Longtime truck company expanding to new facilities

MOSES LAKE — A truck-shaped frame bearing photos hangs on the wall of John Wright's office.

It's a testament to the history of Wright's company, which is embarking on the next chapter early next year.

Zip Truck Lines, Inc., presently located on Bell Road, in the Moses Lake Industrial Park, has been in business since 1972.

A resident of Moses Lake since 1952, Wright, his father and father-in-law bought a portion of an existing operating permit and organized the corporation. They bought his father-in-law out after the first year, and then Wright purchased his father's share in 1980.

The business moved to its present location in 1979 when it outgrew its original location. Wright said it reached the point where it's gotten too large again.

"Just the demand of truck transportation in the area has made us spread our wings a little bit," Wright said. "We started out with three trucks, three tractors and three trailers. We're running about 26 trucks now out of Moses Lake, I'm not sure how many flatbeds and probably about 40 trailers."

While Zip Truck Lines is primarily a flatbed carrier, Wright also has an Ellensburg-based business that primarily handles 40-foot containers. He has set up a container yard in the Moses Lake area to haul some heavy 20-foot containers and some 40-foot containers, he said.

"Growth of Moses Lake has required more transportation services," Wright said. "There's a lot of commodities moving to Moses Lake now, and beyond."

Zip Truck Lines covers four western states — Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.

"We've kind of grown with the community, and because of the new industry in Moses Lake, it's commanded more service from us," Wright said. "Our customers that we've had for years, they're growing and expanding, so we have to grow with them."

Zip Truck Lines is moving to a new facility located on Road N. It's a 15-acre site, Wright said, and includes a 2,000 square-foot office, a 7,500 square-foot maintenance shop and two 12,000 square-foot warehouses for commodity distribution and receiving, in response to customer demand.

Groundwork for the expansion began about two years ago, when the company began setting up its container yard.

"We saw a niche here where we could get empty containers in here, get them loaded and have them sitting in our yard ready to be shipped to Seattle when the trucks were available," Wright said. "That way, we keep our equipment loaded both ways and we always have loads sitting here available."

Building on the new office and shop was scheduled to begin this week, with Zip Truck Lines hoping to move in by the end of February, and the warehouses to begin in the early spring.

"We're close to the railroad there, so hopefully in the future we'll be able to have some availability of rail cars from the Columbia Basin Railroad," Wright said.

The business employs 34 people, and Wright hopes to increase the number by eight to 10 with its expansion.

The permitting process began last February in hopes of being in place, but Wright said the permit process delayed construction.

Wright enjoys meeting people and solving their transportation problems.

"It's kind of, what can I do for the community, what can I do to help?" he asked. "It's not just the money issue; I've always enjoyed equipment."

In the future, Wright hopes to offer a distribution center, with imports coming in to Moses Lake from Pacific Rim countries and distributed throughout the Pacific Northwest.

"That's our plan," he said. "You never know if it's going to work or not until you try it."