Exhibit 99.1

Saia Reports Third Quarter Earnings per Share of $0.55

JOHNS CREEK, GA. – October 27, 2017 – Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAIA), a leading transportation provider offering multi-regional less-than-truckload (LTL), non-asset truckload, expedited and logistics services, today reported third quarter 2017 financial results.

Third Quarter 2017 Compared to Third Quarter 2016 Results

“Third quarter operations were disrupted for a number of days by hurricanes Harvey and Irma.  We estimate that third quarter shipments and tonnage per workday growth would have been approximately 1% higher had the storms not occurred”, said Saia President and Chief Executive Officer, Rick O’Dell.  “Saia also experienced higher than normal operating costs for routing freight around weather impacted areas”, O’Dell continued.

“We were very fortunate that our employees and their families were safe during the storms and the Company had minimal damage to facilities and equipment.  With the dedicated effort of employees, we were able to get terminals in the impacted areas open within a few days.  The impact of the storms notwithstanding, we continue to see strong demand and stable pricing in our business”, said O’Dell.

“I am also pleased that we opened our 5th new terminal of the year on October 16th.  The terminal is located in Laurel, Md. and will help us to serve customers in and around the markets of Baltimore, Md. and Washington, D.C.  We are planning to open a terminal in Allentown, Pa. in December and have two additional Northeast expansion properties identified.  The early results from our Northeast expansion have modestly exceeded our expectations”, concluded Mr. O’Dell.

Financial Position and Capital Expenditures

Total debt was $127.2 million at September 30, 2017 and inclusive of the cash on-hand, net debt to total capital was 19.3%.  This compares to total debt of $94.2 million and net debt to total capital of 16.6% at September 30, 2016.

Net capital expenditures in the year-to-date period through September were $183.9 million including equipment acquired with capital leases.  This compares to $142.5 million in net capital expenditures in the first nine months of 2016.  For the full year 2017, net capital expenditures are planned to be approximately $230 million.

Conference Call

Management will hold a conference call to discuss quarterly results today at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. To participate in the call, please dial 800-239-9838 or 323-794-2551 referencing conference ID #9666253.  Callers should dial in five to ten minutes in advance of the conference call.  This call will be webcast live via the Company web site at www.saiacorp.com.  A replay of the call will be offered two hours after the completion of the call through December 22, 2017 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time.  The replay will be available by dialing 888-203-1112 or 719-457-0820.

Saia, Inc. (NASDAQ: SAIA) offers customers a wide range of less-than-truckload, non-asset truckload, expedited and logistics services.  With headquarters in Georgia, Saia LTL Freight operates 153 terminals across 39 states.  For more information on Saia, Inc. visit the Investor Relations section at www.saiacorp.com.

The Securities and Exchange Commission encourages companies to disclose forward-looking information so that investors can better understand the future prospects of a company and make informed investment decisions. This news release contains these types of statements, which are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Saia, Inc. Third Quarter 2017 Results

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Words such as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “expect,” “project,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “predict,” “believe,” “should” and similar words or expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements reflect the present expectation of future events of our management as of the date of this news release and are subject to a number of important factors, risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking statements. These factors, risks, uncertainties and assumptions include, but are not limited to, (1) general economic conditions including downturns in the business cycle; (2) effectiveness of Company-specific performance improvement initiatives, including management of the cost structure to match shifts in customer volume levels; (3) the creditworthiness of our customers and their ability to pay for services; (4) failure to achieve acquisition synergies; (5) failure to operate and grow acquired businesses in a manner that supports the value allocated to these acquired businesses, including their goodwill; (6) economic declines in the geographic regions or industries in which our customers operate; (7) competitive initiatives and pricing pressures, including in connection with fuel surcharge; (8) loss of significant customers; (9) the Company’s need for capital and uncertainty of the credit markets; (10) the possibility of defaults under the Company’s debt agreements (including violation of financial covenants); (11) possible issuance of equity which would dilute stock ownership; (12) integration risks; (13) the effect of litigation including class action lawsuits; (14) cost and availability of qualified drivers, fuel, purchased transportation, real property, revenue equipment and other assets; (15) governmental regulations, including but not limited to Hours of Service, engine emissions, the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) initiative, compliance with legislation requiring companies to evaluate their internal control over financial reporting, Homeland Security, environmental regulations and the Food and Drug Administration; (16) changes in interpretation of accounting principles; (17) dependence on key employees; (18) inclement weather; (19) labor relations, including the adverse impact should a portion of the Company’s workforce become unionized; (20) terrorism risks; (21) self-insurance claims and other expense volatility; (22) cost and availability of insurance coverage; (23) increased costs of healthcare and prescription drugs, including as a result of healthcare reform legislation; (24) social media risks; (25) cyber security risk; (26) failure to successfully execute the strategy to expand the Company’s service geography into the Northeastern United States; and (27) other financial, operational and legal risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in the Company’s SEC filings.  As a result of these and other factors, no assurance can be given as to our future results and achievements.  A forward looking statement is neither a prediction nor a guarantee of future events or circumstances and those future events or circumstances may not occur.

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