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Swift founder Jerry Moyes takes helm of Central Freight Lines

LTL carrier reshuffles executive team, naming Moyes as interim CEO

Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves

Less-than-truckload carrier Central Freight Lines has reshuffled some executives, naming Jerry Moyes as interim president and chief executive officer.

Moyes, who founded Swift Transportation, owns CFL, the 95-year-old LTL company headquartered in Waco, Texas.

Former CFL executive Steve Vondra, who left the carrier in May, will return as chief operating officer, replacing Michael Brennan, former CFL president.

In a statement, Moyes said he will focus on “optimizing current LTL services while expanding product offerings to deliver more for CFL customers.”


“I’m excited to be behind the wheel of this company and look forward to taking advantage of the opportunities we have before us,” Moyes said.

Central Freight Lines was one of four trucking-related companies that received the maximum award of $10 million through the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). 

Forgivable loans through the PPP started out with $350 billion in the CARES Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump in late March and replenished in April with an additional $320 billion

Brennan, CFL’s former president, was forced to slash employee compensation in early April because of a significant revenue drop because of the COVID-19 pandemic.  


“He [Brennan] stepped up and guided the company through a challenging period,” Moyes said in the release.

CFL has 1,651 power units and 1,175 drivers, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration SAFER website. 

This is a developing story.

Read more articles by FreightWaves Senior Editor Clarissa Hawes.
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Clarissa Hawes

Clarissa has covered all aspects of the trucking industry for 18 years. She is an award-winning journalist known for her investigative and business reporting. Before joining FreightWaves, she wrote for Land Line Magazine and Trucks.com. If you have a news tip or story idea, send her an email to chawes@firecrown.com or @cage_writer on X, formerly Twitter.