Trucking Flatbed

In trucking, flatbed means a trailer with an open deck and no sides or roof. Because the deck is open, freight can be loaded from the side, the top or the rear using a forklift, crane or ramps. Flatbeds carry freight that is too long, tall, heavy or oddly shaped for an enclosed trailer, such as steel, lumber, pipe and machinery. A standard flatbed is 48 to 53 ft long and carries up to 48,000 lbs. Freight is tied down with chains or straps and covered with tarps when it must stay dry.

Tall loads usually need a trailer with a lower deck. A standard flatbed deck sits about 5 ft off the ground, so tall freight on it can quickly pass legal height limits, which are set by each state. A step deck lowers the rear section, and a double drop or removable gooseneck trailer sits lower still, which keeps more freight within limits. If no trailer keeps the load under the limit, it needs an oversize permit. Give the exact height of the tallest piece when you ask for a truck.

A standard flatbed has one flat deck about 5 ft off the ground and suits most open-deck freight. A step deck has a lower rear section for taller loads. A double drop has a low well between raised front and rear sections, which handles very tall freight. An RGN, or removable gooseneck, has a front that detaches so the deck drops to the ground and equipment can drive on. Each lower trailer trades some deck length or ease of loading for extra height clearance.

A load needs an oversize or overweight permit when its width, height, length or weight passes the legal limits for the roads it travels. The limits vary by state, so a cross-country load may need permits from several states. Pilot cars, or escort vehicles, are required when loads pass larger thresholds set by each state, and very large loads may need route surveys or police escorts. Exact dimensions and weight, shared early, give time to plan permits, escorts and the route before pickup.

Federal rules require drivers to inspect cargo and its securement before the trip and then recheck it during the trip. Drivers check the load within the first stretch of driving and again at regular intervals, as well as when they change duty status, adjusting chains, straps and tarps as needed. Freight can shift or tiedowns can loosen with braking, turns and bumps. For shippers, the practical point is that well-prepared freight, with flat bearing surfaces and clear tiedown points, secures faster and travels more safely.

Usually, yes. Flatbed drivers secure and tarp freight, but they rarely load or unload it themselves. Heavy freight needs a forklift or crane at both ends, and the equipment must be rated for the weight and reach required. Equipment that drives on needs ramps or a low-deck trailer and someone to operate it. Tell the dispatcher what equipment is available at each site, so the right trailer is sent and the truck does not wait. Missing loading equipment is one of the most common causes of flatbed delays.

Both protect freight from weather, but in different ways. A tarped flatbed uses heavy tarps strapped over the load, which works for most freight but takes time and may not suit sharp or delicate items. A Conestoga has a sliding cover on a rolling frame, so it loads like a flatbed and closes like an enclosed trailer, with less handling. Conestogas suit finished goods, coated steel and equipment that must stay clean. The frame limits height somewhat, so very tall loads may still need a tarped flatbed or step deck.

A flatbed truck has a flat open platform instead of a pickup's walled cargo bed, which makes it easier to load from the sides with a forklift. In freight, flatbed usually means a semi tractor pulling a 48 to 53 ft open trailer. A pickup can pull a flatbed or gooseneck trailer too, which is how hot shot trucking works, carrying up to 16,000 lbs on a deck up to about 40 ft. The semi flatbed carries much heavier and longer loads, while the pickup and trailer suit smaller urgent freight.

Flatbeds haul freight that is too big, heavy or awkward for an enclosed trailer, or that must be loaded from the side or top. Common loads include steel beams, coils and rebar, lumber and building materials, pipe, machinery, construction and farm equipment, transformers, generators and prefabricated structures. Palletized freight can ride on a flatbed too when it loads by forklift from the side. Freight that must stay dry is tarped or moved on a Conestoga. Very tall or heavy items may need a step deck, double drop or RGN.

This page is written for shippers, but many people searching for flatbed trucking are drivers. Driving a tractor-trailer flatbed requires a Class A commercial driver's license, and carriers often look for experience with load securement and tarping. Smaller hot shot setups may or may not require a CDL, depending on the combined weight rating of the truck and trailer. Drivers can confirm current license, medical and endorsement requirements with FMCSA before applying for flatbed work or setting up their own operating authority.