by Ezabelle Janssen, Staff Writer
LONG BEACH (GG) — On Saturday, March 14th, downtown Long Beach traded its usual traffic for something a little more stationary as the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce rolled out its annual Touch-A-Truck event. This year, however, the big rigs and curious crowds gathered somewhere new.
With construction underway at the harbor, the event debuted along Jeff Davis Avenue, transforming downtown into a hands-on playground of engines, equipment, and community connection. Lined bumper to bumper, an impressive fleet of vehicles invited kids to climb, explore, and imagine themselves behind the wheel. Fire trucks gleamed in the sunlight while construction vehicles towered overhead like mechanical dinosaurs, joined by police cruisers, utility trucks, and heavy equipment that transformed the street into a rolling classroom.
A longtime family favorite, Touch-A-Truck, hosted by the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce gave children the chance to get up close to the vehicles they usually see only from a distance, while the people who operate them stood nearby to bring the machines to life. Police officers, firefighters, construction workers, and public service teams answered questions, explained their work, and welcomed young visitors into the driver’s seat for a moment of wide-eyed wonder, where learning came with flashing lights and the occasional enthusiastic horn blast.
The new location brought some unexpected advantages. “I think this is great this year,” said Long Beach Mayor Tim Pierce. “I know last year we had it south of the highway, which I thought was the best it could be last year. But now that we’ve moved to Jeff Davis and I understand how much more we can expand, we need to, and the safety that’s associated with it, being off the highway, this may be how we do it going forward. I mean, there’s hundreds and hundreds of people here, so it works. Kids can run around and we don’t have to worry about the highway, so I think we’ll end up doing it here next year.”
With the street closed to traffic, families wandered freely from truck to truck while children darted between oversized tires and ladders, eager to test every button, lever, and horn within reach. Beyond the excitement, the event also served an important purpose. Touch-A-Truck is one of the chamber’s community fundraisers, with proceeds supporting local high school scholarships, helping invest in the next generation of leaders while celebrating the everyday machines and people who keep Long Beach moving.
(Photos by Ezabelle Janssen/The Gazebo Gazette)
