our history

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Founded in 1916 by the Turner Family, this historic transport business began with its origins in delivering coal from the mines to merchants for decades using horse, cart, barge and rail. 

With the development of the motorway network in the late 1950's a move towards heavy goods vehicles increased, expanding upon the existing tipper vehicles to include articulated lorries and various trailers to attach to them. 

By the 1970's road haulage was the main mode of transportation for James Wilby which became renowned for servicing the constructions sectors.  This was an insightful move as the 1980's saw many of the local coal mines facing closure.  

It also led to the Turner Family's decision to disband their group of companies in 1977, seeing James Wilby Dewsbury being purchased by Keith Shaw and John Bates, in a management buyout.  The business still serviced the coal industry and for many years operated as coal merchants and were active members of the Coal Merchants Federation.  

In 2021, the decision was made to close the coal merchants division of the business in a decisive move to become more sustainable.  

Both Keith and John remain shareholders and non-executive directors today.  

Today, James Wilby still services the construction sector operating a wide selection of vehicles, all of which are Euro6, and include tractor units coupled with flatbed trailers, Moffetts and Hiabs.  

All drivers are trained to the highest of road haulage safety and standards. Each driver and vehicle are equipped with state of the art technology, allowing for instant tracking and electronic PODs.

As an international operator of choice, James Wilby is a long standing Road Haulage Association (RHA) member and carries Gold status in the Fleet Operators Recognition Scheme (FORS).