Daseke fleet Big Freight System merges with Kelsey Trail Trucking

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Updated Jul 13, 2018
Daseke company Big Freight Systems announced it is merging with Kelsey Trail Trucking.Daseke company Big Freight Systems announced it is merging with Kelsey Trail Trucking.

Big Freight Systems, a Daseke company, last week announced a merger with Kelsey Trail Trucking. Combined, the two operations haul with nearly 750 tractors and trailers. Kelsey Trail will become a division of Big Freight and keep operations intact, with locations in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and Innisfil, Ontario, both in Canada. Big Freight is headquartered in Steinbach, Manitoba.

“While we will operate somewhat autonomously, we will share many resources,” said Gary Coleman, president of Big Freight. Big Freight has traditionally been devoted to hauling with single flatbed trailers in both the United States and Canada, while “Kelsey Trail is the largest dedicated B-train operator in Canada, with coast-to-coast truckload and LTL service.”

Kelsey Trail also has a regional B-train operation in Ontario and Quebec.

While Kelsey Trail and Big Freight have “never competed for freight,” Coleman said, “now we’ll be able to work together in some creative ways. That’s exciting for both companies, and it will be a benefit for our customers.”

Much like Big Freight, Kelsey Trail started as a small, family-operated trucking company, said Jim Clunie, president of Kelsey Trail. “We’re in our 38th year, while Big Freight is celebrating its 70th year,” he said. “Our values, passion for the industry and our penchant for customer service is very much alike. I’ve had others knock on our doors, but have never been inclined to sell or merge.Much like Big Freight, Kelsey Trail started as a small, family-operated trucking company, said Jim Clunie, president of Kelsey Trail. “We’re in our 38th year, while Big Freight is celebrating its 70th year,” he said. “Our values, passion for the industry and our penchant for customer service is very much alike. I’ve had others knock on our doors, but have never been inclined to sell or merge.

Kelsey Trail Trucking operates 80 tractors, a mix of late-model Kenworths and Peterbilts. They have a handful of 53-foot trailers, but the mainstay is the company’s 90 sets of 5-axle B-trains (32-foot lead trailers and 28-foot pups). The company’s long-haul fleet of nearly 50 tractors goes all over Canada (backhauling much of the cedar that comes out of British Columbia). It has also developed a regional fleet making deliveries from the Toronto area up to the northern area of the province, and into Quebec.

“And, for Big Freight, we will have access to Kelsey Trail’s new 42,000 square-foot facility north of Toronto,” said Coleman. “The more efficient we can operate day-in and day-out, the more competitive we will be long term.”