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20 Fleets Named 'Best Fleets to Drive For'

Twenty trucking companies from across North America have been named the 2013 Best Fleets to Drive For by the Truckload Carriers Association and CarriersEdge.

The annual survey and contest, now in its fifth year, identifies for-hire trucking companies that provide the best workplace experiences for their drivers. This year’s winners are:

Brian Kurtz Trucking Ltd. – Breslau, Ontario Erb Group of Companies – New Hamburg, Ontario Fremont Contract Carriers – Fremont, Nebraska FTC Transportation, Inc. – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Gordon Trucking, Inc. – Pacific, Washington Grand Island Express – Grand Island, Nebraska Halvor Lines, Inc. – Superior, Wisconsin Landstar System, Inc. – Jacksonville, Florida Load One Transportation & Logistics – Taylor, Michigan Motor Carrier Service, Inc. – Northwood, Ohio Paramount Freight Systems – Jeffersonville, Ohio Sammons Trucking – Missoula, Montana Spirit Truck Lines, Inc. – San Juan, Texas Steed Standard Transport Ltd. – Stratford, Ontario Steelman Transportation – Springfield, Missouri Tennant Truck Lines, Inc. – Colona, Illinois TimeLine Logistic International – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Trimac Transportation – Calgary, Alberta WTI Transport – Tuscaloosa, Alabama Yanke Group of Companies – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
In addition, five companies have been identified as “Fleets to Watch” (honorable mentions) for demonstrating innovation in their driver programs:

Celadon Canada – Kitchener, Ontario Farm2Fleet – Gibson City, Illinois Freight Exchange of North America, LLC – Chicago, Illinois Prime Inc. – Springfield, Missouri Transpro Freight Systems Ltd. – Milton, Ontario
The Yanke Group of Companies, based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan,is the only company to be named a "Best Fleet" for all five years since the program was launched.

The nomination process began in the fall of 2012, when company drivers and owner-operators were asked to nominate carriers that operate 10 or more trucks. After confirming the validity of the nominations and the trucking companies’ desire to participate, CarriersEdge interviewed human resources representatives and executives of the nominated fleets about their corporate direction, policies, and programs. Nominated fleets were evaluated against a scoring matrix covering a variety of categories, such as:

Total compensation package – including base pay, bonuses, vacation, and sick day allotment Health benefits Pension plans Professional development opportunities (training, coaching programs, etc.) Career path/advancement opportunities • Commitment to employee personal growth, including work/life balance, driver family support, and employee-directed charitable contributions Commitment to continuous improvement, including dispute resolution processes and inclusion of driver feedback in policymaking Team building and driver community development activities Annual driver turnover rate Fleet safety record
A selection of each fleet’s drivers was also surveyed, with their feedback compared to management’s and incorporated into the final score. The responses were then tallied, resulting in the selection of this year’s winners and honorable mentions.

This year there was a 50% increase in nominations and participation for the fifth anniversary of the program.

“I think that’s a real achievement, considering how much we’ve seen fleets improve their programs since we started,” said TCA President Chris Burruss. “It’s very difficult to get named a 'Best Fleet' to begin with, let alone remain on the list for five consecutive years!”

The next phase of the contest is to announce the highest scoring fleets from each of two categories: Best Overall Fleet for Owner Operators and Best Overall Fleet for Company Drivers. These overall winners will be honored at the TCA Annual Convention, March 3-6, 2013, at the Wynn Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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