Mimeo. No, 8	March, 1943
Depts. of Animal Husbandry and Agricultural Economics
MAIL SURVEY OF TRUCKS THAT HAUL LIVESTOCK To THE INDIANAPOLIS MARKET
By James R, Wiley
Trucks haul practically 100 percent of the livestock from farms to the Indianapolis market and to other public and local markets where Indiana) livestock is,; sold. They are the dominant means of hauling grain, milk, eggs, canning crops and other farm products to local and wholesale markets, and for hauling supplies from markets to farms.
Efficient truck transportation is economically desirable at all times. Ip is absolutely necessary during the present wartime emergency for two vital reasons:	1) The country's rubber stockpile
is very limited. 2) No new trucks are being manufactured for civilian use.  Hence the national government set up an Office of Defense Transportation to help bring about the greatest possible efficiency and conservation in the use of tires and trucks (and in other means of transportation) for the duration of the war.
Conservation of tires and trucks for the duration of the war is important to truckers as a source of livelihood.  It is absolutely necessary to Indiana farmers in order to insure the hauling equipment needed to move their livestock and other farm products from farms to markets. It is producers obligation to cooperate whole-heartedly with truckers in a joint effort to reduce tire and truck mileage as much as possible.
Mail questionnaire Sent to Truckers
Knowing the vital part the truck has in hauling livestock to market, and realizing the economic Soundness and the wartime necessity for the greatest possible conservation! of tires and -trucks, the Indianapolis . Joipt Marketing. ImprovementCommittee mailed a questionnaire during May,- 1942," to. over 4000 livestock trucK.ers, asking for information about their hauling activities':,* Information, requested included the number of/trucks; owned ,; manufacturer1 s^ rated capacity, size of the truck bed, size of the tires\ number:of -miles driven per month, an estimate of the average mileage, .left in the tire's\ average miles driven in assembling and l)Tingin|/ a'load' to t he' Indianapolis market, the ..per cent age of straight and-pick.-up loads,.; hauled, and whether or not regular back haul lo^ds ;wefe' handler"

Truck owners filled out and returned 1779 questionnaires. The headquarters of 1549 of the owners are in Indi ana—alrndst) pne-rhai.f of them within a radius of 50 miles of the Indianapolis m4f:ket(. Headquarters of the remaining 230 truck owners are in east central Illinois--with the exception of six in west central Ohio /(Figure 1) • w
*0n request by the Indianapolis Joint Marketing Improvement Committee the Purdue University Agricultural Experiment Station tabulated the data of the questionnaire and prepared this report. Dr. Thomas K. Cowden of the Agricultural Economics Department supervised tabulation of the data.
PURDUE UNIVERSITY AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION AND INDIANAPOLIS JOINT MARKETING IMPROVEMENT COMMITTEE