The Gospel of Unity

LINCOLN, Neb. - Duane W. Acklie is unlike any other chairman that American Trucking Associations has had.

	Michael James - Transport Topics
	Duane M. Acklie

First a lawyer then a banker, the 68-year-old Nebraska native parlayed his ownership of a small truckload carrier in Crete, Neb., into a family business empire that now includes five trucking companies, a string of local banks, an electronics contracting business, warehousing and land development, farming and insurance.

A former Army intelligence officer, Acklie was one of the most ardent supporters of trucking deregulation and played an influential role in the successful campaign to increase trucking productivity through the general adoption of 53-foot trailers.

Now as chairman of ATA, Acklie is poised to use his unusually broad experiences in business and politics to push trucking’s legislative and regulatory agenda in Washington, D.C. He also intends to continue efforts to convince independent conferences, including the Truckload Carriers Association, to integrate with ATA.

“The industry can’t survive without one, strong advocacy voice,” says Acklie, who served two years as head of the Interstate Truckload Carriers Conference, which became TCA in 1994. “I’ve always felt that way. Looking back over the years, the refunds we received from the ATA Litigation Center have paid our dues to ATA.”

For the full story, see the Nov. 6 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.

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