ABF benefits from CF closure

Oct. 22, 2002
ABF Freight System, the LTL subsidiary of Arkansas Best Corp., said it is benefiting from the bankruptcy of LTL rival Consolidated Freightways (CF). ABF's daily LTL tonnage jumped 11% after CF closed its doors September 2, compared to a 2.4% drop in daily tonnage prior to CF's bankruptcy. However, president & CEO Robert A. Young III noted that it has been more difficult to measure additional new business
ABF Freight System, the LTL subsidiary of Arkansas Best Corp., said it is benefiting from the bankruptcy of LTL rival Consolidated Freightways (CF).

ABF's daily LTL tonnage jumped 11% after CF closed its doors September 2, compared to a 2.4% drop in daily tonnage prior to CF's bankruptcy.

However, president & CEO Robert A. Young III noted that it has been more difficult to measure additional new business from the CF closure due to the labor dispute that closed 29 West Coast ports for 11 days.

Young said he is unsure how long ABF can benefit from picking up former CF freight.

"We believe that some of the CF business taken by other carriers is being handled for a 60- or 90-day trial period," he said in the company's third-quarter report. "As a result, much of this freight has not found a permanent home and may not do so until next spring."

He said the carrier plans to try and buy former CF terminals if they come up for sale to win former CF customers on a permanent basis.

About the Author

Sean Kilcarr | Editor in Chief

Sean reports and comments on trends affecting the many different strata of the trucking industry -- light and medium duty fleets up through over-the-road truckload, less-than-truckload, and private fleet operations Also be sure to visit Sean's blog Trucks at Work where he offers analysis on a variety of different topics inside the trucking industry.

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