History

When the Tri-State Truckers Association was incorporated on April 18, 1961, dues were just $10 per year. The first convention was held in 1963 - only ten members attended and there were just two exhibitors.

It wasn’t uncommon for Board members to dig into their own pockets every meeting just to meet expenses for the prior month. Things started slow, but the word got out about this new group of truckers.

On December 1, 1965, the name of the Association was changed to Mid-West Truckers Association and there were nearly 800 members from every county in Illinois (except Pope County) and the surrounding states.

During the next few years, the Association didn’t grow much and was theatened with bankruptcy. A reorganization in 1969 set MTA back on path and a renewed effort to provide needed services to truck operators, including license and titles, bail bond cards, mass purchasing programs, a greatly expanded Convention &Ttruck Show and development of regional advisory boards.

In the early 1970’s MTA was part of a group of independent trucking associations that backed the nationwide trucker’s strike. MTA’s involvement in that event helped to spark an increase in membership and an expansion in services to the industry, including a rate and tariff bureau and the hiring of lobbyists to further the Association’s causes.

The Association weathered deregulation of the industry back in 1990 at about the same time drug & alcohol testing became a requirement. MTA started its own testing consortium not just for its own members, but for many other trade associations whose members also used trucks in their businesses.

The next year, MTA got involved in another issue which was threatening the industry - workers compensation. Trucking industry rates were skyrocketing - the Association established its own self funded program that was able to save significant amounts for members who qualified for participation in the program.

We’ve expanded into many other areas in recent years, especially with safety compliance. We’ve found our members needing the advice of trained personnel to steer them through the maze of state and federal regulations. We have staff in-house who can walk a member through just about any regulatory issue. If you’re a new member, we can help you get started and survive the toughest first year in business.

We’re always watching the Capitol. Our experience over the last 10 years, especially with Illinois state government, shows how important it has been to have a trade association which represents the industry before lawmakers. Our reputation in Springfield as the voice of the industry is well-known.