Heavy Equipment Transport in Tennessee
Excavators, dozers, loaders and tractors moved across Tennessee on the trailer each machine needs, with the state's oversize permits arranged before pickup.
Tell us about your shipment in 60 seconds
Your request is in the queue. Our team will text you in under 10 minutes during business hours with your custom quote.
Here is what we received. Our team reviews it and replies in under 10 minutes during business hours with your quote.
- PICKUP LOCATION
- DELIVERY LOCATION
- EQUIPMENT TYPE
- MAKE & MODEL
- WEIGHT (LBS)
- DIMENSIONS
- FULL NAME
- PHONE NUMBER
We'll text you at in under 10 minutes during business hours.
Save our number: +1 (888) 354-7402
Every carrier is vetted for operating authority and insurance, and we check the certificate before every dispatch, not once a year. USDOT 3411782 · MC 1100274
At a glance
Shipping in Tennessee at a glance
The facts that decide how a load moves here. Regulatory figures link to the official page they come from.
- I-40
- I-24
- I-65
- I-75
- I-81
- I-26
- I-55
- I-840
- Port of Memphis
How freight moves in Tennessee
Freight in Tennessee runs on I-40, I-24, I-65, I-75, I-81 and I-26. Ocean and river cargo moves through Port of Memphis. The state's economy leans on automotive manufacturing and suppliers, logistics, distribution and cargo aviation in Memphis, health care and music in Nashville and chemicals and advanced manufacturing in East Tennessee, and that is most of what moves on its roads.
Rules of the road
What shapes a move in Tennessee
- When oversize loads can travel
Tennessee allows continuous travel for permitted loads that need no escort, while escorted loads must observe weekday rush-hour curfews, 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., in the Davidson, Rutherford, Knox, Shelby and Hamilton county areas. Source ↗
- Escort vehicles
Tennessee requires a front escort for loads wider than 10 ft on two-lane roads with under 24 ft of pavement, adds a rear escort on interstates and four-lane roads above 12 ft 6 in, and requires front and rear escorts from 13 ft 7 in wide. Source ↗
- Seasonal conditions
Severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flash flooding are most common in spring and early summer and can delay deliveries across the state.
Winter ice and snow, and fog in the mountains, can slow I-40, I-75 and I-81 in East Tennessee.
Rules change. The specialist on your move checks the current ones for your exact route before anything is booked.
Permits by state
If the route leaves Tennessee
Every state a load crosses issues its own oversize permit. These are the offices next door, closest first, with their legal limits.
Arkansas
ARDOT · Arkansas Department of Transportation
Legal height: 14 ft (4.27 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Mississippi
MDOT · Mississippi Department of Transportation, Permit & Motor Carrier Division
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Georgia
Georgia DPS · Georgia Department of Public Safety, Oversize Permit Unit
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
North Carolina
NCDOT · North Carolina Department of Transportation, Oversize/Overweight Permit Unit
Legal height: 14 ft (4.27 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Kentucky
KYTC · Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Division of Motor Carriers
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (14 ft for car haulers)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in on Interstates, parkways and designated highways (8 ft on other roads)
Alabama
ALDOT · Alabama Department of Transportation
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Cities
Heavy Equipment Transport by city in Tennessee
These are the busiest pickup points. Any address in Tennessee works, including the towns between them.
ChattanoogaHamilton County
Chattanooga sits on the Georgia line where I-24 and I-75 meet, a staging point for freight and vehicle moves between the Southeast and the Midwest.
- I-24
- I-75
- I-59
- I-124
KnoxvilleKnox County
Knoxville sits where I-40 and I-75 cross, with I-81 branching northeast from I-40 east of the city, which makes it the main freight gateway for East Tennessee.
- I-40
- I-75
- I-81
- I-640
MemphisShelby County
Memphis is a leading U.S. distribution hub, where I-40 and I-55 meet a Mississippi River port, several Class I railroads and one of the busiest cargo airports in the world.
- I-40
- I-55
- I-240
- I-269
NashvilleDavidson County
Nashville is where I-24, I-40 and I-65 meet, putting it on major north-south and east-west truck corridors across the Southeast and the Midwest.
- I-40
- I-24
- I-65
- I-440
ClarksvilleMontgomery County
Clarksville is on I-24 near the Kentucky line and serves the Cumberland River corridor and the Fort Campbell area northwest of Nashville.
- I-24
- US-41A
- US-79
JacksonMadison County
Jackson sits on I-40 between Memphis and Nashville and is the main freight stop for West Tennessee.
- I-40
- US-45
- US-70
Johnson CityWashington County
Johnson City anchors the Tri-Cities of Northeast Tennessee on I-26, which runs to I-81 near Kingsport and toward North Carolina.
- I-26
- I-81
- US-11E
- US-19W
MurfreesboroRutherford County
Murfreesboro is a fast-growing logistics and manufacturing center on I-24 southeast of Nashville, close to the I-840 bypass.
- I-24
- I-840
- US-231
- US-41
Heavy Equipment Transport
Trailers and machines
RGN (removable gooseneck)
The neck detaches so tracked and wheeled machines drive on at deck level.
Lowboy
A deck close to the ground for tall machines that would break the legal height on a flatbed.
Step deck
For loaders, tractors and skid steers that clear the height limit on its lower deck.
Flatbed
For attachments, smaller machines and anything loaded by forklift or crane.
Questions about shipping in Tennessee
Who issues oversize permits in Tennessee?
The Tennessee Department of Transportation, Oversize and Overweight Permit Office (TDOT). A load over the legal limits (13 ft 6 in (4.11 m) tall, 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m) wide) needs its permit for the exact route, and it is arranged before pickup so the machine does not wait at the yard.
When can an oversize load travel in Tennessee?
Tennessee allows continuous travel for permitted loads that need no escort, while escorted loads must observe weekday rush-hour curfews, 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m., in the Davidson, Rutherford, Knox, Shelby and Hamilton county areas.
When does Tennessee require escort vehicles?
Tennessee requires a front escort for loads wider than 10 ft on two-lane roads with under 24 ft of pavement, adds a rear escort on interstates and four-lane roads above 12 ft 6 in, and requires front and rear escorts from 13 ft 7 in wide.
Are there seasonal restrictions in Tennessee?
Severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flash flooding are most common in spring and early summer and can delay deliveries across the state. Winter ice and snow, and fog in the mountains, can slow I-40, I-75 and I-81 in East Tennessee.
Which trailer does my machine need?
The machine decides: its weight, height, width and whether it drives on. Tracked machines usually ride an RGN or a lowboy, loaders and tractors a step deck, attachments a flatbed. With the make, model and dimensions we tell you which before we quote.
How fast do you reply to a quote request?
In under 10 minutes during business hours, by text or phone for a move inside the U.S., and on WhatsApp for one going to Mexico.
Get a Free, No-Obligation Quote Today
Our logistics specialists are standing by. We reply in under 10 minutes.
Every carrier is vetted for operating authority and insurance, and we check the certificate before every dispatch, not once a year. USDOT 3411782 · MC 1100274