Roadway Express
| Company type | Public (until 2003) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Freight transportation |
| Founded | 1930 in Akron, Ohio, United States |
| Founder | Carroll Roush, Charles "Chick" Morrison |
| Defunct | 2009 |
| Fate | Merged with Yellow Transportation to form YRC Inc. |
| Headquarters | Akron , United States |
Area served | United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe (historically) |
Key people | Carroll Roush (founder) |
| Products | Less than truckload (LTL) freight services |
Roadway Express, Inc. operated as an American less than truckload (LTL) freight carrier. In 2003, Roadway Express and its parent company, Roadway Corporation, were purchased by the logistics conglomerate Yellow Corporation. This acquisition resulted in the formation of Yellow Roadway Corporation, which was subsequently renamed YRC Worldwide. In 2009, Roadway Express combined with Yellow Freight, another national LTL carrier within YRC’s portfolio, to establish YRC, Inc.
Origins and Initial Development
Established in 1930 in Akron, Ohio by Carroll Roush and Charles "Chick" Morrison under the name R & M Transportation, the enterprise initially catered to Akron’s rubber manufacturing sector by delivering tires to automotive companies. Carroll’s brother, Galen Roush, joined the venture shortly thereafter. Within the same year, the Roush siblings founded Roadway Express, Inc., which rapidly outgrew and absorbed R & M by 1932. The company began with an owner-operator structure concentrating on truckload freight but transitioned fully to a fleet of company-owned trucks by the mid-1940s, shifting its focus to LTL shipments. Roadway went public in 1956 when Carroll Roush divested his shares. Over subsequent decades, the company expanded its footprint across the United States, operating more than 500 terminals by 1982.
Formation of Roadway Services Inc.
Following deregulation brought about by the Motor Carrier Act of 1980 and facing profit declines, Roadway—once the largest LTL carrier in the U.S.—fell behind competitors such as Consolidated Freightways and Yellow Corporation by 1982. To address this challenge, Roadway established a holding company named Roadway Services Inc. (RSI) to pursue diversification strategies. Initially comprising only Roadway Express as a subsidiary, RSI expanded in 1984 by acquiring three additional carriers: Spartan Express (focused on short-haul routes), Nationwide Carriers (specialized in truckload services), and Roberts Express (offering same-day critical deliveries), thereby enhancing its national LTL capabilities. In 1985, RSI introduced Roadway Package System (RPS) to compete directly with UPS in the package delivery market.
Roadway Express extended its operations internationally with a Mexican division launched in 1986 and European services initiated by 1991, later incorporating Pacific Rim port access. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, RSI continued broadening its portfolio through acquisitions such as Viking Freight, a leading regional carrier in the western United States. In 1990, RSI streamlined regional operations by shutting down Viking’s VFS Transportation unit and integrating Spartan Express into Viking.
By 1991, RSI had become the third-largest freight carrier in the U.S., earning inclusion in the Dow Jones Transportation Average. The next year marked Roadway’s entry into Canadian markets. During the mid-1990s, RSI consolidated its regional LTL acquisitions—including Central Freight Lines and Cole's Express—into a unified division known as Roadway Regional Group and briefly operated an air freight division called Roadway Global Air (RGA).
In April 1994, Roadway Express was one of 23 major trucking companies affected by a Teamsters Union strike lasting 24 days, resulting in a $68 million loss for that quarter. After the strike concluded, profitability shifted toward RSI’s smaller non-union regional carriers. Although Roadway Express accounted for over 40% of RSI’s $5 billion annual revenue, it generated lower profits compared to other subsidiaries. Consequently, RSI announced plans to spin off Roadway Express later that year.
The spinoff was finalized in August 1995; however, RSI encountered operational difficulties afterward and was acquired by FedEx in 1998. Key components of RSI were absorbed into FedEx divisions: RPS transitioned into FedEx Ground while Viking Freight became FedEx Freight.
Independence
Following its separation, Roadway Express experienced swift expansion, achieving profits of on revenue during its inaugural year as an independent entity. The company went public on NASDAQ in 1996 and the next year acquired the Canadian less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier Reimer Express for , simultaneously discontinuing operations under Roadway Canada.
In 2001, Roadway created Roadway Corporation as a holding company and purchased Arnold Industries along with its subsidiaries, which included regional LTL carrier New Penn Motor Express, truckload carrier Arnold Transportation Services, and logistics firm Arnold Logistics. This transaction, valued at , resulted in Arnold Logistics being divested back to its management team for following the acquisition. By 2003, Roadway had sold Arnold Transportation for approximately .
Yellow Roadway
By 2003, Roadway Express had become the largest LTL carrier in the United States when it and its parent company, Roadway Corp., were acquired by Yellow Corp., the nation's second-largest LTL operator, for . This merger established Yellow Roadway Corporation, which oversaw Roadway Corp., its subsidiaries (including Roadway Express, New Penn, and Reimer), as well as Yellow Corp. and its nationwide LTL carrier Yellow Freight.
In 2005, Yellow Roadway expanded by acquiring the financially distressed USF Corp. and its subsidiaries for . This acquisition prompted organizational changes: YRC Regional Transportation was created to replace the Roadway Group structure, with Roadway Express becoming a direct subsidiary of the parent company. Additionally, New Penn and former USF regional subsidiaries were incorporated into the new regional division. The company rebranded as YRC Worldwide in 2006.
Roadway Express ended its independent operations in March 2009 when it merged with Yellow Transportation to establish YRC Inc., a consolidated national LTL carrier. The Canadian subsidiary Reimer took over Yellow Canada's operations and was renamed YRC Reimer. In 2012, YRC Inc. rebranded itself as YRC Freight.
In 2023, Yellow filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and discontinued all business activities. Although Roadway Express had ceased operations in 2009, it remained listed as an affiliate within the bankruptcy documents.
Operations
The Standard Carrier Alpha Code (SCAC) assigned to Roadway was RDWY.