Heavy Duty Towing in Salem, OH

Heavy Duty Towing in Salem, Ohio is shaped by the plants. This Columbiana County city of 11,915 people (2020 census) sits about 18 miles southwest of Youngstown, and trucks come and go all day from its factories, meat plant and warehouses. When a tractor-trailer, box truck or flatbed breaks down at a plant gate, on US 62 or along State Route 14, call (330) 542-5961. Dispatch answers 24/7 and tells you what to expect on the first call.

The employer list tells you the trucks

The 2022 list of major employers in Salem, cited on Wikipedia, includes Ventra Salem with 825 employees, Fresh Mark with 775, Butech Bliss with 278 and Hickey Metal Fabrication with 176. Wikipedia describes meat production at Fresh Mark, American Standard production and several tool-and-die manufacturers. Plants like these move freight by truck. Refrigerated trailers, flatbeds with steel and containers of parts all need different handling. A reefer unit has to stay cold. A flatbed with a shifted load needs to be secured before anyone drags it. Tell us what is on the trailer.

The routes through town

US 62 runs east-west around downtown. State Route 9 runs north-south and ends at US 62. SR 14 crosses the city and shares a short stretch with SR 9 and SR 173 on State Street. SR 344 begins downtown and runs east to Columbiana. A temporary bypass, SR 14T, is a 2.73-mile four-lane road around Salem from Goshen Township in Mahoning County into Perry Township in Columbiana County. Its signs read TO US 62 / SR 45. If you are on that road, tell us the signs you can read. Dispatch can place you from landmarks.

A city that spreads out

Salem covers 6.43 square miles and is the largest incorporated place by area in Columbiana County. It sits at 1,280 feet and is mostly surrounded by unincorporated Perry Township. Quakers founded it in 1806 and it was incorporated in 1830. That spread means a call can start at a plant gate and end on a township road. The Salem Airpark, a public-use airport, is about three nautical miles north of the central business district.

What a plant call needs

Plant calls often involve a driver waiting for a pickup or a delivery and a shipper who is already on the phone. Give us the plant name or gate number and where on the grounds the truck sits. Tell us whether the trailer is loaded, whether the landing gear is down, whether the brakes are locked and whether the plant has a yard truck. Tell us who gets the invoice: carrier, shipper, broker or insurer. If a forklift or loader has to help with the load, we plan for it.

Language that helps the dispatcher

Plants use their own names for gates and docks. Tell us the name on the sign, not the shipper's internal code. If the truck is on US 62, tell us whether you are east or west of downtown. If you are near the SR 14T bypass, tell us which end you are at. A driver who stays with the unit and can answer the phone saves time. A fleet manager who calls for the driver should add the driver's number to the call.

Quick checklist for the call

• Route and cross street, or plant name and gate
• Tractor-trailer, straight truck, bus or equipment hauler
• Weight class and whether it is loaded
• Hazmat or refrigerated freight, if any
• Who authorizes and who pays

Call (330) 542-5961