Trucking Companies

The 157,072 trucking companies in the US provide transportation services for a wide variety of goods. The majority of truck loads are full Truck Loads (TL), meaning a single customer fills the entire trailer. About 25% of loads are Less Than Full Truck Loads (LTL), where freight from multiple customers is consolidated into one trailer.

High Failure Rate

Small trucking start-ups have a high failure rate, with an estimated 85% failing before their second year of operation, according to the National Association of Small Trucking Companies.

Limited Driver Hours

The federal Hours of Service (HOS) rules dictate how long a driver can be on duty and behind the wheel.

Sep 2, 2026 - Driver Crackdown Adds to Trucking Labor Squeeze

• The Trump administration is stepping up enforcement against immigrant truck drivers, adding another headache for a trucking industry already struggling to keep enough drivers behind the wheel. Federal officials have shut down nearly 300 commercial driving schools over training concerns and are targeting drivers whose licenses may remain valid after their visas or work permits expire. About 200,000 immigrants hold licenses allowing them to haul freight professionally, roughly 5% of US license holders, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Carriers say the crackdown is tightening an already difficult labor market and pushing them to spend more on recruiting and wages. J.B. Hunt says it has more than doubled, and possibly tripled, its driver recruiting staff. The effects are also reaching shippers, with some small businesses reporting less reliable trucking service, higher rates and fees, and greater difficulty getting trucks when they need them.
• The trucking market may look like it is losing steam, but some of that weakness is freight simply moving to the rails. Accepted truckload volumes are down 3.3% from a year ago, while domestic intermodal container volumes have jumped 10%, according to FreightWaves SONAR. The appeal is largely about price: FreightWaves’ Intermodal Savings Index shows rail running about 34% cheaper than truck, giving shippers little reason to pay for speed when retailers are rebuilding inventories months ahead of when goods are needed. Higher fuel costs have widened that advantage because trucking fuel surcharges rise faster than their intermodal counterparts. Truckload demand could pick up in October and November as holiday deadlines make speed more important, but the rebound may be softer than usual because so much freight is already working its way toward inland distribution centers by rail.
• Tariff-related freight volatility is adding to the pressure on US shippers, which are increasingly using short-term “mini-bid” contracts as tightening truck capacity, rising rates, and failing routing guides make annual freight contracts less dependable. Shifting trade flows and tariff-driven swings in import volumes have made freight demand harder to predict, while available trucking capacity continues to shrink. Rather than rebidding entire networks, shippers are targeting specific regions or lanes to quickly secure dependable capacity, with Knight-Swift, Werner, and J.B. Hunt reporting increased mini-bid activity. JOC’s Truckload Capacity Index fell 1.1 percentage points to 78.7 in the second quarter as large carriers limited fleet expansion. Unlike recent years, when off-cycle bids often sought lower prices, today’s mini-bids are primarily about securing trucks, and FTR expects contract rates to continue rising through the third quarter of 2027.
• Truckload carriers are entering their strongest pricing environment since the freight downturn began in 2022 as shrinking capacity, rather than surging freight demand, pushes rates higher. S&P Global’s DAT Freight & Analytics' Spot Premium Ratio - a leading indicator of contract pricing - has climbed to about 30%, a level historically associated with some of the industry's strongest pricing cycles. New dry-van contract rates in routing guides are already averaging 11% higher than a year ago, while the Bureau of Labor Statistics' long-distance truckload Producer Price Index rose 21.4% year over year in June. DAT chief scientist Chris Caplice expects favorable pricing to continue through at least mid-2027 as several years of fleet reductions, combined with higher borrowing costs, insurance premiums, tighter lending standards, and stronger regulatory enforcement, keep capacity constrained and give carriers greater leverage in contract negotiations.

Industry size & Structure

A typical trucking company operates out of a single location, employs more than 10 workers and generates about $2-3 million annually.

• The trucking industry consists of 157,072 companies, employs 1.7 million workers and generates over $423 billion in annual revenue.
• 88% of trucking companies operate out of a single location.
• One in 4 drivers is an independent owner-operator who owns their truck and contracts out services to trucking companies.
• About 92% of trucking firms employ 20 or fewer workers.
• Small fleets dominate the trucking industry with 91% of companies operating 10 trucks or fewer.
• Large companies include UPS, FedEx, DHL, YRC Worldwide, Ryder, XPO Logistics (Con-way), Penske Truck Leasing, and JB Hunt Transport Services.