Roadway Corp., Akron, Ohio, has reported that revenues for its third quarter, which ended Sept. 7, were $721,309,000, up 14.2% when compared to revenues of $631,657,000 for the third quarter of 2001.

However, the company reported net income of $6,936,000, or $0.36 per share (diluted), compared to net income of $8,173,000, or $0.43 per share (diluted), for the third quarter of 2001.
Michael W. Wickham, chairman of the board of directors and CEO of Roadway, said, "We encountered two significant issues in the third quarter. First, the economic recovery slowed, and that negatively affected our business levels. Second, a major competitor, Consolidated Freightways, ceased operations. That permanently altered the less-than-truckload freight environment. With the additional business, we will recall all of our laid off employees and be able to hire some of the displaced CF employees. Most of them are good, experienced workers and will be valuable in helping us handle the influx of business we are experiencing."
For the first three quarters of 2002, revenues were $2,055,626,000, up 6.8% when compared to revenues of $1,924,251,000 for the first three quarters of last year. For the 36 weeks constituting the company's first three quarters, net income was $10,861,000, or $0.57 per share (diluted), a decrease of 36.8% when compared to a net income of $17,186,000, or $0.91 per share (diluted), for the same period in 2001.
Wickham said, "After a slow January, the first half of the year saw continued improvement in freight volumes. Early in the third quarter that trend continued, but within a few weeks began to deteriorate. July and August saw lower tonnage levels than anticipated. Despite those weakened business volumes, we improved our operating margin by four-tenths of a percent compared to the same period last year. With our quarter ending on Sept. 7, the suspension of operations by CF in early September had virtually no impact on this quarter's results.
"In the last week of the quarter our industry changed. The shutdown of Consolidated Freightways was unprecedented in its magnitude and abruptness. We were operating below our capacity as a result of a sluggish economy. With our unparalleled information systems and our supplemented and experienced workforce, we believe we are well-positioned to take on a substantial portion of the CF business at a Roadway price," Wickham said.
"In the first three weeks following CF's closure, our tonnage increased 17% over seasonal patterns. That freight is moving at Roadway established rates, and our Aug. 4 general freight rate increase is holding well," Wickham said.