May 3, 1981
When word came that a financial cave-in had derailed Auto-Train Corp,. the Autolog Corp. was nearly stopped in its tracks by desperate callers seeking a way to get their cars out of Florida. "Our phones literally have been ringing off the hook," said a beleaguered Autolog President, Myron Levine from his headquarters in Jersey City, NJ.
Instead of carrying automobiles by train, Levine's company hauls them by truck. And when scores of Auto-Train customers found themselves holding tickets to nowhere last week, his four-year old firm suddenly became the key to their salvation.
"People have been calling in desperation," he said. "We put on extra trucks to handle the volume, but we don't have enough telephone lines. There is a substantial number of retired people - many said they don't feel physically capable of driving."
In Dania, where Autolog has a terminal outside the fort Lauderdale - Hollywood International Airport, "the phone has never stopped," says manager Jim Simpkiss. "Mostly its been from people who are here six months out of the year. Next week will be just unreal. We've got 60 to 70 cars due in today (Thursday) at this terminal."
Despite the incredulity in Levine's voice, there was more satisfaction than met the ear.
For Levine expected Autolog to take in a record $5 million this year. With Auto-Train gone, he's expecting more.
As it was, 1980 was a watershed year for Autolog. Its 40 trucks transported nearly 20,000 vehicles, and he obtained authority to go nationwide.
That network, however, didn't come easily. Ironically, part of the problem was linked with the well being of the Auto-Train.
Since 1974, the former Securities and Exchange Commission Lawyer had to fight the Interstate Commission every time he sought to expand. Obtaining authority to operate at all meant a trip though the ICC'S jungle of red tape.
"I was in a Catch 22 situation," he says. "I didn't have the trucks, employees and the terminals. And I couldn't prove it could be done profitably."
The ICC feared that as Autolog grew, the Auto-Train would suffer. If Levine had failed, the reasoning went, there was a risk that he would take Auto-Train into the abyss with him. Those fears turned out to be prophetic, and Levine probably knew it. But he wasn't about to buy the scenario of them both going down together.
And now, as the Auto-Train officials struggle with refund inquiries, Levine has his own version of his former rival's obituary.
"We're one of the reasons Auto-Train went under," he says. "What they really had was a do-do bird waiting for extinction. They couldn't navigate the tunnels to Washington, and had to locate in Virginia."
The Auto-Train concept caught on 10 years ago, because it was a necessity, he says. "Any driving the elderly could save was important."
Then came the lower air fares. With them, "why drive?" "They had a fixed overhead, and any business lost came from profits." Another factor. "They were locked into their two terminals." "They were able to service because they could provide halfway decent service. But they couldn't compete with people like Autolog." he says.
That competition was borne out of Levine's knowledge of Washington. When he was first rejected by the ICC, he took his case before Congressional Committees that were attempting to deregulate the trucking industry.
In 1976, he was granted restricted authority top operated between New York City, Broward, Dade and Palm Beach Counties. "We set up facilities in Fort Lauderdale, Miami and West Palm Beach at the Airports." he says. "A person could fly in and have his car waiting for him. There was a tremendous amount of business right off the bat."
Instead of driving 500 miles to Auto-Train's Lorton, VA terminal, a vacationer to Florida could place his car aboard a truck and the wing his way to South Florida a few days later. The car would be there when he arrived.
Meanwhile, his counterpart using Auto-Train would disembark at its Sanford Terminal and still have a lengthy drive to his destination.
In 1977, Levine applied for broader authority when Pratt & Whitney made a major move of its employees from Connecticut. He then sought permission to operate in the Midwest and all of the Northeast.
Once again, with Auto-Train protesting, the ICC denied the bid on the basis of insufficient consumer applications. This time Levine found himself in Federal Appeals Court contesting the administrative decision.
In doing so, he bought the Justice Department into the case because the US Government was a defendant. But instead of opting for the ICC'S defense, he says Justice filed a brief attacking the ICC's decision as unreasonable. The victory opened up Boston, Hartford, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh in the Northeast, and Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and Columbus in the Midwest.
Using car rental agencies as pickup and drop-off points, business accelerated from 2.4 million in revenue in 1978 to 2.8 million in 1979. Expansion to Tampa, St Petersburg and Sarasota pushed revenue to $3.5 million in 1980.
Retirees aren't the only customers of Autolog. With nationwide authority, he's been able to help Corporations move their employees by transporting their cars.
Autolog also has a contract to move the new DeLorean sports cars off the docks at Wilmington, Delaware, once they arrive from Ireland. The company will be serving the South. Levine says with the first shipments of Deloreans due in Florida by June. |
