Forward Air Corp. has announced its Forward Air Inc. business has reached an agreement to purchase the trucking services provider CLP Towne Inc.

Towne is described as offering time-sensitive less-than-truckload shipping and full truckload services along with having extensive cartage network, container freight services and dedicated trucking, according to Tennessee-based Forward Air.

Towne’s airport-to-airport network provides scheduled deliveries to 61 service points. A fleet of approximately 525 independent contractor tractors provides the line-haul between those service points.

Headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, Towne had 2014 unaudited revenue of approximately $230 million. The purchase price will be approximately $125 million. The deal is expected to close in the current quarter of the year.

Randy Clark, president and CEO of Towne said combining the two companies will allow Towne to leverage Forward Air’s network where it lacks adequate shipment density. “Towne’s best-in-class mid-western cartage network is a great fit with Forward Air’s complete product and should drive higher utilization and enhanced profitability.”

“Those familiar with Forward Air and Towne have long thought that this deal was inevitable simply due to the substantial synergies that clearly exist,” said Bruce A. Campbell, chairman, president and CEO of Forward Air Corp.