Gitnux/Report 2026

Transportation Industry Statistics

The U.S. Department of Transportation projects freight value to rise from $19.47 trillion in 2025 to $27.89 trillion by 2045, explore the figures behind growth, companies and trends.
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November 12, 2026Updated
Transportation Industry Statistics
Diana ReevesWritten by Diana Reeves·Edited by Marcus Engström·Fact-checked by Rajesh Patel
Published ·Updated
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

An editor sets the topic, the inclusion criteria, and the evaluation framework before research starts.

02Source Research

AI search agents locate sources and extract each figure together with the document it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 26 days

01 Industry overview

The transportation industry at a glance

U.S. transportation is a large, multimodal industry: freight moved domestically was valued at $19.5 trillion in 2025 and is projected to reach $27.9 trillion by 2045.

$19.5T[16]
U.S. freight value, 2025
13.7M[26]
Transportation occupations, 2025
1.10B[84]
U.S. airline passengers, 2025
72.2%[16]
Truck share of freight value, 2025
Market size
U.S. freight moved domestically was valued at $19.47 trillion in 2025. Separately, transportation services contributed $688.4 billion to nominal gross domestic product at an annual rate in the first quarter of 2025.[16][85]
Forecast & CAGR
The U.S. Department of Transportation projects freight value to increase from $19.47 trillion in 2025 to $27.89 trillion in 2045, equivalent to approximately 1.8% compound annual growth. Truck freight value is projected to rise 43.1% over the same period, while air freight value is projected to increase 71.6%.[16]
Market share & regions
Truck accounted for 72.2% of U.S. freight value in 2025, compared with 14.0% for multiple modes and mail, 6.1% for pipelines, 3.1% for air, 2.9% for rail, and 1.4% for water. In aviation, the 20 largest U.S. airports handled 57.2% of all domestic and international passengers in 2025.[16][77]
Segmentation
Transportation and warehousing employment totaled 6.61 million seasonally adjusted jobs in August 2026. Within the sector, June 2024 employment was distributed across warehousing and storage at 26.9% and truck transportation at 23.5%, with additional segments including air transportation, couriers and messengers, transit and ground passenger transportation, and support activities.[26]
Key players & concentration
U.S. airline competition is concentrated: the 20 largest carriers transported 87.4% of all passengers in 2025, while Southwest, American, Delta, and United accounted for 15.3%, 15.1%, 15.0%, and 13.2%, respectively. The Department of Justice has described the airline industry as an oligopoly shaped by prior consolidation.[77][86]
Pricing
The U.S. producer price index for transportation services reached 189.733 in September 2026, using June 2009 as the base year. The index was 166.266 in January 2025, indicating substantial movement in transportation-service producer prices during the period.[87]
Trends, drivers & challenges
Freight value is projected to grow 43.2% between 2025 and 2045, driven by population, economic output, industrial activity, consumption, infrastructure investment, and integrated North American supply chains. Decarbonization remains a major challenge: transportation emitted 1,828 million metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent in 2023, with light-duty trucks responsible for 37% of transportation emissions in 2022.[16][88]
Consumer behavior & competition
U.S. scheduled airlines carried 1.10 billion passengers in 2025, while the top 20 carriers captured 87.4% of passenger traffic. E-commerce sales reached $300 billion in 2024, up 8.5% year over year and representing 16.2% of total retail sales, supporting demand for courier, delivery, warehousing, and freight services.[84][77][26]
M&A
M&A activity remains subject to heightened antitrust scrutiny. In January 2025, the Justice Department sued to block Global Business Travel Group’s proposed $570 million acquisition of CWT, while Via Transportation reported completing its acquisition of Downtowner Transportation in December 2025.[86][75]
Regulation
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act provides approximately $350 billion for federal highway programs over fiscal years 2022–2026. In 2025, the Department of Transportation finalized a rule repealing requirements for states and metropolitan planning organizations to establish declining carbon-dioxide targets for a national highway performance measure.[89][16]
Latest news
The latest available BTS annual data show that U.S. airlines carried 1.10 billion passengers in 2025, while December 2025 systemwide scheduled passengers totaled 81.2 million, down 2.6% from December 2024. In transportation infrastructure, FHWA announced FY2026 grant awards and funding actions throughout 2026, including Safe Streets and Roads for All awards on October 30, 2026.[84][4][89]

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the Transportation Industry

The leading companies in the transportation industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 9, 2026 · Next review December 9, 2026

Verdict

Boeing stands out for commercial and defense aerospace delivery because it delivered 600 commercial airplanes in 2025, while BYD focuses on electric vehicles since it reported 4.6 million new-energy vehicle sales in 2025.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in commercial aircraft manufacturing

    Boeing

    US

    Ranked #1 · 9.1 · Commercial aircraft manufacturing

    Why we picked it: It spans commercial aircraft plus defense and aerospace, and reports revenue growth of 34.4% with R&D at 4% of revenue.

    See in ranking ↓Visit boeing.com ↗

  2. Leader in electric vehicle manufacturing

    BYD

    CN

    Ranked #2 · 9.0 · Electric vehicle manufacturing

    Why we picked it: It focuses on electric vehicles and commercial transport, reporting revenue growth of 3.5% and R&D at 7.89% of revenue.

