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JOEL ROSE, HOST:
We wanted to know more about how record diesel prices are affecting the trucking industry, which has seen fuel costs spike this year, in part, because of the war with Iran. So we reached out to Monte Wiederhold, who runs a trucking company in northwest Ohio.
MONTE WIEDERHOLD: For small business truckers, fuel is the most expensive thing that we have that we have to buy. I was looking forward to when it went - starting to go back down, when the cessation of hostilities kind of quit for a while or took a breather. And I thought, hey, we're going to get, you know, kind of somewhat back to normal. But then it shot back up again.
ROSE: Wiederhold adjusts what he charges his customers once a week. But lately, he says, diesel prices have been climbing faster than he can keep up.
WIEDERHOLD: The scary thing about this is how fast it goes up. And of course, you know, it never comes down fast. It always goes up fast. So that makes it difficult for people to make adjustments.
ROSE: It's fair to say that both political parties are tracking the price of fuel very closely. Do these price changes influence how you vote?
WIEDERHOLD: No. It's not going to influence my vote at all. I'm an American first before I'm anything else. And while I hate to see the conflict, and I hate to see that it had to be resolved this way, for the last 47 years, we've had death to America every day, and now they don't have that capability. And hopefully, when this is over with, they won't have it. It'll be worth the short-term pain for some long-term gain.
ROSE: We have been speaking with trucker Monte Wiederhold. Thank you very much for your time.
WIEDERHOLD: Hey, thank you. I appreciate it. Take care, sir. Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record. NPR does not offer or accept money for coverage or interviews. Anyone who makes such an offer or request is not an NPR employee and does not represent NPR. Facebook Flipboard Email Read & Listen Home News Culture Music Podcasts & Shows Connect Newsletters Facebook Instagram Press Public Editor Corrections Transcripts Contact & Help About NPR Overview Diversity NPR Network Accessibility Ethics Finances Get Involved Support Public Radio Sponsor NPR NPR Careers NPR Shop NPR Extra Terms of Use Privacy Your Privacy Choices Text Only Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Become an NPR sponsor (function () { var loadPageJs = function () { (window.webpackJsonp=window.webpackJsonp||[]).push([[22],{310:function(e,n,o){o.p=NPR.serverVars.webpackPublicPath,Promise.all([o.e(1),o.e(2),o.e(3),o.e(4),o.e(80)]).then((e=>{o(15),o(769),o(155),o(176),o(93),o(447),o(254),o(128),o(130),o(754),o(175),o(755),o(255),o(78),o(773)}).bind(null,o)).catch(o.oe)},782:function(e,n,o){e.exports=o(310)}},[[782,0]]]); }; if (document.readyState === 'complete') { loadPageJs(); } else { window.addEventListener('load', function load() { window.removeEventListener('load', load, false); loadPageJs(); }); } })();