Meadow Lark Transport Inc., a well-established Montana trucking company and freight brokerage, has unexpectedly shut down its operations, resulting in the loss of approximately 275 jobs for truck drivers and office personnel.
The Billings-based company, which had been in operation for 40 years, had a large fleet of 273 drivers and 337 power units across 40 terminals nationwide, as reported by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The reason behind the sudden closure remains unknown, although some carriers who had been contracted by Meadow Lark to transport loads claim they have been struggling to receive payment for several months.
In response to inquiries about outstanding payments, Meadow Lark has opted to focus solely on addressing emails and is currently refusing phone calls related to payment status.
Despite its long history in the industry, Meadow Lark Transport’s unexpected shutdown has left many questioning the circumstances and impact of this decision.
“At Meadow Lark, we greatly value the relationships we have established with our Carrier Partners over our 40-year history,” Meadow Lark wrote in the email. “We recognize the importance of timely payments and acknowledge that our account with you is overdue. Be assured that we are taking this matter very seriously and are committed to resolving this as promptly as possible.”
Lawsuit Filed Against Meadow Lark for Misleading Truck Driver Program
In June of 2022, a former truck driver for Meadow Lark filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status, against the company’s “driving opportunity” lease-driver business program. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana, accuses Meadow Lark of failing to disclose important information about the economics of the lease program.
According to the suit, after covering expenses such as truck lease payments, fuel, and maintenance, drivers were left with little or no compensation, sometimes even owing money to Meadow Lark. In addition, the drivers claim that the company did not fulfill its promise of paying them the full 75% of the actual gross revenue received from customers.
While no trial date has been scheduled yet, the deadline for pretrial motions has been set for Feb. 8, 2024.
Meadow Lark Timeline:
1983 – Rick and Donna Jones started the asset-based 3PL company.
2011 – The company was purchased by the Jones’ oldest daughter, Amanda, “Mandy” Roth
June 2022 – Lawsuit filed by a former driver for deceptive business practices.
January 2023 – In an interview on “Take the Hire Road” Roth stated that Meadow Lark had 40 terminals across the country and posted revenue of over $200 million.
Sources: FreightWaves, Meadow Lark Transport website
