The average cost of operating a commercial truck rose 3.4% in 2025 to a record $2.336 per mile, according to a benchmarking report released in July by the American Transportation Research Institute. Excluding fuel, per-mile costs climbed 4.2% to $1.854, outpacing the year's 2.7% consumer inflation rate by roughly one and a half percentage points.

Cost increases were spread across nearly every line item. The steepest percentage gains came in tolls, which rose 13.2%, followed by repair and maintenance at 8.6%, driver benefits at 6.6% and tires at 6.4%. Only fuel and driver pay rose at rates slower than inflation, with driver wage growth trailing inflation for a third consecutive year. Driver benefit costs have now outpaced driver wage growth for two years running.

Facing weak freight rates and rising expenses, motor carriers executed their largest capacity reduction since the current freight downturn began in 2022, cutting total truck counts by an average of 2.4% and leaving another 10% of trucks unseated. The average truck age rose to 3.6 years, the first increase since 2022, as fleets held onto older equipment amid high replacement costs and soft freight volumes.

Despite the cost discipline, profitability remained thin. Truckload and refrigerated carriers posted average operating margins below 1%, while flatbed carriers averaged an operating loss of 0.5%. Less-than-truckload fleets and carriers running more than 1,000 trucks held steadier, though flat, margins compared with the prior year.

Source: Commercial Carrier Journal - https://www.ccjdigital.com/economic-trends/article/15830120/trucking-operational-costs-hit-new-record-high