Auto Shipping Routes: New York City to Los Angeles
There are tens of thousands of different routes that see vehicles shipped on them every single day. From major cities to small cities to rural towns, auto transporters go where the vehicles need to go. As such, understanding a bit about auto shipping routes and your route and what to expect when shipping a car is important.
That’s why we’re going to cover one of the most popular routes in the industry: New York City to Los Angeles. This route sees some of the heaviest auto shipping traffic, though believe it or not it is not the most popular route to ship a car along. We’ll discuss what can affect pickup times and windows, transit times along the route, and much more. Keep reading to learn more about auto shipping from New York City to Los Angeles and how American Auto Shipping can help you get it done.
Article Overview
New York City to Los Angeles auto transport overview
As you probably know, New York City and Los Angeles are the two largest cities in the United States by population. As such, they tend to see more than a few vehicles shipping to or from them at any given time.
On the whole, finding auto shipping services between the two largest cities in the country is fairly easy. More importantly, it should be relatively cheap, all things considered. Of course, it’s a coast-to-coast route, meaning carriers will travel a long, long distance to get from New York to Los Angeles.
However, one thing you need to know about both locations is they’re not exactly easy for carriers to get around in. Los Angeles is easier than New York, as the city saw most of its growth after the rise of the automobile. New York, though, is well-known for being difficult to traverse for larger vehicles.
As such, you may have to meet a carrier somewhere outside New York City proper to get the vehicle loaded. Alternatively, some companies can find a tow truck to pick your vehicle up within the five boroughs and bring it to a terminal where a carrier can load it. We recommend speaking to a representative about that.
A bit about the route
The route itself is fairly open-ended and isn’t confined to one specific road or interstate. Carriers have a fair amount of options in how they get from the west coast to the east coast, after all. So which route your carrier takes will depend on the other vehicles they are transporting and where they’re going.
The average transit time along routes from New York to California is 7-10 days. This is considered standard transit time along the route, though we’ve seen carriers make it in as little as three days and as many as two weeks. There are, however, several reasons for this.
Sometimes, carriers actually have two drivers in the truck. This cuts transit times in half – or more – as they have two drivers that can alternate, as opposed to one that has to stop and rest. With two drivers, one can be resting while the other is driving, allowing the truck to be on the road far longer.
When delays happen, it’s often due to government regulations. Transport truck drivers, regardless of the industry, have strict limits they must follow in regards to how often and how much they drive. After a point, they are required to take a mandatory 34-hour rest, sidelining them for over a day. This can result in longer wait times for pickup, transit, and delivery, and is felt the most on long-distance trips, such as cross-country.
How seasons can affect your shipping prices and services
Snowbird auto transport season kicks up around late August and into September, which tends to draw some of the focus away from cross-country routes. Snowbirds are simply people that like to move south for the winter before going back north in the spring. They split their time between northern and southern homes, to get the best out of the weather in each region. Typically, they move from New England to Florida, then from Florida to New England come the spring.
Snowbirds are a big boon for car shippers during the slower times of the year, but can also cause some issues. As the industry slows down, routes shift, which can cause some routes to raise in price due to carrier scarcity. This isn’t as big of an issue on a major route such as New York to Los Angeles but can affect smaller routes.
While prices on east-west routes are dictated more by demand from customers than the availability of carriers, it can cause issues when it comes to getting vehicles picked up on time. It might take longer for carriers on coast-to-coast routes to fill their trucks when snowbird demand is high. This can result in longer wait times for you. But it all depends on the state of the industry, so make sure to speak to an agent to learn more.
Need quotes for New York City to Los Angeles auto transport services?
Keep in mind that most carriers won’t be able to pick up or deliver within the downtown areas of either city. Therefore, most of the time you’ll need to arrange with the carrier to pickup and deliver your vehicle somewhere nearby. Luckily, they both have sprawling metro areas that shouldn’t be hard to get to.
You can read more about both cities, too. Visit our Auto transport Los Angeles and Auto shipping New York City pages for more.
Also, get a free quote for New York City to Los Angeles auto transport services via our free online quote request form. It’s free, it’s easy, should only take a minute or two, and gets you a quote immediately. Alternately, you can contact us any time at 800-930-7417 to speak to a representative. They can answer your questions, give you a quote and advice, book your shipment, and much more.
Since 2007 Dave has written all the content and blogs for American Auto Shipping and during this time added the duties of customer support and transport logistics.
He currently resides in Washington with his three kids and their mom and cat. A fan of Marvel movies and good stories, when not shipping cars Dave can be found working on his novel, enjoying a good book or playing some tournament HALO.
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