US trucker numbers shrink alongside margins, and big players eye takeovers

Thinning margins are taking their toll on the US trucking industry. Some operators are struggling to survive, while their larger competitors are using profits from the past two years to take over smaller players.

This week began with news that Werner Enterprises, the sixth-largest US truckload operator, in terms of 2021 revenue, was taking over Indiana-based Baylor Trucking, which runs 200 trucks and 980 trailers and tabled $81.5m in revenue for its year ending 31 August.

Werner chairman, president and CEO Derek Leathers said the acquisition would position his company for further growth, adding: “We expect this acquisition to be accretive in year one and anticipate buying power synergies through integrated management of our combined fleets.”

The deal was the latest in a string of takeovers on the US trucking scene; arguably the most prolific hunter this year has been RoadOne, which acquired drayage firm Wilmac Enterprises, which operates in Texas, Tennessee and New Jersey, in late August.

And that was a week after it bought Oakland-based R&A Trucking, as well as the earlier acquisition of EHS Trucking. Through more than a dozen companies RoadOne now runs over 2,000 trucks and 71 facilities across the US.