For-hire trucking employment soared past seasonal expectations in April, underscoring strong demand despite declining spot market pricing.
Top 25 Truckload Companies
Top 25 Truckload Companies
In 2017, the 25 largest truckload carriers in the US increased their combined revenue 5.4 percent to nearly $28 billion, as freight demand quickened in the second half of the year. Revenue increased at 20 of the Top 25 Truckload Carriers last year, compared with 10 in 2016, a sign truckload carriers pulled out of the economic mire that slowed them in 2015 and 2016.
Acquisitions helped power growth among the largest truckload carriers, boosting revenue significantly at heavy-haul specialist Daseke and dry van carrier CRST International. If 2018 continues as strong as it began, and they can find and hire qualified truck drivers, the largest truckload carriers are likely to pull even with their faster-growing LTL counterparts.
Key stories in TL:
- Top 25 TL 2017: Dedicated trucking a ray of light after tough 2016
- Top 25 TL 2016: JOC Rankings show top US and Canada truck companies reversed expansion
- Top 25 TL 2015: Largest US truckload carriers gain pricing power
- Top 25 TL 2014: Truckload carriers expand through acquisition
Press Releases
News & Analysis
21 Apr 2022
US shippers’ need for truck capacity guarantees in a volatile market is pushing more freight away from the spot market to contract carriers, especially the largest fleets such as Knight-Swift.
18 Apr 2022
Recent gains in manufacturing activity, including consumer goods production, suggest continued expansion of US freight demand while dampening worries about retail spending.
14 Apr 2022
Truckload spot rates have cooled considerably in the last 45 days, but a larger freight recession may not be on the horizon given demand remains strong in other modes of commercial transportation.
12 Apr 2022
Better use of existing trucks and trailers is creating truckload capacity and reducing transportation costs, but it’s not clear how long that fresh capacity will be available, DAT principal analyst Dean Croke says.
08 Apr 2022
The shift of containerized freight from the West Coast to the Gulf Coast and Southeast is absorbing truck capacity in those regions and pushing up spot rates, including rates from Houston to California.
25 Mar 2022
Base US truckload spot rates are falling, but higher fuel costs and market volatility are limiting over-the-road savings for shippers.
23 Mar 2022
After two incredibly tight years, the availability of truckload equipment and drivers is on the rise in the US, but constraints on capacity growth remain in place.
14 Mar 2022
The sudden increase in fuel-related shipping costs caused by the war in Ukraine is already changing how shippers plan to move goods within the US, forcing them to consolidate shipments and even change modes.
09 Mar 2022
The truckload and less-than-truckload markets are closer than ever, as retail demand and inventory replenishment put pressure on capacity, Knight-Swift CEO David Jackson says.
17 Feb 2022
The acquisition of John Christner Trucking will give temperature-controlled carrier Hirschbach more drivers, trucks, trailers, and revenue, but also more routes into food shipper supply chains.
27 Jan 2022
With consumers still spending, Knight-Swift and Landstar see more growth, and higher rates, ahead.
26 Jan 2022
Proactive steps taken by US and Canadian motor carriers and shippers ahead of vaccine mandates for truck drivers are keeping cross-border freight flowing despite earlier fears of disruption and delays.
06 Jan 2022
The fast-spreading variant of COVID-19 likely won’t affect trucking as much as warehousing and aviation, but its indirect impact will put more pressure on already high trucking costs.
14 Dec 2021
The diversion of freight from intermodal rail to truck adds miles to import shipments, significantly increasing costs, the Cass Freight Index finds.
07 Dec 2021
The for-hire trucking industry lost jobs in November, as it typically does, but fewer than anticipated as couriers and warehouses grabbed the most new employees amid strong pre-holiday demand.
06 Dec 2021
The largest US truckload operator acquired its second LTL carrier this year, bringing it closer to a national network and more than $900 million in LTL revenue.
06 Dec 2021
Several factors are diminishing shipper expectations for new truck capacity in 2022, as Class 8 truck production and delivery dates are pushed out more than a year and backlogs build.
10 Nov 2021
Desire for “one-stop shopping” leads to the consolidation of Transport America and MCT with long-haul truckload carrier CFI to create a broader — not just bigger — trucking company.
08 Nov 2021
An exemption to the US’ large employer vaccine mandate granted to outdoor workers may cover truck drivers, the American Trucking Association argues. But it’s not clear that exemption would apply to all types of truck drivers.
05 Nov 2021
Bigger than expected gains in warehousing and trucking in October are welcome amid ongoing reports of labor shortages.
05 Nov 2021
The Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccination and testing mandate for large employers will affect truck capacity and pricing, but questions about the extent of its impact remain.
04 Nov 2021
A survey of independent truckers and small trucking firms by Truckstop.com and Bloomberg Intelligence found them optimistic about the potential for higher contract and spot rates next year.
03 Nov 2021
A truck driver survey underscores the threat of potential service disruptions from an upcoming US vaccine mandate for large employers, with 36 percent of drivers showing no interest in vaccination.
02 Nov 2021
Trucking companies are seeking an exemption to the COVID-19 vaccine mandate being implemented by the US government for large employers, which they say would further disrupt already tight US trucking capacity.
28 Oct 2021
Truckload pricing will continue to rise into 2022, with the “deflationary leg” of the market starting in the second quarter next year, Coyote Logistics said in its latest Coyote Curve forecast.
26 Oct 2021
The ongoing semiconductor shortage is reducing deliveries of new trucks in North America and threatening the addition of much-needed capacity in 2022, and perhaps beyond.
21 Oct 2021
Demand and disruption are fueling growth at both Knight-Swift Transportation and Landstar System, neither of which see a reduction in demand or pricing in a changing truckload landscape.
20 Oct 2021
Supply chain disruption is slowing economic growth, but “postponed” demand is expected to reemerge in 2022, keeping US freight capacity tight and transportation pricing high.
06 Oct 2021
The backlog of freight in Southern California is forcing more shippers to the truckload spot market as they search for any available capacity to speed goods inland.
29 Sep 2021
Speakers at the Coyote Logistics Digital Summit said some truckload capacity is creeping back into a very tight market, but not to expect major changes in rates, especially for shippers on the “import side.”
28 Sep 2021
Although national spot rate averages are flat, significant increases in dry-van truckload volumes from US ports are tightening pricing pressure in long-haul lanes as importers rush goods further inland.
27 Sep 2021
Trucking equipment manufacturers are raking in new orders for trailers and tractors, but it may be well into 2022 before they roll off production lines ready to move freight.
21 Sep 2021
Demand fueled tonnage growth at for-hire contract carriers in August, according to the American Trucking Associations, but supply chain disruption and shortages still constrain overall capacity.
13 Sep 2021
Iowa-based CRST is installing a telematics-based fleet management system the truckload carrier claims will benefit both drivers and shippers seeking supply chain intelligence.
29 Aug 2021
Instead of waiting for autonomous trucks, shippers starving for capacity should automate processes starting with freight pickup and delivery to save drivers time, says MIT FreightLab’s co-director.
- Page 1
- ››
Commentary
The ELD – better trucking through data science
More Commentary