Over the years, hitchhikers have found various ways to get free transportation on, under, or behind commercial motor vehicles without the truckers’ permission.
On this page, we describe many aspects of this problem and ask for truckers’ advice on how to prevent hitchhiking on large trucks.
Hitchhiking vs. Smuggling
For the purposes of this website and its context — and while it may be oversimplified — the way we look at the difference between the two as:
- human smuggling is people being transported with deliberate knowledge by a trucker, often inside a tractor and/or trailer; and
- hitchhiking is a person being transported without the trucker’s knowledge or permission outside the tractor or trailer.
We cover smuggling human beings separately.
Hitchhiker vs. Stowaway
Another word for a person who hides on an aircraft, ship, or other vehicle is a “stowaway.”
We have never heard or read of a hitchhiker being called a stowaway in any trucking publication.
Hitchhikers Riding Outside A Truck
The places where people have hitched a ride on big rigs include:
- Under the mirror on the cab’s passenger side;
- In the air faring above the tractor;
- Behind the cab or between the cab and trailer;
- Inside a storage compartment (such as where tarps may typically be stored);
- On top of the trailer;
- Underneath the trailer; and
- Behind the trailer (standing or rolling).
Hitchhiking Inside A Trailer?
I know of no way that a hitchhiker could close the doors of an unlocked trailer after himself/herself.
Closing a pair of trailer doors will almost always require the assistance of someone outside the trailer.
Hitchhikers Behind A Trailer
As crazy and dangerous as it sounds, we have seen articles or watched videos of people rolling along behind a truck:
- on roller skates; and
- in a shopping cart (or “buggy”).
Where Hitchhikers May Climb Aboard
Determined hitchhikers may climb on the back of a trailer when a trucker is stopped in traffic or parked for a brief period of time to use the restroom.
Even if a trucker walked around his/her rig before pulling back out on the road, a determined hitchhiker may simply wait until the trucker is out of view of the place where he/she intends to hide or ride, and then climb aboard.
Coordinated attempts to assist with hitchhiking may be where Person A flags down a trucker for help while Person B hops on the DOT bumper on the back of the trailer.
Always Lock Your Tractor and Trailer
It is also vital that truckers:
- lock the doors of his/her cab each and every time he/she gets in or out; and
- use a trailer door lock whether or not there is any freight on board.
Reports Of Hitchhiking On Trucks
While there may be other reports or articles, here is a list of some reports of hitchhikers.
- Man caught clinging to moving semi truck in viral video
- Man Found Riding on Truck Between Cab and Trailer
- Recent viral video of man clinging to moving semi may soon inspire new pre-check protocol, experts say
- VIDEO: Idiots Hitch A Ride On Back Of A Truck
- VIDEO0006 – YouTube
- VIDEO: Multiple roller skaters hang on to a moving big rig
- VIDEO: Truck Picks Up A Hitchhiker
- Watch as this man in a grocery cart hitches a ride on a tanker truck
- Woman filmed hitching ride on semi trailer “might’ve done it a couple times before,” witnesses suggest
What Is The Risk Of Danger?
Obviously, if a person has attached himself/herself to a truck in an unsecured manner, there is a risk of:
- falling off;
- being injured; and
- potentially dying.
We have never read any report of a trucker being charged criminally for the injury or death of a hitchhiker.
Hitchhikers vs. Protesters
Vicki took her entire June 6, 2020, TDMST Weekly Round-Up trucking commentary to address the issue of riots and protests happening across the USA, including covering the issue of “Protesters climbing up on tractors or trailers.”
The legal machinery took time to resolve, but in Vicki’s February 13, 2021, TDMST Weekly Round-Up, she reported:
Professional truck driver Bogdan Vechirko should never have faced jail time or a massive fine in the first place because there should never have been “protesters” on the road!
He should never have been put in a position where he had to “reach a deal” in order to resolve the “criminal charges” brought against him.
Still, this news is at least somewhat positive:
- EXCLUSIVE: Trucker Who Drove Into Minneapolis Protest Reaches Deal to Resolve Criminal Charges
She has not read anything more on this issue.
What Is The Solution To Prevent Hitchhikking?
Three methods of preventing someone from hitching a ride under the big mirror on a truck’s passenger side are:
- use a “camera” type system instead of mirrors so that there’s nothing to grab onto; or
- when it comes to being able to see vehicles in your tractor’s blind spot on the passenger side:
- make sure that you have a fisheye mirror installed on the right side of your truck’s hood; and
- install the type of mirror that goes over the passenger window.
Other than that, I have asked what is the solution for preventing hitchhiking.
Should truckers and trucking companies install a video camera in selected places around their rigs, perhaps including on the rear trailer bumper?
Please contact us to let us know.
Return from Hitchhikers On Trucks; How Can Hitchhiking Be Stopped? to our Truck Operations page or our Truck Drivers Money Saving Tips home page.
