KAS Express Courier, Inc. originated from the San Francisco Bay Area where Bert Artlip, our original founder, served as foreman of operations in Northern California for the Santa Fe Railroad. In 1968, Bert was promoted to sales for the Santa Fe Trails. He was convinced that he could create opportunities for Santa Fe to backhaul imports from the Western US to the Midwest and East coast utilizing carrier onboarding and the rail system. Consolidating imports into trailers from the Port of San Francisco for what would be the first TOFC movements using Custom’s house license #15, Bert was successful. In 1971, the rail industry made the decision to change their over the road and intermodal business models, and at that time, Bert became a key operator for a local IMC.