Local freight trucking

Updated 2026-10-05 · By SBA Loan editorial

Illustrative case · Two used 33,000-lb GVWR 26-foot liftgate dry boxes; employed driver and paid owner-driver; commercial general freight · United States; Texas intrastate case; city and yard unselected

Explore this business · Overview

This Texas carrier earns from completed commercial freight routes using two liftgate trucks and paid drivers. Opening funding is $180,250, including $45,000 cash. Base Year 1 EBITDA is $55,765 after owner pay, but cash increases only $2,087. Check empty mileage, dock time and collections before committing to the fleet.

Illustration of the operating format. The financial case below is illustrative.

$180,250Illustrative startup funding

$45,000Opening cash reserve

$55,765Base Year 1 EBITDA after owner salary

$7,809Base minimum cash

Observed SBA industry evidence

Lending activity in the broader category

2,429FY2023–FY2025 disbursed-status records

645FY2025 records

2,355 / 747(a) / 504 records in the three-year pool

NAICS 484110 covers local general freight across fleet sizes, equipment and markets. It does not identify this two-truck Texas format, customer demand, underwriting probability or unique borrowers.

These are positive-amount loan records selected by approval fiscal year and PIF, CHGOFF or EXEMPT status at the stated snapshot. They are not unique firms, search volumes, approval probabilities or loans disbursed during that year.

Read this industry’s amounts, terms, lenders and outcomes.

Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA files, snapshot 30 June 2026. Recomputed from original records on 1 October 2026. FY2025 is the most recent complete fiscal year in these files. Definitions and exclusions.

Who this format serves and what the case excludes

The customer hypothesis is repeat commercial freight for wholesalers, manufacturers and distributors whose deliveries fit a same-day local circuit. Three deliveries per paid vehicle day are a planning mix, not a list of signed accounts. The first delivery is included in the day charge; two further deliveries and approved waiting are separate revenue components. Freight must fit axle, payload, doorway and liftgate limits after weighing the actual truck.

This is a carrier operating its own two vehicles under its own relevant authority. It is not a broker, a leased-on owner-operator comparison, a refrigerated fleet, parcel subcontracting, household-goods mover or tractor-trailer operation. Changing that scope changes equipment, insurance, driver qualifications and the revenue driver. The general-freight classification is broad; the Census category does not prove that this exact customer mix exists.

Set the equipment and authority before accepting loads

The selected procurement specification is two 33,000-lb GVWR, 26-foot diesel boxes with liftgates. That specification means two appropriately qualified CDL drivers, including the owner. Texas registration for this weight category needs a USDOT identifier and insurer filing before the carrier is active. Verify commerce classification from the freight movement as a whole: a short Texas leg can still be part of interstate commerce. Texas CDL classes; TxDMV registration; FMCSA commerce definition.

Use an eight-hour paid shift as this operating budget, not as a statement of the legal maximum. Allow for inspection, load securement, dock queues, meal/rest obligations and paperwork. Obtain a jurisdiction-specific safety review before assigning schedules. Both the owner and employee need the applicable testing, medical, qualification and recordkeeping arrangements; owner driving is not unpaid or exempt merely because the driver owns the company. FMCSA testing guidance.

Read the cash trough before signing for both trucks

The base model reaches its lowest cash balance of $7,809 in Month 5. That leaves limited room for an unpriced repair or a slow-paying account. The lower scenario has a $268,164 deficit by Month 60 and does not recover equity. A larger reserve postpones a financing problem without repairing weak route economics.

Before committing, obtain recurring route trial results, customer credit terms, truck inspections and a matching insurance proposal. If only one driver is available, two vehicles do not create two working shifts. Follow the startup guide to price the procurement, the unit guide to test route capacity and the profitability guide to inspect salary-inclusive cash generation.

Use SBA records as broad historical context

NAICS 484110 has 957, 827 and 645 disbursed-status records in approval FY2023, FY2024 and FY2025, totaling 2,429 at the 30 June 2026 snapshot. Those are approval-year loan records across local general freight. They are not exact-format borrowers, current demand or approval odds. Official SBA dataset and verified aggregate scope.

Read the dedicated SBA industry profile for the broader category’s defined samples and downloadable aggregates. The existing SBA lending explorer provides the industry-wide methods. This edition contains five guides; a full owner-generated business-plan example is still pending.

Explore this business

This edition contains five planning guides. A full business-plan example for this format is not yet published.

