On Thursday, Nov. 1, U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 7th district Rob Woodall visited Peach State Truck Centers in Norcross, Georgia, to discuss challenges that face commercial truck dealers and their customers with the dealership’s staff — including President and Dealer Principal Rick Reynolds. Woodall also took a tour of the facility, and rode down I-85 in a Class 8 over-the-road commercial vehicle.
Some of the topics of discussion during the visit included the unprecedented current demand for commercial vehicles, especially, the Freightliner brand, as well as labor challenges facing dealers and trucking companies, and the future of trucking with the introduction of autonomous and electric-powered vehicles.
Another important issue discussed is the high Federal Excise tax placed heavy-duty trucks. A current piece of legislation has been drafted to repeal this tax.
After the discussion, Reynolds led Congressman Woodall on a tour of the Norcross facility. Congressman Woodall took time to speak with one of the service department’s technicians, learning what it takes to work on trucks for a living and how one becomes trained to do so.
Congressman Woodall then took a ride in a Freightliner Cascadia down I-85. Reynolds spoke to the Congressman about the state-of-the-art technology that goes into trucks on the road today. The Congressman was able to experience “real-time” examples of the latest driver assist and safety alert features within the New Cascadia truck.
“We were honored to have Congressman Woodall at our Norcross dealership today to talk about issues that matter to us as a family-owned local business in his district, as well as the issues that matter to our industry as a whole,” said Reynolds, who was named Truck Dealer of the Year for 2018 by American Truck Dealer. “It shows us that he takes his job seriously as a representative for the people and businesses in our area.”
Peach State Truck Centers is a group of 11 commercial vehicle dealerships in Georgia and Alabama. The company has been in operation for more than 44 years.
