New York Times - March 29, 2008
. . .Every 5-cent increase in fuel prices increases a trucker's annual expenses by about $1,000, according to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which on Friday asked Congress to help drivers collect more fuel surcharges. "It's not a good time to own your own rig," said Chip White, a transportation and logistics professor at Georgia Tech. "It's a tough life even when the economy is reasonably good."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/29/business/29truck.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&ref=business&adxnnlx=1206811309-HVsFt2HvA