Not meaning to attack but I imagine there was a good reason why the cat couldn't ride in the car with you?
I moved cross country this summer with my German Shepherd and shipping him as cargo didn't even cross my mind when I knew I was going to be driving anyway. He made a great road trip companion!
I've moved only from one time zone to the next (Chicago to NC) and almost went insane with my cat in the car. Yowled through 16 hours in a car. Some pets are NOT good at traveling.