Some truckers parked their rigs or were refusing to buy fuel to decry the cost of diesel, which climbed to a record $4.03 a gallon in the state.

They hoped their actions might pressure President Bush to stabilize prices by releasing fuel from the nation's oil reserves.

Although some commuters reported seeing fewer trucks on Wasatch Front roads Tuesday afternoon, the protests in Utah and elsewhere were scattered because major trucking companies were not on board. Teamsters union officials stayed on the sidelines and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association was not organizing anything.

"We are not seeing anything different at our ports of entry. I don't see any significant changes in the volume of trucks that we would normally deal with on a Monday or Tuesday," said Rick Clasby, director of the motor carrier division at the Utah Department of Transportation.

Some trucks were parked, however, and there were indications the strike might extend into today and beyond.

"I might stay off more than 24 hours," West Valley City trucker Hugh Terry said. "It's kind of a lose-lose situation. All I'm doing is driving the truck. I'm able to pay the payment and put fuel in the tank, and there's no money left for anything else."

Brandt King, president of King Farms Trucking, a refrigerated-produce hauler in Tremonton, told the drivers of his 30 trucks not to buy fuel after delivering their perishable loads to customers as far away as California and the Midwest.

Drivers who could make it home without refueling were told to return to Utah. Otherwise, they were to wait until today before starting back.

"We are being taken advantage of in our country, and we need to get fuel prices lower," King said.

"Our fuel surcharges make up for a lot of it, but in some cases the prices are going so high on fuel that some of the surcharges are not keeping up," King said.

The company's diesel bill has risen $150 a load in the past month, biting deeply into profits and compelling King to impose several measures to save fuel.

"We have slowed our trucks to where they are not traveling as fast. We have increased our tire pressure a little bit. I've also told our truckers to get a good sleeping bag so they don't have to idle their trucks" while they sleep, King said.

The Utah Highway Patrol did not report signs of a slowdown by truckers, but that wasn't the case in other parts of the country.

On New Jersey's Turnpike, southbound rigs ''as far as the eye can see'' were moving at about 20 mph near Newark. Other truckers had gathered at a service area near Newark chanting and protesting.

Outside Chicago, three truck drivers were ticketed for impeding traffic on Interstate 55, driving three abreast at low speeds.

Near Florida's Port of Tampa, more than 50 tractor-trailer rigs sat idle as their drivers demanded that contractors pay them more to cover their fuel and other costs.

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* THE ASSOCIATED PRESS contributed to this story.