Surging diesel prices hitting trucking industry hard: 'It cost me $840'

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The surging diesel prices are taking a toll on the trucking industry.

In Bordentown, New Jersey, the fuel pump gauges were moving at a dizzying pace as truckers were filling their 200-gallon tanks on their tractor-trailer rigs.

"Yesterday, it cost me $840," said Gary Delaney of Springfield, Ohio.

"Now you imagine if you're a company and you have 100 trucks, $800 a pop," added Kevin Smith of Baltimore, Maryland.

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The Phillips 66 in Darby, Pennsylvania was deserted with regular gas going for $4.69.

Sadaya Morris, who owns Pink Transportation in Newark, says the high prices are causing customers to take a hit, too.

"At this point, I can't do anything about it alone except to raise my rates with my customers," said Morris.

Trucking industry expert Jim Grundy says this will only add to higher prices on many goods across the country.

"What's happening right now is it's not a one time increase in fuel. It's not like it's going up for a couple of days and falling. We're straight vertical and we're gonna be straight vertical for the foreseeable future," said Grundy, who owns SISU Energy.

Grundy says America is learning that relying on foreign oil can have its downside.

"We're small business owners so this is taking a huge toll on us," said Morris. "In my opinion, we need to really be opening our pipelines back up."

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"This is a geopolitical perfect storm and it's not even full yet," said Dr. Wojtek Wolfe, associate professor of political science at Rutgers University.