Heavy Equipment Transport in Texas
Excavators, dozers, loaders and tractors moved across Texas on the trailer each machine needs, with the state's oversize permits arranged before pickup.
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- PICKUP LOCATION
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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 Texas at a glance
The facts that decide how a load moves here. Regulatory figures link to the official page they come from.
- I-10
- I-20
- I-30
- I-35
- I-37
- I-40
- I-45
- I-27
- I-2
- I-69
- I-410
- I-610
- I-635
- I-820
- Port of Houston
- Port of Corpus Christi
- Port of Beaumont
- Port of Port Arthur
- Port of Galveston
- Port Freeport
- Port of Brownsville
- Laredo
- Pharr
- El Paso
- Brownsville
- Eagle Pass
- Del Rio
- Progreso
- Roma
- Rio Grande City
How freight moves in Texas
Freight in Texas runs on I-10, I-20, I-30, I-35, I-37 and I-40. Ocean and river cargo moves through Port of Houston, Port of Corpus Christi, Port of Beaumont and Port of Port Arthur. Its crossings at Laredo, Pharr, El Paso and Brownsville connect it to Mexico. The state's economy leans on oil, natural gas and refining, petrochemicals and chemicals along the Gulf Coast, cross-border trade and manufacturing with Mexico and agriculture, including cattle, cotton, grain and produce, and that is most of what moves on its roads.
Rules of the road
What shapes a move in Texas
- When oversize loads can travel
Texas generally allows permitted oversize loads to move only during the daytime, with night moves for overweight-only loads and for loads up to 10 ft wide and 100 ft long on interstates, and loads over 14 ft wide, 16 ft high or 110 ft long may not move on listed holidays. Source ↗
- Escort vehicles
Texas requires one front escort on two-lane highways or one rear escort on multi-lane highways for loads wider than 14 ft and up to 16 ft, front and rear escorts above 16 ft, and a front escort with a height pole above 17 ft in height. Source ↗
- Seasonal conditions
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and the Texas Gulf Coast from Brownsville to Beaumont can face storm surge, flooding and port and highway disruptions.
Summer heat above 100 degrees Fahrenheit is common in inland and South Texas from June through September.
Winter storms can bring ice and temporary closures to the Panhandle and North Texas on I-27, I-35 and I-40.
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 Texas
Every state a load crosses issues its own oversize permit. These are the offices next door, closest first, with their legal limits.
New Mexico
NMDOT · New Mexico Department of Transportation
Legal height: 14 ft (4.27 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Louisiana
DOTD · Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, Truck Permit Office
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (14 ft on Interstate highways)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Oklahoma
ODOT · Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Size and Weight Permits
Legal height: 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Arkansas
ARDOT · Arkansas Department of Transportation
Legal height: 14 ft (4.27 m)
Legal width: 8 ft 6 in (2.59 m)
Cities
Heavy Equipment Transport by city in Texas
These are the busiest pickup points. Any address in Texas works, including the towns between them.
AustinTravis County
Austin is the Central Texas stop on I-35, with the TX-130 bypass for through trucks, and its growing technology and manufacturing base drives freight demand.
- I-35
- TX-130
- US-183
- US-290
DallasDallas County
Dallas anchors the inland freight network of the Dallas-Fort Worth region, where I-35E, I-30, I-20 and I-45 connect with intermodal rail terminals and large distribution centers.
- I-35E
- I-30
- I-20
- I-45
El PasoEl Paso County
El Paso sits on I-10 across the Rio Grande from Ciudad Juárez, and its Ysleta and other international bridges handle some of the heaviest truck traffic on the border.
- I-10
- I-110
- US-54
- Loop 375
Fort WorthTarrant County
Fort Worth is a major rail and trucking hub, where I-35W, I-30, I-20 and I-820 serve large distribution and intermodal facilities, especially on the north side of the city.
- I-35W
- I-30
- I-20
- I-820
HoustonHarris County
Houston is home to the Port of Houston and the Houston Ship Channel, one of the busiest ports in the United States by tonnage, and it is a major rail and highway hub.
- I-10
- I-45
- I-69
- I-610
San AntonioBexar County
San Antonio is where I-10, I-35 and I-37 meet, a key stop on the freight corridor between Laredo, the Mexican border and the rest of Texas.
- I-10
- I-35
- I-37
- I-410
BeaumontJefferson County
Beaumont, on I-10 near the Louisiana line, is home to the Port of Beaumont and sits in the Golden Triangle refining and petrochemical region.
- I-10
- US-69
- US-96
- US-287
BrownsvilleCameron County
Brownsville has a deepwater port, the Port of Brownsville, and truck bridges to Matamoros, and it is the southern end of I-69E.
- I-69E
- US-77
- US-83
- TX-48
Corpus ChristiNueces County
Corpus Christi is home to the Port of Corpus Christi, a major gateway for crude oil, natural gas, grain and wind-energy components, at the end of I-37 on the Texas coast.
- I-37
- US-77
- US-181
- TX-358
EdinburgHidalgo County
Edinburg is the Hidalgo County seat, on I-69C north of McAllen, and a convenient staging point for freight bound for the Pharr bridge and the northern Rio Grande Valley.
- I-69C
- US-281
- TX-107
LaredoWebb County
Laredo is the busiest truck crossing on the border with Mexico, with I-35 running north to San Antonio and Dallas and the World Trade Bridge as its main commercial crossing.
- I-35
- I-69W
- US-83
- Loop 20
LubbockLubbock County
Lubbock sits on I-27 and is the main freight center of the South Plains, handling cotton, grain and equipment for the surrounding farm region.
- I-27
- US-62
- US-82
- US-84
McAllenHidalgo County
McAllen is the main commercial center of the Rio Grande Valley, on I-2 and close to the Pharr-Reynosa bridge that handles most cross-border trucks in the area.
- I-2
- I-69C
- US-83
- US-281
MidlandMidland County
Midland sits on I-20 at the center of the Permian Basin, where oilfield equipment, trucks and heavy machinery move in and out throughout the year.
- I-20
- TX-349
- TX-158
MissionHidalgo County
Mission lies on I-2 and US-83 west of McAllen and is known for citrus and agriculture, with produce and farm equipment moving through the western Rio Grande Valley.
- I-2
- US-83
PharrHidalgo County
Pharr is home to the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge, the main commercial truck crossing in the Rio Grande Valley, with cold storage at the port of entry for produce from Mexico.
- I-2
- I-69C
- US-281
- US-83
Rio Grande CityStarr County
Rio Grande City is the Starr County seat on US-83 and has its own international bridge to Camargo, with truck crossings that serve the upper Rio Grande Valley.
- US-83
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 Texas
Who issues oversize permits in Texas?
The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, Motor Carrier Division (TxDMV). A load over the legal limits (14 ft (4.27 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 Texas?
Texas generally allows permitted oversize loads to move only during the daytime, with night moves for overweight-only loads and for loads up to 10 ft wide and 100 ft long on interstates, and loads over 14 ft wide, 16 ft high or 110 ft long may not move on listed holidays.
When does Texas require escort vehicles?
Texas requires one front escort on two-lane highways or one rear escort on multi-lane highways for loads wider than 14 ft and up to 16 ft, front and rear escorts above 16 ft, and a front escort with a height pole above 17 ft in height.
Are there seasonal restrictions in Texas?
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, and the Texas Gulf Coast from Brownsville to Beaumont can face storm surge, flooding and port and highway disruptions. Summer heat above 100 degrees Fahrenheit is common in inland and South Texas from June through September. Winter storms can bring ice and temporary closures to the Panhandle and North Texas on I-27, I-35 and I-40.
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