United Road recently highlighted the five special initiatives the transportation company is using during the COVID-19 pandemic to help OEMs, dealerships, rental-car companies, auctions and other consignors and wholesalers get vehicles shipped to and from intended destinations.

“United Road is doing what it takes to support our customers, being agile and fluid as customers replenish inventories, buy and sell vehicles, reposition fleets, and haul-away oversized trucks,” United Road president and chief executive officer Mark Anderson said in a news release.

“We’ve expanded capacity and are getting smarter every day in how we operate,” Anderson continued. “We have doubled down on tech-savvy solutions, expanded our carrier partner network and increased capacity by 25% over 2019. Our goal is to make it fast and simple for customers to move vehicles when and where they need them — whether one unit or multi-unit, from standard sized vehicles to oversized trucks.”

Anderson pointed out several ways United Road is looking to get its customer vehicles moving. These initiatives include:

• Financial incentive: Special 10% discount for booking the next three moves is helping dealers transport vehicles and cut expenses

• Technology-enabled solutions that put information including pricing and vehicle tracking in customer hands on their iPhones in real time

• Touch-free delivery

• Expanded customer service hours and resource support

• A new user-friendly United Road website

“Each customer, each vehicle move is unique,” Anderson said. “United Road’s portfolio of companies including Team Drive-Away and Pilot enables us to deliver on a diverse range of customer needs — from single and multi- vehicle and heavy-haul interstate transport to storage and specialty vehicle enclosed moves.

“While operating during the pandemic has been challenging it has brought out the best in our team of professional drivers and carrier partners and customer support professionals. We are grateful for everyone’s service and adaptability,” he went on to say.

United Road shared perspectives from a couple of clients that have taken advantage of these special actions and promotions the transportation company have taken during the pandemic. One came from Mike Lupacchino, who is director of national traffic of Subaru of North America and used United Road needed to move and store new vehicles from railheads and ports.

“I would like to thank United Road for the continued support, not only on storage opportunities, but especially the help at our Lafayette, Ind., manufacturing plant and Elwood, Ill., railroad ramp, as well as the ports and railheads that United Road continued to ship from during these challenging months. United Road has always been a critical partner in Subaru’s success,” Lupacchino said.

John Piatak of Fair offered this assessment about United Road moving its used vehicles: “I have partnered with United Road at two companies — both of which designed and implemented innovative solutions to the challenge of moving cars to customers. As in the past, United Road proved to be a creative and reliable partner with developing delivery solutions that met both the customer and driver's safety needs during the COVID-19 crisis.”

Anderson also emphasized employee well-being and customer safety continue to be paramount at United Road.

The company mentioned safety precautions include digital communication and transactions that can enable customers and car haulers to avoid signatures and sharing devices at time of delivery. Drivers and terminal professionals use masks and sanitation kits and follow appropriate distancing and cleaning procedures.

“United Road is laser-focused on helping our customers get on the road to economic recovery,” Anderson said. “Today’s business climate is fluid and ever changing. More than ever, United Road is driven to deliver.”

For more information, visit https://www.unitedroad.com.