California truckers use rigs to block freeways in protest of diesel prices

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Truckers parked their rigs on a busy freeway Friday, snarling rush-hour traffic for miles in a wildcat protest over high diesel prices. <br><br>At about 7:30 a.m., about five tractor-trailers

Friday, April 30th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Truckers parked their rigs on a busy freeway Friday, snarling rush-hour traffic for miles in a wildcat protest over high diesel prices.

At about 7:30 a.m., about five tractor-trailers stopped in the northbound lanes of the Golden State Freeway in Commerce, 17 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles, according to the California Highway Patrol.

``They just sort of slowed traffic down, parked their trucks, and got out,'' CHP Officer Ricardo Quintero said. ``They just took off in a car.''

Authorities drove some rigs away and two trucks hauled others out of traffic. Less than an hour later, the lanes were clear, Quintero said.

Several truckers were arrested, he added.

The American Automobile Association said California diesel prices were as high as $2.41 a gallon, compared with less than $2 a gallon in other states.