    See in ranking ↓Visit bydglobal.com ↗

  3. Leader in container shipping and logistics

    CMA CGM

    FR

    Ranked #3 · 9.0 · Container shipping and logistics

    Why we picked it: It runs container shipping plus logistics and ports, operating at scale through a large vessel and line network.

    See in ranking ↓Visit cma-cgm.com ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. Picks 2 and 3 are the highest-ranked companies in the top 5 that add a new segment.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the transportation industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

Boeing

Commercial aircraft manufacturing · US

9.1
2

BYD

Electric vehicle manufacturing · CN

9.0
3

CMA CGM

Container shipping and logistics · FR

9.0
4

DHL Group

Express and freight logistics · DE

8.9
5

Toyota Motor

Automotive manufacturing and mobility · JP

8.8
6

United Airlines Holdings

Passenger and cargo air transport, global · US

8.6
7

Ryanair Holdings

Low-cost passenger air transport, Europe · IE

8.4
8

Volkswagen Group

Passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles and mobility, global · DE

8.3
9

FedEx

Express, freight and parcel transportation, global · US

8.3
10

Mercedes-Benz Group

Premium cars and vans, global · DE

8.2

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 9, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Diana Reeves. (2026, February 13). Top 10 companies in the transportation industry. In Transportation Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transportation-industry-statistics/#top-companies

report visual · Comparison

Revenue of the largest transportation companies

BYD leads with $112.6T in annual revenue (group level, converted to USD).

BYD$112.6T
Volkswagen Group$347.7B
Toyota Motor$321.8B
Mercedes-Benz Group$142.8B
Boeing$89.5B
DHL Group$89.5B
source-verifiedbydglobal.com · volkswagen-group.com · global.toyota · group.mercedes-benz.com · investors.boeing.com · reporting-hub.group.dhl.com2025

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

AI use concentrates in efficiency and routing: 28% of transportation teams cited efficiency and automation in 2026, and 30% cited routing, transport or shipment optimization. Cloud adoption and EV charging also show measurable rollout in the supporting data.

AI in the transportation industry

  • 28% of transportation teams identified efficiency and automation as an AI use case in 2026.[1]
  • 18.78% of EU transport enterprises used AI for logistics in 2024.[2]
  • 8.1% of EU transport and storage enterprises reported using AI technologies in 2024.[2]
  • 2% to 3% of EU transport enterprises used natural-language generation, speech recognition, or marketing and sales AI applications in 2024.[2]
  • 30% of transportation teams identified routing, transport or shipment optimization as an AI use case in 2026.[1]
  • 9.74% of EU transport enterprises used AI for research and development or innovation activities in 2024.[2]

Automation in the transportation industry

  • 75% of humanitarian supply-chain organizations never or rarely used AI-enabled transportation tools during 2025.[3]
  • Less than 1% of EU transport enterprises used AI for production processes in 2024, including autonomous systems such as self-driving vehicles and drones.[2]
  • 85% of humanitarian supply-chain organizations never or rarely used AI-enabled transportation tools during 2024.[3]
  • 30% of transportation teams identified routing, transport or shipment optimization as a leading AI use case in 2026.[1]
  • 13.3% growth was projected for U.S. taxi drivers and chauffeurs from 2023 to 2033, the fastest-growing transportation occupation.[4]
  • 36% of global trade companies ranked robotics and automation among the most transformative TradeTech technologies in 2020.[5]

Digital transformation in the transportation industry

  • 70% of surveyed shippers had a digital-transformation plan in place in 2023.[6]
  • 32% of surveyed transport and logistics enterprises had a comprehensive digital-transformation strategy in 2023.[7]
  • 29% of surveyed transport and logistics enterprises were conducting digital-transformation trials or proofs of concept in 2023.[7]
  • 33% of surveyed transport and logistics enterprises had digital-transformation initiatives but no comprehensive strategy in 2023.[7]
  • 64% of surveyed logistics service providers had a digital-transformation plan in place in 2023.[6]
  • 6% of surveyed transport and logistics enterprises had no formal digital-transformation strategy in 2023.[7]

Technology in the transportation industry

  • 78% of surveyed North American organizations planned to increase transportation-management technology investment in 2026.[8]
  • 16% of surveyed shippers described their transportation operations as fully automated with AI in 2026.[1]
  • 13% of surveyed logistics service providers described their transportation operations as fully automated with AI in 2026.[1]
  • 67% of surveyed logistics service providers used AI for real-time visibility and tracking in 2026.[1]
  • 82% of surveyed shippers expected to increase transportation-management IT investment in 2026.[1]

Cloud computing in the transportation industry

  • 46.5% of EU transport and storage enterprises used paid cloud-computing services in 2025.[9]
  • 33% of EU transport and storage enterprises used sophisticated or intermediate cloud-computing services in 2023.[9]
  • 38.8% of EU transport and storage enterprises used paid cloud-computing services in 2023.[9]
  • 41% of EU transport and storage enterprises used sophisticated or intermediate cloud-computing services in 2025.[9]

Blockchain in the transportation industry

  • 53% of surveyed corporate executives identified supply chain as a blockchain use case they were exploring in 2018.[5]
  • 30% of surveyed corporate executives identified payments as a blockchain use case they were exploring in 2018.[5]
  • 37% of global trade companies ranked blockchain or distributed-ledger technology among the most transformative TradeTech technologies in 2020.[5]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Data management and analytics feature in vendor offerings: 72% of logistics-technology providers cited data management and analytics among their solutions in 2026. Data sharing constraints show up in concerns over data quality when exchanging performance with external partners.

