TA opens Iowa truck stop

BROOKLYN, Iowa (March 12, 2015) — TravelCenters of America L.L.C. (TA) has opened a TA Truck Service facility in Brooklyn with a four-bay service center staffed by ASE- and Tire Industry Association-certified technicians.

TA, operator of the TA and Petro Stopping Centers truck stop brands, said its latest location is at Exit 197 on I-80 near Brooklyn between Des Moines and Davenport.

The service center is open 24/7 and offers light duty repair, brakes, electrical, alignment, air conditioning, preventive maintenance, inspections and RoadSquad emergency road call services. Most of TA's outlets also handle full lines of tires from Bridgestone, Michelin, Goodyear, Continental and Samson.

“This latest addition of truck service capacity brings the total number of our truck stops with truck service bays to 239, by far the largest business of its kind in our industry,” said TA President and CEO Tom O'Brien.

In three unrelated transactions, the company — which also operates the Minit Mart convenience store brand — announced it has acquired 26 gasoline/convenience store locations located primarily in Minnesota (18) and Kentucky (six). Some  offer branded quick service restaurant operations like Subway, White Castle and Arby's.

Westlake, Ohio-based TA said it expects to add a quick service restaurant and/or deli to most of the stores that do not include them, and the firm has arranged gasoline branding for seven of the 26 stores as Marathon (five stores), BP (one store) and Exxon (one store). TravelCenters expects that the convenience stores at 26 of these locations and the remaining 19 gasoline operations will be rebranded as Minit Mart.

The company operates 254 full-service truck service locations off interstate highway exits in 43 states and Canada.