Italy Road Freight Transport - Market Share Analysis, Industry Trends & Statistics, Growth Forecasts (2026 - 2031)
Description
Italy Road Freight Transport Market Analysis
Italy road freight transport market size in 2026 is estimated at USD 41.17 billion, growing from 2025 value of USD 39.83 billion with 2031 projections showing USD 48.59 billion, growing at 3.36% CAGR over 2026-2031. Rising e-commerce volumes, a gradual rebound in export-oriented manufacturing, and European Union infrastructure funding underpin demand even as GDP slipped 0.1% quarter-over-quarter in Q2 2025. Domestic freight retains a 63.94% share, yet international corridors grow faster as Italy maximizes its gateway role along TEN-T routes upgraded through a EUR 1.8 billion (USD 1.98 billion) EIB facility. Consolidation reshapes the competitive field after DSV closed the EUR 14.3 billion (USD 15.78 billion) DB Schenker acquisition in April 2025. Parallel advances in AI-enabled routing, fleet electrification, and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) adoption position technology-centric carriers to capture emerging opportunities across the Italy road freight transport market.
Italy Road Freight Transport Market Trends and Insights
Surge in E-Commerce and Last-Mile Demand
Italy’s e-commerce boom propels structural change as omnichannel retailers push parcel volumes into dense urban networks. Wholesale and retail trade therefore record the fastest segment growth at a 4.14% CAGR between 2025-2030. Poste Italiane deployed 27,900 low-emission vehicles and expanded its Piacenza and Caserta hubs to boost parcel capacity. DHL strengthened reach via the Locker Italia venture, capturing pickup-drop-off demand spikes. A Rome pilot combining autonomous robots with public transit cut last-mile costs by 7.5%. These dynamics accelerate less-than-truck-load service uptake as retailers seek consolidation to relieve congestion and emissions limits.
Manufacturing Export Rebound Post-COVID
Despite a 1.8% industrial production dip in March 2025, Italy’s high-value subsectors regained momentum. Food exports grew 9.8% and pharmaceuticals 9.5% in 2024, lifting temperature-controlled freight volumes. The National Recovery and Resilience Plan channels EUR 100 billion (USD 110.36 billion) into logistics upgrades that sharpen export competitiveness over 2025-2026. International corridors consequently show a 4.14% CAGR (2025-2030) as plants restore overseas orders. Cargo mix shifts toward higher-value and time-sensitive loads that reward carriers with compliance expertise and modern fleets.
Driver Shortage and Aging Workforce
Vacancies stand near 17,000 and 45% of drivers are older than 50, capping fleet availability at peak periods. Northern regions feel the pinch most acutely as factories ramp shipments yet struggle to schedule outbound slots. Wage increases of 3-4% failed to draw sufficient entrants during 2024. EU training mandates lengthen qualification timelines, while lifestyle alternatives in construction and services lure potential recruits. Carriers respond with signing bonuses, modular schedules, and in-cab technology that lowers fatigue to stabilize retention.
Other drivers and restraints analyzed in the detailed report include:
- EU-Funded Road-Bridge Megaproject Pipeline
- OEM Fleet Modernization and HVO Adoption
- Diesel and Power Prices
For complete list of drivers and restraints, kindly check the Table Of Contents.
Segment Analysis
Manufacturing maintained a 34.12% share of the Italy road freight transport market in 2025 despite a 3.4% sector turnover decline that year. The Italy road freight transport market size attached to manufacturing is expected to expand at a muted CAGR from 2026-2031 as producers prioritize value-added exports such as pharmaceuticals and specialty foods. Wholesale and retail trade is the fastest-growing end user, registering a 4.02% CAGR between 2026-2031, buoyed by e-commerce and omnichannel distribution strategies that intensify parcel flows.
Specialized freight niches fortify margins: temperature-controlled hauls for drugs and food leverage GDP and HACCP compliance to secure premiums. Construction demand lags amid residential weakness following tax incentive withdrawal, yet public infrastructure works provide offsetting volume. Agriculture, fishing, and forestry maintain steady northbound flows of Mediterranean produce, while oil, gas, mining, and quarrying shipments retreat alongside refining throughput. Logistics providers such as DHL pivot to life sciences and energy segments to defend revenue diversity.
Domestic lanes accounted for 63.55% of the Italy road freight transport market size in 2025, supported by dense internal consumption corridors. International freight, however, posts a 4.03% CAGR between 2026-2031 as carriers exploit upgraded Alpine links and growing U.S. trade surpluses totaling EUR 34.7 billion (USD 38.29 billion) in 2024.
Cross-border operations experience higher compliance costs from e-CMR and toll changes but benefit from superior yield per kilometer. DSV’s acquisition of DB Schenker broadens network density, offering shippers seamless trans-Alpine coverage. Domestic freight advantages include predictable scheduling and lower paperwork, yet carriers must adapt to urban emissions caps that raise fleet upgrade necessities.
Full-truck-load services represented 81.92% of the Italy road freight transport market in 2025, reflecting direct-route cost advantages. Less-than-truck-load values are forecast to rise at 3.82% CAGR (2026-2031) as e-commerce fragmentation increases palletized movements. The Italy road freight transport market share for LTL therefore climbs gradually through 2031, buoyed by AI routing that matches loads and backhauls in real time.
FTL carriers battle driver scarcity and rising road tolls but leverage manufacturing rebound for steady outbound utilization. LTL providers invest in hub-and-spoke consolidation, IoT tracking, and API integrations to satisfy retailers’ next-day expectations. Consolidation accelerates as mid-tier fleets seek cost advantage via shared networks and digital dispatch platforms.
