Southeastern Freight Lines, the leading provider of regional less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation services, announced that it has expanded direct service to the entire state of Alabama.


Previously, Southeastern used a partner carrier to deliver freight to a few small cities and towns near the Mississippi state line, but now Southeastern is delivering to those areas directly with next-day service, in most cases, to all destinations within the state. Nine service centers, five of which are located in Alabama, serve the state.

"Serving is the lifeblood of our organization, and if there's a way we can better serve our customers, we make it happen," said Richard Bogan, regional vice president of operations for Southeastern. "At a time when other carriers are cutting back service to save costs, we are investing to provide even better service to customers to be the premier carrier in the state of Alabama and throughout the Southeast. By simplifying the routing needs for our customers to deliver freight to the entire state of Alabama, we're removing obstacles for our customers."

Southeastern's direct loading capabilities far exceed the industry average and are stronger than any other LTL competitor, Bogan said. With 76 strategically placed service centers across the Southeastern United States, almost 80 percent of freight for Southeastern customers is transferred directly from the original location to the destination location - rather than having to go through mid-point consolidation centers.

The network of service centers and the density of geographic coverage enable Southeastern to successfully meet its customers' needs, achieving measurements including 99.2 percent of shipments delivered on time. Direct loading also decreases mistakes and damage claims, according to Bogan.