Washington include: establishing a national diesel fuel standard; allowing environmentally-responsible exploration of oil-rich areas in the US which are now off-limits; allow the environmentally-responsible development of crude resources in oil shale and tar sands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming; combat fuel price gouging; continue funding the EPA SmartWay partnership program; require speed limiters on all new trucks to be set at 68 mph or lower; set a national speed limit of 65 mph; suspending the collection of the 12% federal excise tax on fuel purchased for APUs.