Sources and scope

Illustrative planning-case methodology · Checked 2026-10-05 · Prices, booked route-days, yard, insurance, maintenance, wages and financing remain explicit case hypotheses, not customer quotes.
Penske used unit 362085 specifications · Checked 2026-10-05 · Sold 2020 International MV607, Burlington NJ; 33,000-lb GVW, 26-foot Morgan body, 3,000-lb liftgate, diesel. Specification comparison only; no currently available price.
Penske used unit 92601803 listing · Checked 2026-10-05 · 2021 MV607, Fort Worth TX; listed 44,750 USD, 203,425 miles on detail page; 25,999-lb GVW and no liftgate. Inventory view differs by one mile. Excludes taxes/fees. A deliberately nonmatching comparison, not the selected fleet quote.
Penske full-service leasing scope · Checked 2026-10-05 · Provider describes maintenance, roadside support and rental access. Contract-specific price, mileage charges, replacements, exclusions, tax and credit terms unknown.
EIA on-highway diesel price update · Checked 2026-10-05 · Observed Gulf Coast PADD3 5.955 USD/gallon for 28 September 2026; release 29 September. Includes taxes; regional weekly average, not the operator fuel-card contract.
Texas motor vehicle sales tax FAQ · Checked 2026-10-05 · Standard motor-vehicle rate 6.25%; private-party presumptive-value rules can change taxable base. Model assumes dealer purchase, no trade-in.
Texas TERP surcharge guide, March 2026 · Checked 2026-10-05 · Diesel on-highway vehicles with registered weight above 14,000 lb; model years 1997+ rate 1%. Separate registration surcharge exists; included in unquoted compliance budget.
TxDMV intrastate motor-carrier registration · Checked 2026-10-05 · Nonhazardous non-household commercial trucks exceeding 26,000 lb trigger this registration category; USDOT identifier and insurer filings precede active authority.
Texas DPS commercial driver license classes · Checked 2026-10-05 · Class B covers single vehicles GVWR 26,001+; case assumes two qualified CDL drivers, appropriate air-brake qualifications and medical/driver files. Verify each selected VIN.
FMCSA USDOT and interstate-commerce definition · Checked 2026-10-05 · A movement entirely inside one state can form part of interstate trade. Case excludes such loads unless authority/safety scope is revised.
FMCSA property-carrier operating authority · Checked 2026-10-05 · Interstate for-hire property except household goods is a distinct authority. Federal public-liability filing is distinct from cargo insurance and customer contractual limits.
FMCSA owner-operator drug/alcohol program · Checked 2026-10-05 · Owner work does not remove applicable CDL testing obligations. Small-company program and Clearinghouse implementation need review before launch.
Progressive motor truck cargo coverage scope · Checked 2026-10-05 · Cargo cover is separate from auto liability; insurer limits, deductibles, excluded commodities and operations require a quote. No quoted premium in this case.
Progressive commercial trucking coverage types · Checked 2026-10-05 · Distinct liability/cargo/general liability/downtime products; not a complete two-truck premium quotation.
BLS heavy truck driver occupation · Checked 2026-10-05 · May 2025 national median 58,640 USD/year and 28.19 USD/hour; broader occupational mix, not a Texas straight-truck hiring offer. Model wage 28 and owner salary 6000/month are assumptions.
IRS Publication 15, 2026 · Checked 2026-10-05 · Employment taxes are part of employer cost. Case burden 16% also budgets unemployment, coverage and benefits; it is not an IRS rate or a quoted complete benefit plan.
SBA 7(a) loan uses and application · Checked 2026-10-05 · Equipment and working capital can be eligible uses; lender determines actual eligibility, documents, term, fees and repayment assessment. Case rate is not a lender offer.
SBA 504 asset scope · Checked 2026-10-05 · 504 excludes working capital/inventory; equipment remaining useful life at least 10 years. This used-truck case is not assumed eligible.
Census NAICS 484110 profile · Checked 2026-10-05 · Local general freight includes same-day return trips and multiple truck types; broader than this two-truck commercial-pallet route.
SBA FOIA 7(a)/504 official dataset · Checked 2026-10-05 · Aggregate-only snapshot 30 June 2026, approval FY2023–2025 and disbursed statuses PIF/CHGOFF/EXEMPT, positive approved amounts. Counts are records, not unique firms or exact-format loans.