Trucking Costs Rise While Profit Margins Shrink, According to ATRI’s 2025 Operational Report
The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) has released its 2025 edition of An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking, revealing that while fuel prices dipped in 2024, underlying operational costs reached record highs — and trucking profitability suffered as a result.
The average cost to operate a truck in 2024 was $2.260 per mile, just a slight 0.4% decrease from 2023. However, excluding fuel costs reveals a more troubling picture: non-fuel operational costs rose by 3.6% to $1.779 per mile — the highest ever recorded by ATRI.
Among the major cost components, driver wages, which surged post-COVID, increased modestly by 2.4%, actually falling short of the 2024 inflation rate. However, other key expenses surged more sharply. Truck and trailer payments jumped 8.3%, reaching a record 39 cents per mile, while driver benefits rose 4.8% to 19.7 cents per mile. Despite these rising costs, fuel and maintenance expenses declined year-over-year, offering some relief.
Yet even with some stabilized costs, carrier profitability eroded across nearly every sector. Less-than-truckload (LTL) operations were the only segment with an average operating margin above 2%. Most notably, the truckload sector posted an average margin of -2.3%, illustrating the crushing effects of today’s freight recession.
To cope with the economic pressure, carriers implemented several cost-saving strategies. Truck capacity fell 2.2% as companies sold off equipment. Empty miles rose to 16.7%, and the number of drivers per truck decreased to 0.93 — signs of a scaling back of operations. Many fleets also cut non-driver staff by nearly 7%.
Still, fleets made gains in efficiency and equipment utilization. Average truck age, dwell time per stop, and mileage between breakdowns all improved, highlighting operational resilience despite widespread financial strain.
“The trucking industry is facing the most challenging freight market in years, with loads down and costs increasing,” said Greg Hodgen, President and CEO of Groendyke Transport, Inc. “ATRI’s Operational Costs data and the benchmarking tools are more critical than ever as we navigate shrinking margins.”
The report provides carriers with an opportunity to benchmark their performance against similar-sized fleets and operational segments. This information is especially valuable as companies reassess strategies for cost control and long-term sustainability in today’s volatile market.
The full report is available on ATRI’s website and is considered a key resource for navigating ongoing challenges in the freight industry. ATRI continues to lead critical research for safe, efficient, and data-driven freight transportation operations.
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