The Italy Road Freight Transport Market Report is Segmented by End User Industry (Manufacturing, and More), Destination (Domestic and International), Truckload Specification (FTL and LTL), Distance (Long Haul and Short Haul), Goods Configuration (Fluid Goods and Solid Goods), Temperature Control (Non-Temperature and Temperature Controlled), and by Containerization. The Market Forecasts are Provided in Terms of Value (USD).
List of Companies Covered in this Report:
- Alpina Italiana SpA
- Arcese Trasporti SpA
- DACHSER
- DHL Group
- DSV A/S (Including DB Schenker)
- Fercam SpA (FERCAM HOLDING Srl)
- Fiege Logistics
- GEODIS
- Girteka
- Gruppo Di Martino
- Kuehne+Nagel
- La Poste Group (Including BRT)
- Lannutti Group
- Number 1 Logistics Group SpA
- Poste Italiane
- Raben Group
- Savino Del Bene
- STEF Group
- Transmec Group
- United Parcel Service of America, Inc. (UPS)
Additional Benefits:
- The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
- 3 months of analyst support
Table of Contents
- 1 Introduction
- 1.1 Study Assumptions and Market Definition
- 1.2 Scope of the Study
- 2 Research Methodology
- 3 Executive Summary
- 4 Market Landscape
- 4.1 Market Overview
- 4.2 GDP Distribution by Economic Activity
- 4.3 GDP Growth by Economic Activity
- 4.4 Economic Performance and Profile
- 4.4.1 Trends in E-Commerce Industry
- 4.4.2 Trends in Manufacturing Industry
- 4.5 Transport and Storage Sector GDP
- 4.6 Logistics Performance
- 4.7 Length of Roads
- 4.8 Export Trends
- 4.9 Import Trends
- 4.10 Fuel Pricing Trends
- 4.11 Trucking Operational Costs
- 4.12 Trucking Fleet Size by Type
- 4.13 Major Truck Suppliers
- 4.14 Road Freight Tonnage Trends
- 4.15 Road Freight Pricing Trends
- 4.16 Modal Share
- 4.17 Inflation
- 4.18 Regulatory Framework
- 4.19 Value Chain and Distribution Channel Analysis
- 4.20 Market Drivers
- 4.20.1 Surge in -E-Commerce and Last-mile Demand
- 4.20.2 Manufacturing Export Rebound Post-COVID
- 4.20.3 EU-funded Road-bridge Megaproject Pipeline
- 4.20.4 OEM Fleet Modernisation and HVO Adoption
- 4.20.5 AI-optimised Empty-backhaul Exchanges
- 4.20.6 OEM Battery-swap Trucks for Alpine Corridors
- 4.21 Market Restraints
- 4.21.1 Driver Shortage and Ageing Workforce
- 4.21.2 Diesel and Power Prices
- 4.21.3 Border E-CMR Data-compliance Costs
- 4.21.4 Bridge Load-class Downgrades in South Italy
- 4.22 Technology Innovations in the Market
- 4.23 Porter's Five Forces Analysis
- 4.23.1 Threat of New Entrants
- 4.23.2 Bargaining Power of Buyers
- 4.23.3 Bargaining Power of Suppliers
- 4.23.4 Threat of Substitutes
- 4.23.5 Competitive Rivalry
- 5 Market Size and Growth Forecasts (Value, USD)
- 5.1 End User Industry
- 5.1.1 Agriculture, Fishing, and Forestry
- 5.1.2 Construction
- 5.1.3 Manufacturing
- 5.1.4 Oil and Gas, Mining and Quarrying
- 5.1.5 Wholesale and Retail Trade
- 5.1.6 Others
- 5.2 Destination
- 5.2.1 Domestic
- 5.2.2 International
- 5.3 Truckload Specification
- 5.3.1 Full-Truck-Load (FTL)
- 5.3.2 Less than-Truck-Load (LTL)
- 5.4 Containerization
- 5.4.1 Containerized
- 5.4.2 Non-Containerized
- 5.5 Distance
- 5.5.1 Long Haul
- 5.5.2 Short Haul
- 5.6 Goods Configuration
- 5.6.1 Fluid Goods
- 5.6.2 Solid Goods
- 5.7 Temperature Control
- 5.7.1 Non-Temperature Controlled
- 5.7.2 Temperature Controlled
- 6 Competitive Landscape
- 6.1 Market Concentration
- 6.2 Key Strategic Moves
- 6.3 Market Share Analysis
- 6.4 Company Profiles (Includes Global Level Overview, Market Level Overview, Core Segments, Financials as Available, Strategic Information, Market Rank/Share for Key Companies, Products and Services, and Recent Developments)
- 6.4.1 Alpina Italiana SpA
- 6.4.2 Arcese Trasporti SpA
- 6.4.3 DACHSER
- 6.4.4 DHL Group
- 6.4.5 DSV A/S (Including DB Schenker)
- 6.4.6 Fercam SpA (FERCAM HOLDING Srl)
- 6.4.7 Fiege Logistics
- 6.4.8 GEODIS
- 6.4.9 Girteka
- 6.4.10 Gruppo Di Martino
- 6.4.11 Kuehne+Nagel
- 6.4.12 La Poste Group (Including BRT)
- 6.4.13 Lannutti Group
- 6.4.14 Number 1 Logistics Group SpA
- 6.4.15 Poste Italiane
- 6.4.16 Raben Group
- 6.4.17 Savino Del Bene
- 6.4.18 STEF Group
- 6.4.19 Transmec Group
- 6.4.20 United Parcel Service of America, Inc. (UPS)
- 7 Market Opportunities and Future Outlook
- 7.1 White-Space and Unmet-Need Assessment
Pricing
Currency Rates