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Texas Truckload Carrier

FREIGHT · SUPPLY CHAIN · LONE STAR LOGISTICS

HOWDY, AND WELCOME

Freight & Supply Chain,
Texas-Style.

Texas moves more freight by truck than any state in the country. From the Port of Houston to the Laredo border crossing, from DFW intermodal yards to Permian Basin lease roads — this site is a plain-spoken guide for shippers, drivers, dispatchers, and anyone trying to make sense of how goods actually move across the Lone Star State.

READ THE GUIDESEE THE LANES

THE TEXAS TRADE FACT SHEET

  • 1,254 mi
    Texas–Mexico border, the longest of any U.S. state — the reason cross-border trucking is a Texas story first.
  • 313,000+ mi
    Public road miles in Texas — the largest state highway system in the country, per TxDOT.
  • 11
    Deep-water ports along the Texas Gulf Coast, from Sabine to Brownsville.

Sources: TxDOT, U.S. Census of Ports

SECTION 01

The Lanes That Matter

A few corridors carry an outsized share of Texas freight. If you're new to the state, start here.

Dallas–Fort Worth → Houston
~240 mi

The I-45 spine. Heavy reefer and dry van traffic both directions, with intermodal feeders running parallel via BNSF and UP.

Laredo → San Antonio
~155 mi

I-35 out of the World Trade Bridge. Cross-border manufactured goods, auto parts, and produce headed north into the U.S. interior.

El Paso → Dallas–Fort Worth
~635 mi

I-20 long-haul. Maquiladora outputs and consumer goods feeding the DFW distribution belt.

Houston Ship Channel → Midland–Odessa
~530 mi

Energy corridor — pipe, valves, sand, and chemicals supporting the Permian Basin.

SECTION 02

Hubs, Ports & Gateways

★

Port Houston

Largest U.S. Gulf container port. Major gateway for plastics resin exports and breakbulk project cargo.

★

Laredo Port of Entry

The busiest inland port in the U.S. by trade value — primary land gateway for U.S.–Mexico truck freight.

★

DFW Inland Port (AllianceTexas)

Multimodal industrial hub with BNSF intermodal, Fort Worth Alliance Airport, and millions of square feet of distribution space.

★

Port of Corpus Christi

Leading U.S. crude oil export port, with growing LNG and wind-energy component traffic.

SECTION 03

The Knowledge Desk

Cross-Border 101

How a Truck Actually Crosses at Laredo

Most loads moving north out of Nuevo Laredo use a three-carrier model: a Mexican long-haul carrier, a transfer (drayage) carrier that shuttles the trailer across the World Trade Bridge, and a U.S. carrier that picks it up on the north side. Customs brokers file the entry paperwork in advance through ACE; CBP officers inspect a percentage based on risk targeting. A clean crossing takes hours. A flagged one takes days.

Lanes

Why I-35 Is the Most Important Road in North American Trade

I-35 runs from Laredo through San Antonio, Austin, Waco, and the DFW Metroplex before continuing north. It is the primary surface corridor for goods entering the U.S. from Mexico and is consistently among the most truck-congested highways in the country. Anyone planning Texas freight without a view on I-35 conditions is planning blind.

Modes

Intermodal in Texas: BNSF and Union Pacific

BNSF operates the Alliance intermodal facility north of Fort Worth and the South Dallas Intermodal Facility. Union Pacific operates Dallas Intermodal Terminal and the Mesquite ramp. Most international containers landing in Los Angeles or Long Beach reach Texas by rail, then dray the final miles by truck. Knowing which ramp serves your destination ZIP can change cost more than rate negotiations.

Energy

Permian Basin Freight Is Its Own World

Oilfield freight in West Texas runs on its own clock. Frac sand, pipe, drilling mud, and produced-water trucks move on lease roads that don't appear on standard navigation. Rates swing hard with rig count. Carriers who don't already work the basin should expect a learning curve measured in months, not weeks.

SECTION 04

Where We Point You

We don't make stuff up. When you need authoritative information on Texas freight, these are the organizations that actually publish it.

ABOUT

A Note From The Desk

This site exists to share what people who actually move freight in Texas already know — and to point newcomers at the real sources. It is an independent knowledge site. We do not list a phone number, an address, or a contact form here because we are not a carrier, broker, or agency. If you need operating carriers, brokers, or agencies, the sources above will get you there honestly.

Built with respect for the drivers, dispatchers, and dock workers who keep Texas moving.