Two things are happening simultaneously in the Texas construction market right now. Truck availability is at its tightest point for this time of year in at least a decade, driven by carrier exits throughout 2025 and diesel above $5.60 pushing more owner-operators to park or decline loads. And spring construction season is accelerating, with more jobs coming online across DFW, Austin, Waco, and Central Texas as weather improves and project schedules start compressing.
Available truck posts on the DAT load board (the industry’s primary measure of hauling capacity) fell to their lowest levels for Week 13 in over ten years across all major equipment types. That’s not a forecast. That’s where the market was as of the first week of April. The trucks that were absorbing aggregate hauls in a looser market are either off the road or being selective about which loads they run at current fuel costs.
“Available truck posts on DAT fell to their lowest Week 13 levels in at least 10 years across dry van, reefer, and flatbed. Spot rates are rising — dry van spot rates averaged $2.01 per mile in February, up from $1.65 in November.” Source: Tradlinx Freight Intelligence · April 2026
For contractors running active jobsites in Texas, the practical exposure is same-day and next-day material delivery. If your project depends on calling for aggregate the morning you need it, the window for that to work reliably is narrowing. Jobs requiring multiple loads per day across multiple active sites are the most vulnerable. You need trucks lined up before the schedule is set, not sourced the morning the crew shows up.
Spring construction in Texas operates on compressed timelines. Projects that were paused over winter are accelerating. New jobs are breaking ground. Every contractor in the market is competing for the same pool of available trucks at the same time. In a tighter capacity environment, that competition plays out in delivery timing. The contractors with established logistics coordination get their material first.
This market rewards contractors who lock in their delivery arrangements before the job starts. It punishes the ones who assume truck availability will be the same as it was last year.
Spring build season is here, available trucks are at a 10-year low, and diesel is keeping more owner-operators off the road. Getting your delivery coordination locked in before your job starts is no longer optional.