Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc., announced from the carrier’s Thomasville, N.C. headquarters the organization will be increasing its base rates 4.3 percent effective May 1, 2014. “The general increase is in keeping with our long-term pricing philosophy and as such involves a restructure that provides for increases in our rates based on length of haul rather than the traditional across the board increases. The tariffs affected by the May 1, 2014 increase are the ODFL 559/555, 670 and the 505 Canadian tariffs. The rate increase will also provide for a nominal increase in minimum charges in Intrastate, Interstate or cross border lanes. Although each customer will have a different financial impact based on the lanes and distance their shipments move, the overall impact of the increase is approximately 4.3 percent,” stated Polen. Mr. Polen also said “At OD, we are committed to delivering on a superior value proposition that promises excellent transit service, award winning technology and best-in-class claims free delivery at a fair and reasonable price. As a result of that commitment and premium service, our customers are asking for more capacity, and more value added products and services. In order to meet that demand and deliver on the promises we have made to our customers, we must continue to build our network and systems. OD’s philosophy is to take a fair and equitable approach that minimizes the impact to our customers’ budgets yet at the same time, supports the value proposition we promised to the market place and OD stake holders. Therefore, this increase is necessary to offset the rising cost of new equipment, escalating insurance costs, securing new service center capacity, continuing to develop state-of-the art technology, and providing for competitive wages and benefits. We believe the increase is essential in order to continue to provide our customers with an industry leading value proposition.”