Trucking in New Jersey: FMCSA Counts & License Check

Carriers based in New Jersey

Active motor carriers whose physical address, as registered with FMCSA, is in New Jersey. The census records each one as operating in interstate commerce or only within its state.

active interstate carriers: 24,327
of those, authorized for hire: 17,041
active intrastate carriers: 21,892
carriers granted for-hire property authority, 2026-07-14 to 2026-10-11: 437

Source: FMCSA Company Census az4n-8mr2 and Motus AuthHist (All With History) yu5v-wbh6, fetched 2026-10-12. Carriers are active census entities registered as carriers, counted by physical state. The authority figure counts carriers, once each by USDOT number, that were granted for-hire property authority (except household goods) in the Motus history, matched to the census.

1,412 new USDOT numbers were registered to active carriers in New Jersey in the same 90 days (1,008 interstate). A USDOT number is not an operating authority: the date is when the number was issued, and many never haul for hire.

Source: FMCSA Company Census az4n-8mr2, add_date, fetched 2026-10-12.

Interstate carriers by fleet size

Active interstate carriers in New Jersey, by the number of power units on their census record, and each band's share of all of them.

Interstate carriers in New Jersey by power units, with each band's share
Power units	Carriers	Share
1	13,120	54%
2 to 5	7,295	30%
6 to 10	1,525	6%
11 to 50	1,424	6%
51 to 100	206	under 1%
101 or more	158	under 1%
None recorded	599	2%
All interstate	24,327	100%

Source: FMCSA Company Census az4n-8mr2, fetched 2026-10-12. "None recorded" is a record with no power units, or none entered. Shares are of all active interstate carriers in New Jersey, rounded to the nearest whole percent, and the bars are drawn to the same scale.

Federal minimum liability

The federal rules set the least public liability a motor carrier must have. Each row gives the regulation's amount and its own description of what the row covers; they are a floor set by law, not a view on what any carrier should buy.

$750,000

Property (nonhazardous)

For-hire, interstate or foreign commerce, 10,001 lb GVWR or more. 49 CFR 387.9

$1,000,000

Oil listed in 49 CFR 172.101; hazardous waste, hazardous materials and hazardous substances defined in 49 CFR 171.8 and listed in 49 CFR 172.101, but not mentioned in the $5,000,000 rows

For-hire and private, interstate or foreign commerce in any quantity, or intrastate in bulk, 10,001 lb GVWR or more. 49 CFR 387.9

$5,000,000

Hazardous substances, as defined in 49 CFR 171.8, in cargo tanks, portable tanks or hopper-type vehicles with capacities over 3,500 water gallons; or in bulk Division 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3 materials, Division 2.3 Hazard Zone A or Division 6.1 Packing Group I Hazard Zone A material; in bulk Division 2.1 or 2.2; or highway route controlled quantities of a Class 7 material, as defined in 49 CFR 173.403

For-hire and private, interstate, foreign or intrastate commerce, 10,001 lb GVWR or more. 49 CFR 387.9

$5,000,000

Any quantity of Division 1.1, 1.2 or 1.3 material; any quantity of a Division 2.3 Hazard Zone A or Division 6.1 Packing Group I Hazard Zone A material; or highway route controlled quantities of a Class 7 material, as defined in 49 CFR 173.403

For-hire and private, interstate or foreign commerce, under 10,001 lb GVWR. 49 CFR 387.9

$300,000

Property (non-hazardous)

For-hire carrier with FMCSA authority, fleet of vehicles all under 10,001 lb GVWR. 49 CFR 387.303

Source: eCFR, 49 CFR 387.9 (Schedule of Limits, Public Liability) and 387.303(b)(1), read 2026-09-26. Section 387.301 is where a for-hire carrier's filing with FMCSA is required, in the amounts in 387.303. Read the full schedule on eCFR for the exact commodity lists.

Check the agent's license in New Jersey

Whoever you speak to, look them up on the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance's own search by name or NPN, and read the lines of authority and the expiration date. InsuranceAgentPick only puts an agent on a list once their New Jersey license has been checked on the state's own records.

How to check an insurance agent's license in New Jersey.

Questions

What is the federal minimum liability for general freight?

$750,000 for a for-hire carrier hauling nonhazardous property in interstate or foreign commerce with vehicles of 10,001 lb GVWR or more, under 49 CFR 387.9. Source: eCFR, 49 CFR 387.9, read 2026-09-26.

How many carriers in New Jersey were granted new trucking authority in the last 90 days?

437 carriers whose physical address in the FMCSA census is in New Jersey were granted for-hire property authority (except household goods) between 2026-07-14 and 2026-10-11, each counted once however many grants it had. Source: FMCSA Company Census az4n-8mr2 and Motus AuthHist (All With History) yu5v-wbh6, fetched 2026-10-12.

How many interstate motor carriers are based in New Jersey?

24,327 active interstate carriers list a physical address in New Jersey, of which 17,041 are authorized for hire. Source: FMCSA Company Census az4n-8mr2, fetched 2026-10-12.