Con-Way Transportation Services, best known for its premium overnight less-than-truckload service, has begun offering "Con-Way Deferred"—what it calls a "slower and lower" transcontinental freight service that relies on intermodal transportation for the linehaul.

Con-Way is offering the service to its customers at an automatic 20-percent discount off already negotiated rates. To use the service, shippers need only mark "Con-Way Deferred" on their bills of lading and notify the driver when the shipment is picked up.

The service is available only for shipments between California, Oregon and Washington and 37 states in the East, South and Midwest, plus the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Company management expects that the new service will draw additional business from existing customers and attract new customers that have not previously used its premium services.

In announcing the new service, Con-Way President and Chief Executive Officer Gerald L. Detter said the company's market research indicated that there was a large market for LTL services purchased on the basis of cost. "We see our entry into this price-sensitive market as an opportunity for significant growth."

During a Webcast announcing the new business, Detter said that the service was part of Con-Way's strategy of building a "continuum of services." It is the second new service introduced by Con-Way this year that is aimed at pursuing price-sensitive freight. In January, the company launched a truck brokerage operation called Con-Way Full Load.

Con-Way's core business is a group of regional LTL carriers that specialize in offering premium service. The company also operates an expedited carrier, Con-Way NOW, plus an airfreight forwarder.

Editor's Note: To read more about this service, see Bohman on Pricing on page 22.