Con-way Freight, a less-than-truckload carrier and subsidiary of Con-way Inc., today (July 16) announced its purchase of 875 new Daimler Freightliner tractors to replace older units.
The company is taking delivery of about 450 Freightliner Cascadias, which will be used in line-haul operations. The rest will be Freightliner M2 model Class 7 tractors, which will be deployed primarily in city pickup and delivery service.
A statement from the company said it’s also adding 1,750 new trailers, built by sister company Con-way Manufacturing. Both tractors and trailers have advanced aerodynamics packages to improve fuel economy.
“Upgrading our fleet with these advanced new tractors and trailers has many benefits,” said Tim Killilee, senior director of maintenance at Con-way Freight. “The new power units will provide greater fuel efficiency, as they are designed with better emission controls and features.
“Most importantly, we have listened to our drivers and incorporated their feedback in the process, including features they’ve identified as being critical,” added Killilee. “We also are investing in safety, as these tractors are factory equipped with an in-cab suite of safety technologies that’s unrivaled in the industry.”
All of Con-way Freight’s new tractors are equipped with Drive Safe Systems™, the company’s suite of driver alert and crash avoidance technologies. First adopted by Con-way in 2010, the technology suite includes forward-looking adaptive radar for front collision avoidance, lane departure warning and rollover stability control systems. In 2013, the safety technology platform was expanded to include Lytx, Inc.’s DriveCam windshield-mounted, two-way event recorder system, as well as Vnomics Corp.’s electronic on-board performance management technology to maximize fuel efficiency.
The Freightliner Cascadia trucks come equipped with automatic manual transmissions (AMT), and the Freightliner M2 units come with fully automatic transmissions.
The company currently operates 8,750 tractors with 20,000 28-foot trailers and 6,000 longer-wheelbase city trailers. All line-haul trailers are outfitted with trailer skirts to improve trailer aerodynamics, reducing wind drag and contributing to improved fuel economy and trailer stability.
Con-way Freight operates a network of more than 425 service locations serving the United States, Canada, Mexico andPuerto Rico.
