As you settle in to read this story, take a quick assessment of your surroundings. Are you enjoying something to eat, or drink while you read? Are you sitting in a favorite chair, or wearing a favorite item of clothing? No matter your present situation, one thing is certain: Trucks have played a direct role in what you are eating, wearing, reading, using and more.

Sound far-fetched? It isn’t, because trucks today are responsible for transporting 70 percent of all freight in the U.S. (and 78 percent in Iowa). There are more than 3.5 million truck drivers nationally, who travel in excess of 279 billion miles annually to deliver billions of tons of freight (e.g., food, clothes, appliances, furniture, beverages, medicine, etc.) throughout North America.

According to the Iowa Motor Truck Association, Iowa is home to more...