After contracting for three consecutive quarters, the U.S. commercial trucking industry added nearly 10,000 prospective fleets and more than 229,000 pieces of verified equipment in the third quarter, data from RigDig (owned by Fusable, parent company of TPS) shows in our newest Mapping the Market quarterly report.
New vehicles represented the largest growth segment for the U.S. trucking population in the quarter ended last month. Other than New Mexico, which saw its number of verified vehicles slip by 47 power units, every other state in the country added vehicles last quarter. Overall, the U.S. trucking fleet added more than 147,000 verified vehicles.
Alaska was the biggest winner on a percentage basis. Its verified vehicle count was up 17.3% against Q2. Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana and Oklahoma also saw double-digit percentage increases. Texas’ addition of 14,326 vehicles was the most on a pure unit basis.
Overall, the third quarter represents the strongest three-month stretch since the creation of our quarterly report. Only five states saw a reduction in prospects and only three a reduction in trailers.
Truck freight has unquestionably improved in 2026 against the recessionary environment of the three prior years, and the steady increase of verified equipment in operations signifies fleets are aggressively attempting to capture available business.
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Since introducing our report, the U.S. verified vehicle population is up 6.7%. The verified trailer population is up 3.1%. Last quarter marks the first time in our reporting both segments rose quarter over quarter — vehicles up 5.7%, trailers up 5.4%.
Louisiana trucking market on a heater
Just nine months ago we wrote about the contracting fleet population in Louisiana. The state experienced some of the largest losses of verified vehicles and trailers in the final months of 2025. The first quarter reversed the trend, offering slight upticks in both segments and, since Q2, the Louisiana trucking industry is booming.
From March 31 to Sept. 30, Louisiana’s verified vehicle total is up 24.9%. Its verified trailers are up 24.4%, solely buoyed by a 25.3% quarterly gain in Q3. Louisiana’s overall verified vehicle population is now up 16.7% across the history of our report, the best expansion rate in the nation.
Its trailer population is up 13.7%, second only to Arkansas, another state that saw its equipment population contract in 2025 only to rebound dramatically in recent months. Arkansas’ verified trailer rate rose by an astonishing 26.2% in Q3.
Ohio pulls off the trifecta
With a 1.68% increase in prospects in Q3, Ohio now stands as the only state in the nation to have experienced an increase in prospects and verified equipment since we began tracking RigDig population data in June 2025. The Buckeye state has added 107 prospects during that time, the only state to experience prospect growth over the five-quarter period.
Pennsylvania, Idaho and Arizona are the next strongest states in prospect retention. Each has lost fewer than 1% of prospects since the end of Q2 2025.
In the equipment segments, Ohio’s 9.4% increase in verified vehicles across our report history ranks 13th in the country, its 4.4% increase in verified trailers is 12th.
The top five states in verified vehicle growth to date are the aforementioned Louisiana, then Idaho, Illinois, Florida and Vermont. In the trailer space, leaders are Arkansas, Louisiana, Illinois, Massachusetts and Florida.
New Mexico’s unusual contraction
Not only was New Mexico the only state to reduce its verified vehicle population in Q3, it also now stands as the state with the largest reduction in vehicles in our report history. Over the last five quarters the Land of Enchantment has lost 10.4% of its verified vehicles. Wyoming, South Dakota and Nebraska are the only other states to see their verified vehicle totals fall during that period, and all three are down by 3.5% or less.
The state also has witnessed its prospect list fall by 4.6%, the tenth highest contraction rate nationwide. Only in the trailer space is New Mexico in the black. The state increased its verified trailer population by 1.8% in Q3 after being flat for the prior 12 months.
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The weakest trailer state across our research is Hawaii. The state’s verified trailer population is down 9.1% over the last five quarters. Hawaii also has experienced the largest prospect contraction, down 8.0% since June 30, 2025. Oddly, Louisiana is second on that list, with its prospect total down 7.8% in the same period.
Mapping the Market will return in January with a summary of fourth quarter changes in the carrier and equipment populations. For more advanced prospect and equipment data, including customer information, equipment brand demographics, market segmentation and more, go to RigDig.com.
