Truckload Authority - April/May 2019

A QUICK LOOK AT IMPORTANT TCA NEWS
SMALL
A QUICK LOOK AT
IMPORTANT TCA NEWS
TALK
Chairman’s Farewell Address
Speaking of the commitment it takes to serve as chairman of the Truckload
Carriers Association, outgoing Chairman Dan Doran said: “You need to
show up, engage, participate and speak up. And I am proud to say that I have
done exactly that.”
And while other chairmen have likewise become engaged, have spoken
up and shown up, perhaps not all can say they showed up at such an early
age. Doran remembers his first trucking convention was “right here in Las
Vegas at the Sahara when I was 6 years old.”
And just like the young Doran matured as he grew older, he’s seen TCA
mature, a process, he added, that has recently accelerated within the four
walls of its Alexandria, Virginia, headquarters.
And he got personal during his farewell speech during TCA’s 81st annual
convention in Las Vegas.
“In essence,” he told TCA members and staff, “we in this very room are
Truckload Strong.”
Describing the Call On Washington as an example of how TCA has not just
grown but excelled, Doran said during last year’s Call On Washington event,
“we not only walked through those doors, we blew them off the hinges.”
For example, he pointed to how TCA’s presence on Capitol Hill went from
32 attendees the first year in 2017 to 50 in 2018, and from 75 meetings in
2017 to more than 250 visits with legislators and their staff members in
2018.
The story of truckload still needs to be told, he stressed, but TCA no longer
requires an introduction.
During his many and varied speaking engagements throughout the past
year, Doran has referred to TCA and its endeavors “as epic, monumental and
impactful,” but now he realizes that “those words are not adequate to describe
the driven mentality of this association, its members and staff to challenge
the status quo and dare to change.”
He credits President John Lyboldt for much of TCA’s recent progress but
noted that the headway being made now wouldn’t have been possible without
the path that has been blazed by past members and chairmen.
“They have laid the blueprint for success of this association and we have
TCA Chairman Dan Doran, in his address at the annual convention,
applauded the work of TCA, which he said had
“moved the needle on sleeper berth flexibility, F4A federal
preemption and infrastructure” and continues to provide
data on ELD use and recognize the devices as instruments
“that redefine how we see our drivers’ day.”
all served as witnesses to their efforts,” Doran added. TCA has “moved the
needle on sleeper berth flexibility, F4A federal preemption and infrastructure”
and continues to provide data on ELD use and recognize the devices as instruments
“that redefine how we see our drivers’ day.”
Doran also mentioned the TCA Profitability Program, which has grown
to nearly 100 participants who share principles that make their businesses
more profitable than ever before. He added that the FreightWaves partnership
with TCA has generated more than 2,000 individual requests to sign up.
These members not only want to improve their fleets’ performance metrics
but “to lead with it,” he said of the program’s success. All of these examples
are part of “a monumental shift in the way our association operates and the
messages it delivers,” Doran noted.
“How does an association which has been around for more than 80 years
get to a prime position that it’s never been in before?” Doran asked. “Desire,”
he answered.
“We are this way because our segment of the industry wants us to be
here and is willing to work for it, demonstrated by the mere fact that we, as a
segment, represent roughly 75 percent of the freight that is moved by truck
in this nation.”
He predicted that over the next five years TCA membership will double in
size and that the association will become a driving force, the likes of which
has never been seen before.
He added that the association is not a business that strives for average,
but one that succeeds in its endeavors and “looks for greatness.”
It’s not just a matter of setting new challenges, he said, it’s a matter of
ensuring “that the challenges we set go far enough.”
“Thanks for allowing me to be part of the transformation,” Doran
concluded.
Carriers Recognized for Hauling
The Wall That Heals
During the Truckload Carriers Association’s 81st Annual Convention in Las
Vegas last month, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) recognized
the efforts of TCA members who volunteered their time and equipment to
haul The Wall That Heals in 2018. The presentation was made by VVMF’s Director
of Outreach Tim Tetz during Sunday’s Board of Directors meeting.
“Our partnership with TCA allowed us to bring the names of the more than
58,000 service members inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial home
to hundreds of thousands of visitors in 2018,” Tetz said. “Leading the way
into each of the 38 communities we visited was a truck owned and operated
by a TCA member showing their dedication and commitment to America’s
veterans.”
The following TCA-member companies were recognized:
• Barber Trucking, Inc., of Brookville, Pennsylvania
• Baylor Trucking, Inc., of Milan, Indiana
• Dart Transit Co. of Eagan, Minnesota
• Diamond Transportation System, Inc., of Racine, Wisconsin
• Don Hummer Trucking, Inc., of Oxford, Iowa
• Halvor Lines, Inc. of Superior, Wisconsin
• Load One, LLC of Taylor, Michigan
• P. I. & I. Motor Express, Inc., of Hubbard, Ohio
• Wil-Trans of Springfield, Missouri
TCA 2019 www.Truckload.org | Truckload Authority 39