Business intelligence in the transportation industry

  • 91% of 2026 logistics-technology survey participants said they serve the supply-chain, logistics and transportation vertical.[10]
  • 43% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered shipment-visibility solutions.[11]
  • 3% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered blockchain solutions.[11]
  • 51% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered transportation-management-system solutions.[11]
  • 50% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2024 offered artificial-intelligence solutions.[11]
  • 72% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2026 cited data management and analytics among their offered solutions.[10]

Data analytics in the transportation industry

  • 41% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered machine-learning solutions.[11]
  • 63% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2024 offered data-management and analytics solutions.[11]
  • 71% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered data-management and analytics solutions to transportation and supply-chain customers.[11]
  • 44% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2023 offered artificial-intelligence solutions.[11]
  • 71% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered artificial-intelligence solutions, up from 50% in 2024.[11]
  • 71% of logistics-technology providers surveyed in 2025 offered optimization solutions.[11]

Data quality in the transportation industry

  • 66% of shippers shared data on transportation and logistics performance with external supply-chain partners in 2024.[12]
  • 25% of airlines had reached the stage of training artificial intelligence with the data they collect in 2024.[13]
  • 52% of third-party logistics providers cited data quality as a top concern when sharing supply-chain data in 2024.[12]
  • 67% of third-party logistics providers shared data on transportation and logistics performance with external supply-chain partners in 2024.[12]
  • 42% of airlines were examining how to organize collected data to support artificial-intelligence initiatives in 2024.[13]
  • 57% of shippers cited data quality as a top concern when sharing supply-chain data with external partners in 2024.[12]

Data governance in the transportation industry

  • 49% of travel, transportation and logistics respondents said they needed to customize enterprise-resource-planning systems monthly or weekly.[14]
  • 19% of shippers said their supply-chain governance maturity was running ahead in 2024.[12]
  • 32% of shippers said their supply-chain governance maturity was running behind in 2024.[12]
  • 33% of transportation organizations said they excelled in data governance and experienced no issues in the TCS study.[14]
  • 39% of third-party logistics providers said their supply-chain governance maturity was running in place in 2024.[12]
  • 49% of shippers said their supply-chain governance maturity was running in place in 2024.[12]

KPIs in the transportation industry

  • 87% of Ryanair Group flights arrived on time during fiscal 2024.[15]
  • 78.10% of U.S. reporting marketing-carrier flights arrived on time in 2024.[16]
  • 1.4% of U.S. reporting marketing-carrier flights were cancelled in 2024.[16]
  • 83.9% of Avelo Airlines flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule in the United States in 2024.[17]
  • 75.9% was American Airlines’ 2024 on-time-performance rate.[18]
  • 98.6% was American Airlines’ 2024 flight-completion factor.[18]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Air traffic growth continues while industry deals stay active: 10.4% global airline passenger traffic growth in 2024 and 199 transport and logistics M&A announcements in 2024. Load factors remain high in Europe in 2024 at 84.8%.

Growth in the transportation industry

  • 16.9% was Asia-Pacific airline passenger traffic growth in 2024, the highest regional growth rate.[19]
  • 21% was Uber’s full-year 2024 growth in gross bookings, reaching $162.8 billion.[20]
  • 14.4% was Latin American airline international traffic growth in 2024.[19]
  • 18.7% was China’s year-on-year growth in total departing and arriving airline passengers in 2024.[19]
  • 12.3% was China’s domestic airline passenger traffic growth in 2024.[19]
  • 10.4% was global airline passenger traffic growth in 2024, measured in revenue passenger-kilometres.[19]

Differentiation in the transportation industry

  • 10 million flights were operated by Boeing 737 aircraft globally in 2024.[19]
  • 29% of logistics service providers selected competitive weapon as their view of transportation management in 2024.[1]
  • 84.8% was the airline passenger load factor in Europe in 2024.[19]
  • 7.9 million flights were operated by Airbus A320 aircraft globally in 2024.[19]
  • 39% of transportation companies viewed transportation management as a customer-service differentiator in 2024.[1]
  • 2.2 million passengers used the busiest North American air route, New York JFK–Los Angeles, in 2024.[19]

Mergers and acquisitions in the transportation industry

  • 199 global transport and logistics mergers and acquisitions were announced in 2024.[21]
  • 70% of transport and logistics M&A announcements in 2024 involved freight operations.[21]
  • 36.2% of global transportation and logistics M&A transactions closed in 2024 occurred in North America.[22]
  • 44.0% of global transportation and logistics M&A transactions closed in 2024 occurred in Europe.[22]
  • 33 transport and logistics M&A deals were announced in the first quarter of 2024.[21]
  • 11% of 653 transport and logistics M&A announcements between Q1 2022 and Q4 2024 were megadeals exceeding $1 billion.[21]

