Even if we experienced a bad 2024 in terms of transport volumes in Europe, the Romanian transport companies managed well the economic crisis in almost all EU countries. Most of the growth came from domestic market, but also international fleets managed to keep more or less the same fleet, with some exceptions coming from the companies specialized and dependent on automotive transport. The total number of operators is 441 bigger and the fleet is almost 6,000 higher, mostly due to the individual driver-owner operators (325), but also due to the couriers and distributors vans fleet, after the decision, in 2022, that all vehicles above 2,4 tons should be licensed. If we look at the real truck market, this one almost froze in 2023 and 2024 when carriers tried to save their resources without having too big developing projects.
In 2023 were registered 43,384 companies with CAEN Code 4941 (road goods transports), 4% more than in 2022, which hire in total 150,263 employees (almost 4% of total employed persons in Romania).
Romanian Road Authority says there are 43,086 companies licensed, almost 4,000 more than the number of companies with CAEN code 4941, because among the companies that own vehicles there are about 3,000 that are doing transport on their own account, that is using the fleet to transport their own products.
Compared to 2023, the number of licensed operators increased by 441. But that doesn’t mean that the number of transport operators has increased that much, as transport volumes have decreased quite a lot in the last year, but there are also many distributors who are forced to get licensed after the decision, from 2022, that all vehicles with a maximum authorized mass of over 2.4 t must be registered with the Romanian Road Authority.
In 2022 alone, after May 2 – the date after it became mandatory to license transport companies that use such vehicles with a total mass of more than 2.4 tons – the number of licensed transport operators for public transport increased by almost 10,000, from 37,568 to 46,491. During the same period the number of vehicles licensed increased by 45,000 (from 169,489 to 214,021), these mainly representing 3.5 t vans.
And if in 2023 neither the number of operators nor the fleet of licensed vehicles did not change significantly (an increase of 150 operators and a licensed fleet about 150 less), in 2024 we see, as mentioned above, 47,086 operators (441 operators more than in 2023) and an increase in the licensed fleet by 6,367 vehicles.
Increase in single-vehicle operators
The increase of several hundred licensed operators is almost entirely felt among the single-vehicle licensed companies – those accounting for more than 40% of the total number of transport operators: of the nearly 47,000 transport operators, 19,295 have a single vehicle (325 new operators from 18,900 in total in 2023). And we’re not just talking about small driver-operator firms operating tractor-units, but also individual operators with one van who are sub-contracted by large courier firms.
The number of operators with 2-5 vehicles is decreasing: 19,475 operators compared to 19,653 in 2023, as large fleets remain almost constant.
Growth in construction and courier fleets
The top 100 fleets has changed quite a lot in the last few years, since vans over 2.4 t are being licensed (that’s almost 10,000 new operators with almost 50,000 newly licensed vehicles, so quite large fleets). At the same time, companies working in construction and agriculture have increased their fleets, while some multinational transport companies, which have been in the top 10 truck fleets for years, have disappeared altogether or have consistently decreased their fleets after the restrictive regulations of the Mobility Package started to apply in the EU and the registration of truck fleets in Romania did not offer as many advantages as before 2021.
The biggest international fleet increase in 2024 was seen by Marymantes Speed, which added no less than 86 trucks to its Romanian fleet, more than double the number it had here, getting to 159 units. Another firm with ties in Spain, European Logistics, from Argeș county, increased its fleet from 191 to 264 licensed vehicles (+73), followed by another Argeș-based company – Agexim Transport & Logistics – which has 51 more compliant copies than in 2023, now reaching almost 250 licensed trucks. And, to stay in the Argeș area, we also report a significant increase in the Eliton-Trans fleet (+37 trucks), which reaches 171 licensed trucks, and A&C International Road Cargo (29 more trucks compared to 2023), which reaches a fleet of 173 licensed vehicles.
Other fleet expansions were also recorded in the western part of the country: Speed Line Impex added 37 newly licensed vehicles reaching a fleet of 282 trucks, making it the second largest international fleet after Filip (319), if we do not take into account the 339 specialized vehicles owned by Dolo Trans Olimp or the specialized fleet of 326 trucks of Transpeco Logistic.
