Midwest trucking report: Michigan, Ohio and Indiana carriers
Edition: October 2026. Data pulled Oct 25, 2026.
As of Oct 25, 2026, FMCSA's Company Census File lists 78,136 active USDOT registrants in Michigan, 52,219 in Ohio and 47,170 in Indiana. Most are small: one power unit is the largest group in all three states. About 98% of active Michigan registrants, 95% in Ohio and 97% in Indiana have no FMCSA safety rating listed in the census.
The numbers
| Michigan | Ohio | Indiana | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active USDOT registrants | 78,136 | 52,219 | 47,170 |
| Active, authorized for hire | 32,013 | 39,288 | 22,390 |
| Active, 1 power unit | 38,890 | 23,990 | 23,102 |
| Active, 2 power units | 14,536 | 7,803 | 8,112 |
| Active, 3-20 power units | 18,258 | 12,763 | 11,407 |
| Active, 21-50 power units | 1,066 | 1,239 | 826 |
| Active, 51+ power units | 608 | 882 | 502 |
| New USDOT numbers, 2025-10 to 2026-09 | 4,056 | 6,140 | 3,759 |
| Of those, first docket is MC | 1,581 | 3,333 | 1,936 |
| Active with a Satisfactory rating | 1,127 | 2,129 | 1,132 |
| Active with a Conditional rating | 349 | 635 | 287 |
| Active with an Unsatisfactory rating | 52 | 53 | 60 |
| Active, no rating listed | 76,608 | 49,402 | 45,691 |
| Crash records in the state (SMS file) | 10,016 | 9,256 | 10,048 |
| Fatalities in those crashes | 213 | 255 | 218 |
| Injuries in those crashes | 3,209 | 4,346 | 3,553 |
How big are the fleets?
How many new carriers register each month?
New USDOT numbers added each month, with how many have an MC docket as their first docket in parentheses. Recent months can rise as records are added late.
| Month | Michigan | Ohio | Indiana |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-10 | 331 (158 MC) | 433 (287 MC) | 281 (180 MC) |
| 2025-11 | 241 (124 MC) | 383 (235 MC) | 262 (159 MC) |
| 2025-12 | 242 (108 MC) | 394 (252 MC) | 238 (132 MC) |
| 2026-01 | 314 (152 MC) | 497 (310 MC) | 313 (199 MC) |
| 2026-02 | 286 (130 MC) | 537 (335 MC) | 300 (175 MC) |
| 2026-03 | 410 (195 MC) | 605 (358 MC) | 359 (223 MC) |
| 2026-04 | 452 (200 MC) | 570 (345 MC) | 369 (214 MC) |
| 2026-05 | 385 (107 MC) | 563 (245 MC) | 334 (125 MC) |
| 2026-06 | 405 (100 MC) | 504 (204 MC) | 372 (136 MC) |
| 2026-07 | 333 (145 MC) | 594 (369 MC) | 337 (202 MC) |
| 2026-08 | 336 (107 MC) | 524 (252 MC) | 307 (139 MC) |
| 2026-09 | 321 (55 MC) | 536 (141 MC) | 287 (52 MC) |
Method
- Source for registrants: FMCSA Company Census File (data.transportation.gov, dataset az4n-8mr2), file updated 2026-10-25, pulled Oct 25, 2026.
- Source for crashes: FMCSA SMS Input, Crash (dataset 4wxs-vbns), file updated 2026-10-13, pulled Oct 25, 2026. Crash dates in the file for these states run from 2024-09-25 to 2026-09-13. A crash counts in the state where it happened, not where the carrier is based. The file has one record per carrier vehicle in a crash, so a crash with two carrier vehicles, and its fatalities and injuries, can count twice.
- Active means census status code A. State is the carrier's physical address state.
- Registrants include private carriers, bus companies and shippers, not only for-hire trucking companies. "Authorized for hire" uses the census carrier class field.
- Power units are what carriers report on Form MCS-150. Carriers that report 0 power units are left out of the fleet-size rows.
- New USDOT numbers use the census add date and include numbers that are no longer active. MC docket means the first docket listed starts with MC.
- Safety ratings are the census rating field: Satisfactory, Conditional, Unsatisfactory, or no rating listed.
- We do not compare years, because carriers that closed may drop out of the file.
- Raw counts: download the CSV. Public domain U.S. government data. You can cite this page.
Helm Partners is a trucking-only insurance agency being formed in Michigan. We are not licensed in any state yet. Our Michigan license is pending. We do not quote or sell insurance until licensed. This report is general information.