Strategic partnerships in the transportation industry

  • 4,626 passenger and cargo ticketing interline agreements were listed in IATA’s bilateral interline agreement database in 2026.[19]
  • 18% of U.S. transit management agencies partnered with at least one mobility service provider in 2023.[23]
  • 72% of U.S. transit agencies with mobility partnerships reported that partners provided subsidized or unsubsidized services to their customers in 2023.[23]
  • 24% of U.S. transit agencies with mobility partnerships partnered with bike-sharing providers in 2023.[23]
  • 51% of transportation leaders prioritized establishing relationships with new partners to increase efficiency in 2024.[24]
  • 36 joint ventures were announced in the global transport and logistics industry in 2023.[25]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Workforce pressure remains visible across roles: 58.1% of surveyed U.S. truck drivers were looking for a new driving job in spring 2026. Transportation and warehousing employment totaled 6.61 million seasonally adjusted jobs in August 2026.

Hiring in the transportation industry

  • 42% of transportation and warehousing workers were employed in warehousing and storage or truck transportation in June 2024.[26]
  • Nearly one-quarter of surveyed U.S. transportation employers increased incentives for employee referrals in 2024.[27]
  • 1,680 employees were added by the U.S. Department of Transportation between fiscal years 2023 and 2024.[16]
  • 45% of surveyed U.S. transportation employers increased their use of social media for recruiting in 2024.[27]
  • 5% of all U.S. private-sector jobs were in transportation and warehousing in June 2024.[26]

Employee retention in the transportation industry

  • 17% of surveyed transportation employers reported first-year voluntary turnover of 6% to 10% in 2023.[27]
  • 58.1% of surveyed U.S. truck drivers were looking for a new driving job in spring 2026.[28]
  • 6.91% was the U.S. Department of Transportation attrition rate in fiscal year 2024.[16]
  • 17% of surveyed transportation employers reported first-year voluntary turnover below 1% in 2023.[27]
  • 57% of surveyed transportation professionals identified employee retention as a top talent-management challenge in 2024.[27]

Upskilling in the transportation industry

  • 65.5% of U.S. transportation and material-moving workers required no minimum education in 2025.[26]
  • 21.6% of U.S. transportation and material-moving workers required prior work experience in 2025.[26]
  • 19.5% of U.S. transportation and material-moving workers required prior work experience in 2024.[26]
  • 15.8% of U.S. transportation and material-moving workers required more than basic people skills in 2024.[26]
  • 34.1% of U.S. transportation and material-moving workers required a high school diploma in 2025.[26]

DEI in the transportation industry

  • 38.5% of dispatcher roles at surveyed U.S. trucking companies were held by women in the 2024–25 Women In Trucking Index.[29]
  • 29.5% of board directors at surveyed U.S. trucking companies were women in the 2024–25 Women In Trucking Index.[29]
  • 28% of U.S. trucking C-suite executives were women in the 2024–25 Women In Trucking Index.[29]
  • 9.5% of professional driver roles at surveyed U.S. trucking companies were held by women in the 2024–25 Women In Trucking Index.[29]
  • 74.5% of HR and talent-management roles at surveyed U.S. trucking companies were held by women in the 2024–25 Women In Trucking Index.[29]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Customer experience metrics stay high: 84% of travelers were satisfied with biometric identification at airports in 2024. Loyalty and pricing remain decision drivers, with 48% identifying competitive pricing as the factor most likely to increase loyalty in 2025.

Customer experience in the transportation industry

  • 84% of travelers were satisfied with biometric identification at airports in 2024.[19]
  • 79% of CrossCountry passengers were satisfied with their journey during October 2025–March 2026.[30]
  • 91% of rail passengers in Scotland were satisfied with their train journey during October 2025–March 2026.[30]
  • 87% of Great Britain rail passengers were satisfied with their train journey during October 2025–March 2026.[30]
  • 80% of U.S. air travelers checked in electronically in 2024, up 28 percentage points from 2019.[31]

Customer retention in the transportation industry

  • 48% of airline passengers identified competitive pricing as the factor most likely to increase loyalty in 2025.[32]
  • 69% of airline and hotel executives said improving customer acquisition was challenging in 2024.[33]
  • 82% of airline and hotel executives rated customer acquisition as an important objective in 2024.[33]
  • 34% of airline passengers said reliable on-time operations make them more loyal to an airline in 2025.[32]
  • 53% of airline and hotel executives said improving customer relationship management and retention was challenging in 2024.[33]

Customer acquisition in the transportation industry

  • 16% of airline passengers preferred human interaction when booking travel in 2024.[19]
  • 69% of airline and hotel executives said acquiring new customers was challenging in 2024.[33]
  • 19% of airline passengers preferred web applications for booking in 2025, compared with 16% in 2024.[19]
  • 54% of airline passengers wanted to deal directly with airlines for booking and payment in 2025.[19]
  • 31% of airline passengers preferred airline websites for booking in 2025.[19]

Customer loyalty in the transportation industry

  • 78% of passengers wanted a smartphone combining a digital wallet, digital passport and loyalty cards in 2025.[19]
  • 77% of airline customers globally said they would purchase more from their airline in 2025.[34]
  • 78% of airline customers globally were satisfied with their airline in 2025.[34]
  • 76% of airline customers globally said they would recommend their airline in 2025.[34]
  • 92% of loyalty providers believed their program delivered value to travelers in the 2024 OAG-iSeatz survey.[35]

