Trucking news and briefs for Friday, March 7, 2025:
Top ‘Best Fleets to Drive For’ crowned
K&J Trucking, a fleet consisting of mostly owner-operators, has been named an overall winner in the CarriersEdge Best Fleets to Drive For competition for the second year in a row. K&J, out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, earned the honor in the small carrier category, while Decker Truck Line out of Fort Dodge, Iowa, was named the Best Overall Fleet in the large fleet category.
The winners were announced by CarriersEdge this week during its Drive For Education & Awards Conference held at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in North Carolina. The Best Fleets to Drive For program, now in its 17th year, is an annual survey and contest that identifies the for-hire carriers providing the best workplace experiences for their company drivers and independent contractors.
K&J Trucking is a four-time Best Fleets to Drive For Top 20 carrier and was also the overall winner in 2024. Repeating that honor this year, K&J became the first contractor fleet to win back-to-back trophies since the small and large carrier categories were created 11 years ago. This award is sponsored by TruckRight.
K&J Trucking received the Top Overall Fleet honor for the second year in a row. Shown, from left, are: Chris Davis, Chief Strategy Officer at TruckRight; Theron Thompson, owner-operator with K&J Trucking; and Jane Jazrawy, CarriersEdge CEO.CarriersEdge
Decker’s win this year marks the first time the company has won a Best Overall Fleet award, and the fourth year making the Top 20. The award is sponsored by Netradyne.
[Related: Top 20 Best Fleets to Drive For unveiled]
“K&J Trucking and Decker Truck Line rose to the top by continuing to elevate their workplace cultures and driver programs in the face of tough freight conditions,” said Jane Jazrawy, CarriersEdge CEO. “K&J Trucking, whose fleet is comprised mostly of independent contractors, continues to buck the industry perception that contractor fleets can’t offer an industry-best workplace for drivers. And, since first cracking the Top 20 Best Fleets to Drive For list in 2022, Decker Truck Line has continued to improve its programs year after year while also maintaining strong safety and driver satisfaction numbers.”
Decker Truck Line earned top honors in the large fleet category. Shown, from left: Heather Engen, Senior VP and Head of Global Customer Success at Netradyne; Tamara O'Tool, Vice President of Administration at Decker Truck Line; and Jane Jazrawy, CarriersEdge CEO.CarriersEdge
At the conference, CarriersEdge also presented The Stratosphere Award, which recognizes the top-scoring fleet in the Best Fleets Hall of Fame. This year’s award, sponsored by EpicVue, went to Garner Trucking, Inc. of Findlay, Ohio.
To be eligible for the Hall of Fame, fleets must be named as a Best Fleet for 10 consecutive years, or seven years with at least one overall winner award. Fleets in the Hall of Fame must requalify each year to retain the distinction.
“Members of the Best Fleets Hall of Fame continue to innovate and raise the bar for the industry,” said Jazrawy. “Garner has taken that even further, and their exceptional programs and driver satisfaction set a new standard of excellence for the industry.”
To be considered for the Best Fleets program, for-hire carriers operating 10 or more tractor-trailers must be nominated by a company driver or independent contractor working with them. Nominated fleets are then evaluated in areas such as driver compensation, pension and benefits, professional development, driver and community support, and safety record.
The highest-scoring fleets are identified as the Top 20 Best Fleets to Drive For and then grouped according to size. The highest-scoring fleet in each size category is named an overall winner.
[Related: How mostly owner-op fleet K&J Trucking became the 'Best Fleet to Drive For']
Kenan Advantage acquires Alabama-based dry bulk fleet
Kenan Advantage Group has acquired Evergreen Transport, a Mobile, Alabama-based dry bulk materials specialist operating throughout the Southeast. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
KAG entered the dry bulk transportation business last year with its acquisition of Northern Dry Bulk, a Clare, Michigan-based company that specializes primarily in the transportation and storage of plastic resins for automotive, packaging, electronic and other end markets, in the U.S. and Canada.
As part of its latest acquisition, KAG onboards approximately 100 drivers and 45 operational members, 158 tractors, 338 trailers, and four terminal and satellite locations throughout Alabama.
"As we continue to strategically build our dry bulk transportation platform, Evergreen Transport is another perfect fit with our growth plan," said Rick Hoyle, KAG's executive vice president of dry bulk. "Their customer-centric business model, along with their diverse end user markets, complements our current dry bulk operations, which have grown significantly over the last 12 months. We are also inspired by Evergreen's truly unique, family-owned history, which captures the entrepreneurial spirit of our industry," Hoyle continued.
Evergreen Transport, founded by Walter Poole in 1946 and passed through three generations, delivers products such as lime and cement into a variety of end markets.
"The importance of partnering with an organization that will continue our founder's legacy of taking care of our employees and our customers was first on our list," said Evergreen Transport President David Wildberger. "It is exciting to be an integral part of a new and expanding dry bulk platform, which is capitalizing on the strengths of reputable and experienced players in our niche."
