Truck fleets span millions of registered vehicles, power units, drivers and freight movements. The figures below define the population, geography and measurement period for each statistic, because registration counts, survey estimates, modeled travel and telematics samples describe different parts of the trucking system.
Key Truck Fleet Statistics
The most broadly useful U.S. truck fleet figures include:
- 14,333,821 registered large trucks operated in the United States in 2022.
- 11,083,997 registered single-unit trucks were recorded in the United States in 2022.
- 3,249,824 registered combination trucks were recorded in the United States in 2022.
- Large trucks traveled 331.3 billion vehicle-miles in the United States in 2022.
- Combination trucks traveled 195,049 million vehicle-miles in the United States in 2022.
- 787,189 active carriers with a USDOT number were counted in FMCSA-regulated United States data in 2023.
- 5,421,013 power units operated in FMCSA-regulated United States data in 2023.
- 3,981,465 CDL drivers were counted in FMCSA-regulated United States data in 2023.
- Trucks moved an estimated 12,015 million tons of domestic freight in the United States in 2023.
- FMCSA recorded 3,011,902 federal and state inspections of large trucks and buses in the United States in 2023.
- The 2023 vehicle inspection out-of-service rate was 22.6% in the United States large-truck-and-bus inspection population.
- The 2021 VIUS estimated 169.8 million trucks operating on U.S. roadways.
- Heavy-duty trucks averaged an estimated 6.34 miles per gallon in the United States in 2021.
- Heavy-duty trucks averaged an estimated 36,000 annual vehicle-miles per truck in the United States in 2021.
- Medium- and heavy-duty trucks produced an estimated 23% of U.S. transportation greenhouse-gas emissions in 2022.
- BTS FMI logged approximately 350,000 unique truck tractors in its North American sample since October 1, 2018.
Contents
- Registered truck fleet scale and composition
- Truck fleet mileage and vehicle-miles traveled
- Carriers, power units and drivers
- Freight tonnage moved by truck
- Truck inspections and out-of-service rates
- Fuel efficiency and annual truck use
- Emissions and freight-mobility trends
Registered Truck Fleet Statistics: Scale and Composition
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s summary of FHWA Highway Statistics counted 283,400,986 registered vehicles in the United States in 2022. Large trucks accounted for 14,333,821 of those registrations, using the large-truck category in FHWA registration data.
| Vehicle category | Registered vehicles | Period and geography |
|---|---|---|
| All vehicles | 283,400,986 | 2022, United States |
| Large trucks | 14,333,821 | 2022, United States |
| Single-unit trucks | 11,083,997 | 2022, United States |
| Combination trucks | 3,249,824 | 2022, United States |
2024 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics, FMCSA summary of FHWA Highway Statistics 2022.
The large-truck registration series rose from 13,085,643 in 2019 to 12,899,371 in 2020, then 13,856,404 in 2021 and 14,333,821 in 2022. These values use FHWA table VM-1 definitions, so they should be read as registration counts rather than a direct count of operating fleet companies.
Truck Fleet Mileage Statistics and Vehicle-Miles Traveled
All U.S. motor vehicles traveled 3,196.2 billion vehicle-miles in 2022. Large trucks accounted for 331.3 billion vehicle-miles, or 10.4% of all motor-vehicle travel.
| Truck category or road grouping | Vehicle-miles | Period and geography |
|---|---|---|
| Single-unit trucks | 136,224 million | 2022, United States |
| Combination trucks | 195,049 million | 2022, United States |
| Combination trucks on rural roads | 105,471 million | 2024 estimate, United States |
| Combination trucks on urban roads | 87,048 million | 2024 estimate, United States |
| Combination trucks, rural and urban total | 192,520 million | 2024 estimate, United States |
The 2024 rural-and-urban combination-truck total is an FHWA national estimate using HPMS, fuel, registration and modeling inputs. The same series estimated 195,758 million combination-truck vehicle-miles in 2023, compared with 192,520 million in 2024; latest values may be revised.
For the earlier FHWA series, combination-truck VMT was 175,305 million miles in 2019, 179,817 million in 2020 and 195,389 million in 2021. The 2022 large-truck total and category figures are summarized by FMCSA from FHWA data, while the 2023–2024 rural and urban figures come from the FHWA table directly.
2024 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics and Highway Statistics 2024, Table VM-1.
Carriers, Power Units and Truck Drivers
FMCSA counted 787,189 active carriers with a USDOT number in 2023, within its regulated United States scope. The count uses a recent-activity definition and excludes carriers outside FMCSA scope.
The 2023 MCMIS motor-carrier census counted 5,421,013 power units, 3,981,465 CDL drivers and 5,790,793 total drivers in FMCSA-regulated data. These are census populations, not interchangeable measures of commercial companies, vehicles and people.
| Carrier or driver measure | Count | Period and scope |
|---|---|---|
| Active carriers with USDOT number | 787,189 | 2023, FMCSA-regulated United States |
| Interstate freight carriers | 735,895 | 2023, United States estimate |
| Power units | 5,421,013 | 2023, FMCSA-regulated United States |
| CDL drivers | 3,981,465 | 2023, FMCSA-regulated United States |
| Total drivers | 5,790,793 | 2023, FMCSA-regulated United States |
In the December 2023 MCMIS snapshot, private carriers numbered 197,563 and for-hire carriers numbered 519,420. The operating classifications can overlap, so these categories should not be added as if they were mutually exclusive.