Lead generation in the transportation industry

  • 41% of airline travelers cited search engines as a source of travel inspiration in 2025.[32]
  • 41% of airline travelers cited online travel agencies as a source of travel inspiration in 2025.[32]
  • 45% of airline travelers aged 18–24 cited social media as a top source of travel inspiration in 2025.[32]
  • $27 in qualified pipeline per marketing dollar was the reported logistics-sector target in 2025.[36]
  • 29% of airline travelers cited social media as a source of travel inspiration in 2025.[32]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Media budgets shift toward digital channels in 2024, with 63% of global marketers allocating media spending to digital channels. Airline and payment behaviors show smartphone expectations alongside digital wallet usage in 2025.

Marketing in the transportation industry

  • 63% of global marketers planned to allocate their media spending to digital channels in 2024.[37]
  • 10.1% was the forecast increase in U.S. automotive TV-digital advertising spending from 2023 to 2024.[38]
  • 15.7% was the forecast increase in U.S. automotive CTV/OTT advertising spending from 2023 to 2024.[38]
  • 15.8% of U.S. travel advertisers’ digital budgets were allocated to social media in 2024.[39]
  • 43% of travel marketers’ paid-media budgets were allocated to other channels, including online travel agencies and travel agents, in 2025.[39]

Digital marketing in the transportation industry

  • 28% of airline passengers used digital wallets for payment in 2025.[19]
  • 72% of airline passengers used credit or debit cards for payment in 2025.[19]
  • 78% of air passengers wanted a smartphone combining a digital wallet, digital passport and loyalty cards in 2025.[19]
  • 19% of air passengers preferred airline apps for booking in 2025.[19]
  • More than two-thirds of U.S. airline passengers used a mobile device to board aircraft in 2024.[31]

Branding in the transportation industry

  • 77% of airline customers globally said they would purchase more from their airline brand in 2025.[34]
  • 97.6% of U.S. automotive powertrain purchases were legacy internal-combustion vehicles in 2019.[40]
  • 41% of travelers aged 65–74 cited airline and hotel websites as travel-inspiration sources in 2025.[32]
  • 78% of airline customers globally were satisfied with their airline brand in 2025.[34]
  • 85.2% of U.S. automotive powertrain purchases were legacy internal-combustion vehicles in 2024.[40]

Social media in the transportation industry

  • 47.9% of U.S. travelers used at least one social-media channel to plan travel in 2024.[41]
  • 14.4% of U.S. travelers used TikTok to prepare for or plan travel in 2024.[41]
  • 25.4% of U.S. travelers used YouTube to prepare for or plan travel in 2024.[41]
  • 21.5% of U.S. travelers used Instagram to prepare for or plan travel in 2024.[41]
  • 28.0% of U.S. travelers used Facebook to prepare for or plan travel in 2024.[41]

Influencer marketing in the transportation industry

  • 45.5% of Gen Z respondents used a digital influencer to help plan travel in 2025.[41]
  • 43% of travel-booking converters recalled an influencer or creator partnership that influenced their trip choices in 2024.[42]
  • 67% of travel-social-media followers considered creator accounts helpful for travel advice in 2024.[42]
  • 6.1% of boomer-or-older respondents used a digital influencer to help plan travel in 2025.[41]
  • 16.3% of Gen X respondents used a digital influencer to help plan travel in 2025.[41]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Operations are shaped by throughput and disruption: 44 days averaged for a container to move from entering an exporting-country port to leaving the destination port. End-to-end supply-chain digitalization is linked to up to 70% reduction in port delays in emerging economies.

Process optimization in the transportation industry

  • 12% was the estimated additional shipping capacity required from December 2023 to June 2024 because Red Sea diversions lengthened voyages.[43]
  • 70% was the maximum reduction in port delays associated with end-to-end supply-chain digitalization in emerging economies, according to the World Bank.[44]
  • 44 days was the average time for a container to move from entering an exporting-country port to leaving the destination port across international trade routes.[44]
  • 71.5 million tonnes of air cargo were transported globally in 2025, according to IATA’s annual review.[19]
  • 84.0% was the expected average passenger load factor for global airlines in 2025, an all-time high supporting more efficient fleet utilization.[19]

Operational efficiency in the transportation industry

  • 5.7% was the year-on-year increase in global air passenger traffic during 2025.[19]
  • 70.5% was the estimated global airline achieved load factor in 2025, compared with a 65.5% break-even load factor.[19]
  • 0.7% was the expected 2026 growth rate for global air cargo, according to IATA’s June 2026 outlook.[19]
  • 2024 container-port performance remained broadly comparable with 2023, although Red Sea and Panama Canal disruptions caused modest declines.[44]
  • 84.0% was the expected full-year passenger load factor for global airlines in 2025.[19]

Quality management in the transportation industry

  • 10.5 days was the standard deviation around the average 44-day international container journey measured by the World Bank.[44]
  • 2.0 out of 5 was the 2023 global score for the competence and quality of logistics services.[45]
  • 1.7 out of 5 was the 2023 global score for the quality of trade- and transport-related infrastructure.[45]
  • 2.1 out of 5 was the 2023 global score for customs-clearance efficiency in logistics.[45]
  • 2.3 out of 5 was the 2023 global score for shipments reaching consignees within scheduled or expected delivery times.[45]

