Flatbed Trucking Services
Open-deck trucking for freight loaded from the top or sides, quoted online
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Flatbed Transportation Services
Open deck trailers ideal for oversized, heavy, or irregularly shaped cargo. Carriers in our network secure every load, tarp it when needed, and haul construction materials, machinery, and other industrial goods.
Key Benefits
- Easy loading from all sides and top
- Suitable for oversized cargo
- Flexible securing options
- Chains, straps and edge protection, applied by the carrier's driver
- Various trailer sizes available
Will your load clear on a flatbed?
Set your freight's height and width and pick a state. The check runs against that state's legal height, the same check our team uses. Over about 8'6" in most states, a step deck buys the height back. Comparing trailers? The trailer guide checks all four open decks.
Legal height and width in most states on a flatbed
13'0" overall, under 13'6". Tallest freight this carries legally there: 8'6".
Height and width only. Weight, axle limits, length and route rules aren't checked here.
Check every state on the route.
Legal limits only. A load over any of them needs permits from every state on the route where it is over.
When flatbed is the right choice
Flatbed is built for cargo that won't fit (or load) inside an enclosed trailer — open-deck access, oversize dimensions, and crane or side-loading. Here's when it's the right call.
- •Cargo is oversized, irregular, or won't fit in a 53' enclosed trailer
- •Loading is done from the top, side, or with a crane / forklift
- •Steel, lumber, machinery, construction materials, or prefab structures
- •Weather-tolerant, or fine under a lumber, blue or steel tarp
- →Freight needs weather protection or theft security — dry van
- →Refrigeration required — refrigerated (reefer)
- →Over 8'6" tall but under about 10' — step deck (flatbed vs. step deck)
- →Severely over-dimensional, heavy haul, or low-clearance — specialized (step-deck, RGN, double-drop)
- →Less than truckload quantity — LTL or partial truckload
Flatbed Specifications
Technical details and capabilities to help you plan your shipment
- Chains and binders
- Straps and winches
- Corner protectors
- Tarps for weather protection
- Edge protectors
Common Freight Types
Ideal cargo types for Flatbed transportation
Industries We Serve
Specialized Flatbed solutions for diverse industry needs
- Building materials suppliers
- Steel fabricators
- Lumber yards
- Contractors
- Farm equipment dealers
- Agricultural suppliers
- Irrigation systems
- Livestock equipment
- Industrial equipment
- Metal fabrication
- Machinery producers
- Raw materials
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Flatbed shipping
Find Flatbed Trucking in Your State
Explore state-specific flatbed trucking services, commodities, and information.
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Quote it online in minutes, or call and Allison, our AI freight agent, prices it at any hour.