Carbon Logistic and Ravitex, both based in Timișoara, add 32 and 24 trucks respectively in 2024, bringing them to 188-189 trucks each. H.Essers (+28) reaches 263, with 18-19 also added by the Oradea-based Doru and Florin and Criboser, which reach 189 and 183 trucks respectively.
Two other significant increases in fleet (+25 trucks) were recorded by Medart Logistics from Galați and Sorin Quicktrans (Bucharest). Vladrom (Buzău) also increased by more than 30 trucks, slightly exceeding 100 trucks. Redistributions of the truck fleets could be seen within the JOST Group companies: while Skip Trans no longer owns any vehicles, the more than 600 trucks of the Belgian company were distributed to other new companies that have emerged in the group: Transilvania Trucking Company (226 trucks), Transilvania Green Spedition (209) and Napoca Green Logistic (155). Also in the top 100 is Marvicon, with 193 licensed trucks, also part of the Jost Group, after it took over Be-Trans, the Belgian group of companies that owned Marvicon.
A redistribution of the truck fleet can also be seen in the case of CUN Intercontinental, which has 93 trucks after taking over trucks from other companies in the Moldovan group.
And we will still see fragmentation of fleets across several companies in 2025, in order to spread the risk, given that international transport is becoming an increasingly risky activity with the increasingly strict regulation of truck operations in the intra-EU area, with interpretable laws and very high penalties. In addition, the fear of taxing companies with a turnover of more than €50 million with a solidarity tax of 1% of the revenue earned is making even those who are better tuned to internal procedures prefer to split the large, traditional company into two or even three smaller companies, especially operating margins are very low in transport – around 3% – with only those who have other businesses or who sell their own trucks managing to achieve margins of 5-8% in some years).
The fleet of licensed courier and distribution vans is growing
Another aspect of the top 100 is that the fleets of vehicles owned by couriers, mostly with 3.5 t. vans, have increased. One of the biggest fleet expansions in 2024 was DSC Expres Logistic, a fast courier company based in Otopeni, Ilfov county, established in 2011, which has a total fleet of over 1,000 vehicles, but with 470 vans licensed, 47 more than in 2023.
An even more substantial increase in the van fleet was recorded by Elantis Courier (+81 vehicles), which reached 118 vehicles in its licensed fleet, and Pandoras Courier, which increased its number of licensed vehicles from 92 (in October 2023) to 167 in October 2024.
A smaller licensed fleet has Delivery Solutions (Sameday) – 137 vehicles, 8 more than in 2023 – although it is the third largest in terms of volumes in the Romanian courier hierarchy, after FAN Courier (installed at the top of the largest fleets in Romania, with almost 1,600 licensed trucks and vans, and Cargus, which however works mostly with independent couriers. However, Sameday also works with many light vans, which do not fall into the category of those that must be licensed. Also in the top 100 fleets is DHL International Romania, with the same licensed fleet of 147 vehicles as in 2023.
Shoulder-to-shoulder in the top 100 licensed fleets in Romania are sausage and dairy producers Lactalis (173 vehicles, 2 less than in 2023), Caroli Foods (163 vehicles, 7 less) and Cris-Tim Family Holding (162 vehicles, also 2 less).
Another fleet growth was recorded by AD Auto Total, one of the largest distributors of spare parts and service equipment, whose licensed fleet grew from 245 to 276 in 2024.
In 67th and 81st places we also find the temperature-controlled distribution fleets of Alex International Transport 94 (145 licensed vehicles) and GXO Contract Logistics Romania (117).
Increases in van fleets offset by decreases in truck fleets
The downturn in the automotive segment and the reduction in overall transport volumes in the first part of the year across Europe have inevitably led to many corrections in international transport fleets. Among the firms that have consistently ”slimmed down” their truck fleets were International Alexander, which now has 80 fewer licensed vehicles (267 in total), Dunca Expediții – down 44 – remains at 273, and Transmec is down to 180 licensed trucks after having given up 35.
Drops of more than 20 vehicles were also recorded by XPO Transport Solutions Romania (-32), Gartner Eurotrans Romania (-27), Cartrans Preda (-25), Luscan (-24), Dolo Trans Olimp (-21) and Bipmobile (-20).
The only decrease in the distribution fleet was registered by Farmexim, which reduced its fleet by 30 vehicles.
In conclusion, in the top 100 fleets in Romania there are fewer and fewer general goods transporters and more and more couriers, distributors and constructors.
