New York legislators and others in the state capital of Albany had their Thursday morning shattered by the sound of hundreds of truck horns as truckers rallied to protest soaring fuel prices,
the state's ton-mile tax, and proposed restrictions to keep them off secondary highways.

"Truck drivers have arrived in Albany, and they're honking their horns in unison as part of their protest against fuel prices," wrote a blogger at LoHud.com, a web site for New York's lower Hudson valley, shortly before 11 a.m. "Most vehicles are flying multiple American flags," wrote Cara Matthews. "A number of onlookers are clapping as they drive by. Police are hard at work trying to control regular traffic and point truck drivers in the right direction."

Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and fellow Republican lawmakers briefly addressed the crowd, criticizing the state Assembly for not acting on a bill the Senate passed last month to suspend state fuel taxes for the summer, reported the Associated Press. Protestors accused Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver of blocking any legislative attempts to give them relief. Silver told the Associated Press that he didn't speak to the truckers because he wasn't invited.

Gov. David Paterson even appeared briefly and told truckers they should be complaining to Big Oil.

The rally was organized by a group called Truckers and Citizens United, with the help of Vincent Gramuglia, who owns Betty Beavers truckstop in FUltonville.