Supply chain in the transportation industry

  • At least $11 billion was the estimated cost of aerospace supply-chain failures to airlines in 2025.[19]
  • 75% of shippers sought environmentally friendly logistics options when exporting to high-income countries in the World Bank’s 2023 survey.[44]
  • 670 million tonnes of maritime freight were loaded by China in 2024.[46]
  • 3.0 billion tonnes of maritime freight were discharged by China in 2024.[46]
  • More than 50% of new ship-order tonnage represented alternative-fuel vessels in 2025.[43]

Outsourcing in the transportation industry

  • 23% of shippers outsourced order-management and fulfillment services in 2024.[47]
  • 51% of shippers outsourced international transportation services to third-party logistics providers in 2024.[12]
  • 43% of shippers outsourced freight-bill auditing and payment in 2024.[47]
  • 65% of shippers outsourced warehousing services to third-party logistics providers in 2024.[12]
  • 49% of shippers outsourced transportation planning and management in 2024.[12]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Transportation pricing moved notably: the producer price index for transportation services rose to 189.733 in September 2026 from 166.266 in January 2025. Airline economics are also forecast with passenger-ticket revenue at $839 billion in 2026.

Pricing strategy in the transportation industry

  • $381 was the average fare at U.S. airports with 1.0 million to 1.49 million originating passengers in the first quarter of 2025.[4]
  • $165 billion was the expected global airline ancillary-revenue total in 2026, up 12.6% year on year.[19]
  • $839 billion was the expected global airline passenger-ticket revenue in 2026, up 9.2% year on year.[19]
  • 4.0% was the expected decline in global passenger yields in 2025 as airlines faced lower oil prices and stronger competition.[19]
  • $405 was the average fare at U.S. airports with at least 2 million originating passengers in the first quarter of 2025.[4]

Cost reduction in the transportation industry

  • 0.6% was the projected increase in global consumer prices by 2025 from sustained higher shipping costs.[43]
  • 0.9% was the projected consumer-price increase in small island developing States by 2025 from higher shipping costs.[43]
  • 70% was the expected year-on-year increase in average airline jet-fuel prices in 2026 in IATA’s June outlook.[19]
  • 1.0% was the expected increase in global airline expenses in 2025, below the 1.3% projected revenue increase.[19]
  • $913 billion was the expected total global airline expense in 2025.[19]

Profitability in the transportation industry

  • $23 billion was the expected global airline net profit in 2026.[19]
  • 6.7% was the expected global airline EBIT margin in 2025.[19]
  • 6.7% was the expected global airline return on invested capital in 2025.[19]
  • 2.0% was the expected global airline net-profit margin in 2026.[19]
  • $76.4 billion was the estimated global airline operating profit in 2025.[19]

Financial planning in the transportation industry

  • 3.6% was the projected global airline net-profit margin in IATA’s December 2024 2025 outlook.[19]
  • $979 billion was the expected total global airline revenue in 2025.[19]
  • $48 billion was the expected global airline EBIT in 2026 in IATA’s June outlook.[19]
  • 6.8% was the projected global airline return on invested capital in IATA’s December 2024 2025 outlook.[19]
  • $4.5 was the expected global airline net profit per passenger in 2026.[19]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

Fleet and MRO scale informs service markets, with 28,398 aircraft in the projected 2024 global commercial air transport fleet tied to the MRO market. Automotive and transit asset age also varies across modes in the provided data.

Product development in the transportation industry

  • €21.0 billion was Volkswagen Group’s 2024 automotive R&D expenditure, equal to 7.9% of automotive-division sales revenue.[48]
  • $31.812 billion was spent on R&D in U.S. motor-vehicle, body, trailer and parts manufacturing in 2024, equal to 2.8% of domestic net sales.[49]
  • Automotive R&D intensity was about 5% in 2024 among the largest global corporate R&D investors tracked by WIPO.[50]
  • 62,780 people worked in Volkswagen Group’s R&D departments at December 31, 2024, representing 9.2% of the group workforce.[48]
  • Automobiles accounted for roughly 14% of global R&D spending by the largest corporate R&D investors in 2024, down from more than 18% in 2018.[50]

Product lifecycle in the transportation industry

  • 24 years was the average age of heavy-rail passenger cars in the U.S. transit system in the latest BTS figures cited for 2021.[51]
  • Dealerships handled 12% fewer service visits in 2025 than in 2018, according to Cox Automotive’s service study.[52]
  • About 5 years was the reduction in average ferryboat age after new-vessel investments in the late 2000s, according to BTS.[51]
  • 7.5 years was the average age of U.S. motorbuses in 2021, according to the Federal Transit Administration data cited by BTS.[51]
  • Only 54% of owners of cars two years old or newer returned to the purchasing dealership for service in 2025, versus 72% in 2023.[52]