FMCSA’s 2023 overview also estimated approximately 9 million commercial motor-vehicle drivers in the United States, including about 5.6 million interstate drivers, of whom 3.8 million held CDLs. Some intrastate driver counts are extrapolated, and interstate and intrastate coverage differs.
2024 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics.
Freight Tonnage Moved by Truck
FAF 5.5 estimated that trucks moved 11,557 million tons of U.S. domestic freight in 2020, 11,780 million tons in 2021, 11,717 million tons in 2022 and 12,015 million tons in 2023.
| Mode or total | Domestic freight tonnage | Period and geography |
|---|---|---|
| Truck | 11,557 million tons | 2020, United States |
| Truck | 11,780 million tons | 2021, United States |
| Truck | 11,717 million tons | 2022, United States |
| Truck | 12,015 million tons | 2023, United States |
| All listed modes | 17,867 million tons | 2023, United States |
| Pipeline | 3,490 million tons | 2023, United States |
| Rail | 1,113 million tons | 2023, United States |
The 2023 total across all listed modes was 17,867 million tons. Pipeline freight contributed 3,490 million tons and rail freight 1,113 million tons in the same FAF 5.5 framework.
These are domestic-freight estimates that exclude foreign-to-foreign flows through the United States. Modal transfers are placed in multiple modes and mail, and the truck series is not directly comparable with older FAF versions after framework updates.
2024 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics.
Truck Safety Inspections and Out-of-Service Rates
FMCSA recorded 3,011,902 federal and state inspections of large trucks and buses in 2023. State inspectors conducted 2,936,144 inspections, while federal inspectors conducted 75,758.
| Safety measure | 2023 result | Population or definition |
|---|---|---|
| Total federal and state inspections | 3,011,902 | Large trucks and buses, United States |
| State inspections | 2,936,144 | Large trucks and buses, United States |
| Federal inspections | 75,758 | Large trucks and buses, United States |
| Driver inspection OOS rate | 6.4% | Driver inspections |
| Vehicle inspection OOS rate | 22.6% | Vehicle inspections |
| Hazmat inspection OOS rate | 4.0% | Inspections when hazardous materials were present |
The 2023 driver inspection out-of-service rate was 6.4%, covering inspection levels I, II, III and VI. The vehicle inspection out-of-service rate was 22.6%, covering levels I, II, V and VI, while the hazmat rate was 4.0% when hazardous materials were present.
Level I inspections resulted in 231,130 inspections with at least one out-of-service violation in 2023; this is not a count of unique vehicles. Level II walk-around inspections numbered 1,057,511.
2024 Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics.
Truck Fleet Fuel Efficiency and Annual Use
The 2021 Vehicle Inventory and Use Survey estimated 169.8 million trucks operating on U.S. roadways and 1.9 trillion annual vehicle-miles driven by trucks. VIUS covers classes 1–8 and included vehicle types, so it should not be treated as a direct count of commercial fleet companies or power units.
| Truck group | Average fuel efficiency | Average annual use | 2021 geography |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light-duty trucks, GVWR under 10,000 lb | 19.5 mpg | 9,800 miles per truck | United States |
| Heavy-duty trucks, GVWR over 26,000 lb | 6.34 mpg | 36,000 miles per truck | United States |
Heavy-duty truck fuel efficiency was estimated at 6.23 mpg in 2002 and 6.34 mpg in 2021. Average annual heavy-duty truck VMT was 41,000 miles in 2002 and 36,000 miles in 2021, while the 2021 light-duty average was 9,800 miles per truck.
These comparisons are VIUS survey estimates across survey years, with light-duty and heavy-duty groups defined by GVWR. They measure vehicle use and efficiency, not fleet profitability or operating cost.
The Vehicle Inventory and Use Survey is Back.
Truck Fleet Emissions and Freight-Mobility Trends
EPA estimated that medium- and heavy-duty trucks produced 23% of U.S. transportation greenhouse-gas emissions in 2022. Transportation accounted for 28% of direct U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions in that year, and total transportation fossil-fuel-combustion emissions increased 19% from 1990 to 2022.
The BTS Freight Mobility Initiative provides a different lens: a telematics sample of truck movements. It logged approximately 350,000 unique truck tractors since October 1, 2018, but over-represents long-distance fleet trucks and under-represents short-distance drayage trucks.
| BTS FMI measure | Result | Period and coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Unique truck tractors | Approximately 350,000 | Since October 1, 2018; subset of North America |
| Unique county pairs | 2.08 million | 2018, North American coverage area |
| Unique county pairs | 4.43 million | 2020, North American coverage area |
| Unique county pairs | 3.81 million | 2022, North American coverage area |
| Unique county pairs | 3.58 million | 2024, North American coverage area |
BTS FMI contained 2.08 million unique county pairs in 2018, 4.43 million in 2020, 3.81 million in 2022 and 3.58 million in 2024. The experimental county-pair product excludes pairs with fewer than 100 truck instances, so the series describes observed telematics coverage rather than every truck route.
Transportation Sector Emissions and Trucking movements: BTS Freight Mobility Initiative.