What type of business are you in? How did you get started in this business? How long have you been in this business?
Judy Smart‘s late husband, James Smart, started Roadrunner Towing & Recovery, Inc. in 1968. The company will be celebrating 50 years in business next year. While delivering a truck in Tennessee he met Judy through mutual friends and they began a long distance relationship. They married in 1974 and became partners in life and in business. “To my knowledge, I soon became the first lady to actually drive and operate a tow truck in Louisiana.” said Ms. Smart.
How long have you been a member of the LMTA? What do you see as the greatest value you/your company bring to the LMTA?
“We became members of the LMTA in 1985, and immediately became active in the association. James served as the president of the Baton Rouge chapter,” a position that Judy later assumed. Roadrunner is not only one of the most active companies in the LMTA, bringing a unique prospective to the association, but they are also one of the association’s most generous and longtime sponsors.
As one of the few female trucking company owners and LMTA Board Members, Judy brings a distinctive style and opinion to association initiatives.
Judy is also always quick to encourage LMTA members to support TransPac, LMTA’s political action committee. She urges them to note on any checks that they send directly to candidates that they are LMTA Members.
What do you see as the greatest value you/your company receive as a member of the LMTA?
Ms. Smart says that one of the greatest values Roadrunner receives from the LMTA is respect for the towing industry. “The rapport we generate with the owners and management of trucking company members is invaluable.”
“Our membership in the LMTA is distinctive in that we fall in the category of both an Allied and Trucking Company Member,” said Ms. Smart.
What do you predict for the future of the trucking industry within your type of business?
“Within the towing and recovery business, I think that we’re absolutely a necessary evil. You hate it that you have to be the one that goes and gets someone’s truck when it’s broken down or involved in an incident. But with all of the new technology, including cameras, hopefully we will soon be responding to fewer accidents,” said Ms. Smart
What accomplishment(s) are you most proud of in your relationship with the LMTA and the trucking industry in Louisiana?
Judy is most proud of the fact that both she and her husband received LMTA’s most prestigious T.H. Davidge Award from the LMTA for outstanding service to the trucking industry. James received it in 1996 and Judy received it in 2005. It’s such an honor to receive that award and Judy holds the honor of being the first woman to whom the award was presented.
She is also grateful to LMTA and the trucking industry for allowing her the privilege of giving back to the association and the community.
As everyone in the industry knows, Judy Smart is an ardent LSU fan and LMTA supporter. You always know where you stand with Judy!