FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Truck drivers across the Valley say soaring diesel prices are eating into their earnings as fuel costs keep climbing.
Joseph, a truck driver hauling a load of wine from Turlock to Arizona, stopped to refuel along Highway 99 in Madera, where the station raised its diesel price by 20 cents per gallon that morning.
“We’re working just for fuel. We’re not working for life, no money, no nothing,” Joseph said.
The rising costs have significantly increased his expenses on the road.
“It’s almost $1400. I just go to Arizona and come back,” he said.
When asked how much the same trip would have cost last year, Joseph said, “$800 to $850, so almost half.”
Independent drivers say they are feeling the impact especially hard. Devon Wealer, a truck driver, said his profit margins are already slim, at just 30 to 40 cents per mile.
“Killing me, I have to fill up only a little bit here. If I fill up here, it’s going to cost me about $ 1,000. If I go over to the next state, it’s more than two dollars cheaper; it costs me about $600-700,” Wealer said.
Diesel prices have risen sharply across the Valley over the past year. In Fresno, the average diesel price is $8.31 per gallon, compared with $5.22 a year ago. In Merced, the average is $8.12, up from $5.16 last year. In the South Valley, the average is $8.29 per gallon, up from $5.09 a year ago.
Another truck driver, Marshall, said the higher prices have made routine fuel stops increasingly expensive.
“Went to go fuel up, went to use the company card, and half a tank was about $900, which is really up there, kind of ridiculous,” Marshall said.
He added, “Generally, I do about 500 miles a day on half a tank.”
According to GasBuddy, multiple factors have driven diesel prices higher. While the war with Iran has contributed to increased fuel costs overall, the sharp rise in diesel prices has also been compounded by the Russia-Ukraine war.
“Russia has banned exports of diesel, and that’s why diesel prices coast to coast have skyrocketed to new all-time highs. Not because of the Middle East tensions, but because of these specific refining attacks that Ukraine has launched on Russia that have been very effective,” said Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy.
For truck drivers who rely on diesel every day, those higher prices are translating into significantly higher operating costs and shrinking profits.
Now GasBuddy estimates the national average could rise by another 30 cents by this weekend, and says there is no end in sight to these climbing prices.
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