Con-Way goes coast to coast

By Staff -- Logistics Management, 1/1/1998

Con-Way Transportation Services (CTS) of Palo Alto, Calif., has extended the boundaries of its inter-regional LTL services. Now that they have tied the knot between their regional networks, Con-Way Western Express (CWX) and Con-Way Southern Express (CSE) are able to provide shippers with coast-to-coast coverage.

The service joins CSE's regional network of 12 Southern states plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico with CWX's network of 13 Western states, including Hawaii and Alaska, plus the Canadian province of British Columbia. The new coast-to-coast service encompasses 25 states through a system of 162 service centers and 15,000 tractors and trailers.

The Con-Way organization has a history of providing direct inter-regional service. In 1993, CSE and the former Con-Way Southwest Express (CSW) began operations between their networks. CWX and CSW started an inter-regional program in 1994 before the two merged into a single carrier. Gerald L. Detter, president and CEO of parent CTS, says the current expansion completes the relationship between CSE and CWX.

In addition, Con-Way Central Express (CCX), which operates a network of 25 states in the Midwest and Northeast, began offering joint service with CSE in 1995, providing one- and two-day service across 37 states with transit times cut by 50 percent in many lanes.

The incremental longhaul-service expansion has been driven by customer demand, says Detter. "Regional next-day is still over 60 percent of our tonnage and is our flagship product," he says. "We as a group of companies are strongly focused on our regional business, and that is not going to change."

The missing piece in the inter-regional mix for Con-Way is a link between CCX and CWX. Detter says that the company has no plans at present to do that. "Any time we choose to, we can do that," he says, "but there's no immediate need."