After-sales in the transportation industry

  • 74% of vehicle owners who service their car at a dealership were likely to buy their next car from the same place in 2025.[52]
  • €2.31 billion was the 2024 European freight-wagon maintenance market volume, including price development.[53]
  • 28,398 aircraft made up the projected 2024 global commercial air transport fleet associated with the MRO market.[54]
  • £2.7 billion was spent on rolling-stock leasing by franchised passenger operators in Great Britain in the year ending March 31, 2025.[55]
  • 189,000 technicians were employed by FAA Part 145-certificated companies in the United States at the beginning of 2025.[54]

Value proposition in the transportation industry

  • $89.7 billion was the total U.S. economic impact of motorcoach group travel in 2024.[56]
  • 20% of Uber’s mobility gross bookings came from five metropolitan areas in 2024: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, São Paulo and London.[57]
  • $137.9 billion in gross bookings were generated by Uber in 2023, with mobility representing 50%, delivery 46% and freight 4%.[58]
  • $39.8 billion was spent on trip-related expenses by U.S. motorcoach group travelers in 2024.[56]
  • 9.4 billion trips were completed on Uber’s platform in 2023 across mobility, delivery and freight services.[58]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Decarbonization remains a constraint: transportation emitted 1,828 million metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent in 2023, with light-duty trucks responsible for 37% of transportation emissions in 2022. EU transport energy use is heavily road-based, at 73% in 2023.

Sustainability in the transportation industry

  • 32% of EU final energy consumption was used by transport activities in 2023.[9]
  • Road transport emissions represented about 95% of EU transport emissions in 2023 when international shipping and aviation are excluded.[59]
  • 73% of EU transport energy consumption came from road transport in 2023.[9]
  • 81% of EU passenger-transport performance was provided by road transport in 2023.[9]
  • 44% of Kenya Airways’ 2024 workforce were women.[60]

ESG in the transportation industry

  • 99% of Icelandair Group’s enterprise headcount was covered by collective bargaining agreements in 2024.[61]
  • 80% of Icelandair Group’s board seats were occupied by independent directors in 2024.[61]
  • 87% of American Airlines’ approximately 133,300 active full-time-equivalent employees were represented by labor unions in 2024.[62]
  • 16 of 16 airlines surveyed had anti-corruption measures in the 2024 SFC Airline ESG Survey.[63]
  • 100% of new Icelandair employees formally certified compliance with the company’s ethics or anti-corruption policy in 2024.[61]

Ethics in the transportation industry

  • 64% of transportation, leisure and tourism respondents said combating bribery and corruption had been prioritized.[64]
  • 100% of new Icelandair employees certified compliance with the company’s ethics and anti-corruption policy in 2024.[61]
  • 11 of 16 surveyed airlines reported value-chain fair-operating-practice measures in the 2024 SFC Airline ESG Survey.[63]
  • 79% of transportation, leisure and tourism respondents agreed that senior management clearly emphasized integrity, compliance and accountability.[64]
  • 22% of transportation, leisure and tourism risk incidents were detected through external audit.[64]

CSR in the transportation industry

  • 25% was the increase in Kenya Airways’ cargo volumes in 2024.[60]
  • 100% of Kenya Airways’ board completed training and ethics compliance requirements in 2024.[60]
  • 44% of Kenya Airways’ workforce were women in 2024.[60]
  • 5.23 million passengers were served by Kenya Airways in 2024.[60]
  • 8% was the increase in Kenya Airways’ workforce in 2024.[60]

Circular economy in the transportation industry

  • 85% of cabin waste on 25 international flights arriving at Singapore Changi Airport in 2024 was catering waste.[19]
  • 0.94 kilograms of cabin waste were generated per passenger across 25 international flights arriving at Singapore Changi Airport in 2024.[19]
  • 24.9% of Deutsche Bahn rail steel was recycled in 2023.[65]
  • 12.0% of Deutsche Bahn track ballast was recycled in 2023.[65]
  • 48.3% was Stadler’s recyclability rate in 2024, calculated using material-recycling factors from the UNIFE Recycling Template.[66]

Carbon footprint in the transportation industry

  • 99% of international-aviation CO₂ emissions were covered by ICAO’s CORSIA Central Registry for 2023.[67]
  • 60% or more of global road-transport emissions came from passenger cars and vans in 2024.[68]
  • About one-third of global road-transport emissions came from trucks in 2024.[68]
  • 530 million tonnes of CO₂ were reported from international aviation in 2023 under CORSIA.[67]
  • 33.77 million metric tonnes of logistics-related CO₂e were emitted by DHL Group in 2024.[69]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Trade flows expand with sea freight scale: global seaborne trade totaled 67 trillion ton-miles in 2024. U.S.-international freight value moved through modes with water carrying 42.4% of value in 2024.

