UC Residents Show Support To Truckers As Freedom Convoy Passes

Several Upper Cumberland residents gathered on the I-40 overpasses across Putnam County Friday morning in protest to trucker mandates.

Supporters gathered to welcome the Freedom Convoy, a fleet of trucks and other vehicles traveling across the country supporting truckers. Sparta Resident Bill Berger said he came to the South Walnut Avenue bridge to show his appreciation.

“They’re just one cog in the wheel that makes this country go, and if one cog gets stuck, the one behind it starts to slow down and then it just snowballs,” Berger said. “So these guys are standing up for what they know and what they believe in and we’re just out here supporting them.”

From mile markers 273 to 300, motorists could see tow trucks hanging large american flags, signs that read “we support the truckers” and hear honking horns of those passing by. Some 50 people were gathered on some bridges.

The convoy passed through the Putnam County area around 9-10:00 a.m. Livingston Resident Rick Ledbetter was another supporter in Cookeville. He said without the truckers, the nation has nothing.

“They deliver everyday goods and the things we need to live,” Ledbetter said. “I just wanted to show support and unity.”