Globalization in the transportation industry

  • 67 trillion ton-miles of global seaborne trade were recorded in 2024, up 5.9% from 2023.[76]
  • $1.13 trillion of U.S.-Asia freight moved by vessel in 2024, representing 60.6% of the trade value between those regions.[4]
  • 13 billion tonnes of traded goods were transported by sea globally in 2024, up 2.2% from 2023.[76]
  • 30.0% of U.S.-international freight value was transported by air in 2024, compared with 0.4% by weight.[77]
  • $4.2 trillion of U.S.-international freight trade moved through transportation modes in 2024, with water carrying 42.4% of value and 79.2% of weight.[77]

Supplier management in the transportation industry

  • 29% of surveyed companies increased the number of small and medium-sized enterprises in their supply chains in 2025.[78]
  • 325 supplier relationships were maintained on average by surveyed companies globally in 2025, down from 346 in 2024.[78]
  • 30% of surveyed companies globally increased their number of supply-chain partners in 2025, most often to expand into new markets.[78]
  • 57% of surveyed companies selected favorable payment terms as a reason for allocating order flow to one supplier over another in 2025.[78]
  • 30,000 tons of shipments were consolidated into approximately 4,900 full-truckload shipments by Trane Technologies in 2024.[79]

Stakeholder management in the transportation industry

  • 876 million passengers departed from or arrived in the United States in 2024, the largest national air-passenger market.[19]
  • 2.2 million passengers used the New York–Los Angeles route in 2024, making it the busiest North American airport pair.[19]
  • 166 countries were served by GEODIS in 2024, supported by operations in 67 countries.[80]
  • 79% was GEODIS’s employee engagement rate in 2024, down from 81% in 2023.[80]
  • 40% of GEODIS’s overall workforce were women in 2024.[80]

Distribution channels in the transportation industry

  • 10 million flights were operated by Boeing 737 aircraft worldwide in 2024.[19]
  • 3.4 million flights were operated by Airbus A321 aircraft worldwide in 2024.[19]
  • 76% of 50 identified New York City last-mile facilities reported worker injuries to OSHA between 2022 and 2024.[81]
  • 11.8% was the 2024 growth in international premium-class air travel, exceeding the 11.5% growth in global economy-class travel.[19]
  • 411,543 flights were operated by Airbus A220 aircraft worldwide in 2024, up 21.7% year over year.[19]

16 Statistics

Regional markets

Regional indicators diverge across employment, passenger demand, and freight tonnage. For Great Britain, 7 billion public-transport passenger journeys were completed in the year ending March 2025 and 206 billion tonne-kilometres of domestic freight were moved in 2024.

The transportation industry in Australia

  • 7.8% was the increase in sales and service income for Australia’s transport, postal and warehousing industry in 2024–25, equivalent to $19.1 billion.[82]
  • 691,000 people were employed in Australia’s transport, postal and warehousing industry at the end of June 2025, up 4.9% year-on-year.[82]
  • $109.849 billion was the industry value added by Australia’s transport, postal and warehousing sector in 2024–25, an 8.1% increase from the previous year.[82]
  • 9.1% was the growth in EBITDA for Australia’s transport, postal and warehousing industry in 2024–25.[82]
  • 32,000 additional people were employed in Australia’s transport, postal and warehousing industry in 2024–25, while wages and salaries increased 7.2%, or $3.4 billion.[82]

The transportation industry in United Kingdom

  • 7 billion public-transport passenger journeys were completed in Great Britain in the year ending March 2025, including 4 billion by local bus and 3 billion by rail.[83]
  • 813 billion passenger-kilometres were travelled domestically in Great Britain in 2024, 2% more than in 2023.[83]
  • 258.5 million international passengers travelled to or from UK airports in 2024, an increase of 7% from 2023.[83]
  • 1.59 billion tonnes of goods were lifted in the UK by GB-registered heavy goods vehicles in 2024, 2% more than in 2023.[83]
  • 206 billion tonne-kilometres of domestic freight were moved in the UK in 2024, including 168 billion by road, 21 billion by water and 17 billion by rail.[83]

Key questions about the Transportation Industry

How large is U.S. transportation freight, and what is the outlook?
U.S. freight moved domestically was valued at $19.5 trillion in 2025 and is projected to reach $27.9 trillion by 2045. The U.S. Department of Transportation projects freight value to grow at approximately 1.8% compound annual growth.
What growth rates matter for freight modes over the 2025 to 2045 period?
Truck freight value is projected to rise 43.1% from 2025 to 2045, while air freight value is projected to increase 71.6% over the same period. Freight value is projected to grow 43.2% between 2025 and 2045.
Which companies lead the transportation industry?
Boeing stands out for commercial and defense aerospace delivery because it delivered 600 commercial airplanes in 2025, while BYD focuses on electric vehicles since it reported 4.6 million new-energy vehicle sales in 2025.
Where is AI adoption showing up in transportation operations?
In 2026, 28% of transportation teams identified efficiency and automation as an AI use case, and 30% identified routing, transport or shipment optimization as an AI use case. In parallel, 67% of logistics service providers reported using AI for real-time visibility and tracking in 2026.
How concentrated is airline passenger traffic in the U.S. market structure?
The 20 largest U.S. carriers transported 87.4% of all passengers in 2025. Southwest, American, Delta and United accounted for 15.3%, 15.1%, 15.0% and 13.2%, respectively.
What pricing and demand metrics show up in transportation services recently?
The U.S. producer price index for transportation services reached 189.733 in September 2026, versus 166.266 in January 2025. U.S. scheduled airlines carried 1.10 billion passengers in 2025.
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Diana Reeves. (2026, February 13). Transportation Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transportation-industry-statistics
MLA
Diana Reeves. "Transportation Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/transportation-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Diana Reeves. 2026. "Transportation Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/transportation-industry-statistics.

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