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Sell a Port Drayage Company in New Jersey

What a Port of NY & NJ drayage operation is actually worth, who the active acquirers are, why the credential stack is your real moat, and the October 1, 2026 classification rule every port carrier needs to address before going to market.

By Steven Reese, Founder & Principal Broker · Last updated August 23, 2026

The short answer: Drayage sits in the asset-based trucking bracket — roughly 5.5× EBITDA on average (Capstone Partners, 2019–2025) — but it carries a barrier to entry most trucking does not: the Drayage Truck Registry, TWIC and SEA LINK credential stack, and a model-year floor on equipment. With only 29% of registered port trucks actually in service and active roll-up buyers like RoadOne and Kuehne+Nagel/IMC acquiring, established NJ drayage operators have real leverage — provided worker classification is resolved before diligence.

Part of our guide to selling a trucking company in New Jersey.

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What a NJ Drayage Company Is Worth

Drayage is valued as asset-based trucking, which averaged 5.5× EV/EBITDA and 0.9× EV/revenue across 2019–2025 (Capstone Partners 3PL M&A Coverage Report, September 2025). Asset-light logistics businesses averaged about 12× over the same period — which is why drayage operators who also run brokerage, transloading or warehousing typically price better than pure chassis-and-tractor capacity.

A caution worth reading. There is no credible published dataset of drayage-specific transaction multiples. If another broker hands you a precise “drayage multiple,” ask what dataset it came from. We would rather build your valuation from your actual contracts, credentials, chassis position and earnings quality, and then defend it against real comparable transactions.

What actually moves a drayage valuation

Contracted vs. spot container volume. Direct beneficial-cargo-owner and steamship-line contracts underwrite far better than broker-sourced spot moves.
Driver model and classification posture. See the October 2026 rule below — this is the first thing a sophisticated buyer examines in a NJ port deal.
Chassis strategy. Owned or leased chassis pools versus pool-dependence materially affects both margin and buyer risk.
Terminal access and dual-transaction efficiency. Gate turn times and per-truck productivity are operating metrics buyers will model.
Ancillary revenue. Transloading, warehousing, container storage and yard capacity often carry better margins than the linehaul move itself.

The Port of NY & NJ: Scale and Scarcity

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the largest container port on the US East Coast and the third largest in the nation, handling roughly 8.90 million TEUs in 2025 — approximately 13.5% of all US port volume and 35.3% of East Coast volume.

The number that surprises buyers

Port Authority PortTruckPass reporting for May 2026 shows 35,404 trucks registered in the Drayage Truck Registry, but only 10,222 actually in service — about 29%. Those active trucks made 301,590 gate visits, averaging 29.5 visits each. Registered capacity and real capacity are very different things, and that gap is a genuine argument in a seller’s favor.

Your credential stack is the moat

Port work is not open-entry. It requires Drayage Truck Registry registration, TWIC credentials, and SEA LINK, alongside equipment meeting the registry’s standards — new registrations require model year 2014 or newer engines, though existing registrations are grandfathered (13.43% of registered trucks still run 1999–2006 engines). Fuel mix remains 99.57% diesel, with 23 electric trucks in the entire registry.

The practical point for a buyer: they cannot replicate your operation by hiring drivers and buying tractors next quarter. Credentialed, active, compliant port capacity takes time to build — and that is precisely what makes an acquisition attractive instead of an organic build.

What we will not claim: that port-adjacent carriers sell at a specific premium multiple. We could not find published transaction data proving it, and we are not going to invent a number. What we do is argue the mechanism — credential barriers, the registered-versus-active gap, and documented roll-up demand — with evidence a buyer can verify.

Who’s Acquiring Drayage Operators

Drayage and intermodal are among the most clearly consolidating segments in trucking:

Dedicated drayage roll-ups

RoadOne IntermodaLogistics, backed by Ridgemont Equity Partners and Nonantum Capital, has assembled more than 100 terminals and 2,500 drivers through acquisition — the clearest example of a purpose-built drayage platform buying regional operators.

Global forwarders buying asset-based capacity

Kuehne+Nagel acquired a 51% stake in IMC Logistics, which moves roughly 2 million TEUs a year. World Group acquired Dray Alliance. These buyers want controlled capacity at the gate, not brokered coverage.

Intermodal strategics

Hub Group acquired Marten’s intermodal operation at approximately 1.0× revenue.

Regional carriers and 3PLs

Asset-light logistics firms that want to bring port capacity in-house are consistent buyers of established NJ drayage books, particularly where the operation carries direct BCO relationships.

Why you should not approach them alone. These platforms are experienced, repeat acquirers — RoadOne alone has done it dozens of times. You have done it once. Approaching a single serial acquirer without alternatives is the weakest possible negotiating position, and they know it. A competitive process across strategics, forwarders and platform buyers is what produces real price discovery.

The October 1, 2026 Classification Rule — Non-Negotiable for Port Carriers

If you run owner-operators, address this before you go to market. New Jersey adopted N.J.A.C. 12:11 on May 5, 2026, operative October 1, 2026, codifying the ABC test for worker classification.

Two reasons New Jersey is harder than most states:

Hargrove v. Sleepy’s (2015) extended the ABC test to NJ Wage Payment and Wage & Hour claims.
Bedoya v. American Eagle Express (3d Cir. 2019) held the FAAAA does not preempt the ABC test — the preemption defense carriers use elsewhere has already failed in this circuit.

Enforcement is aimed at the port specifically

The NJ Department of Labor settled with STG Logistics / STG Drayage for $2,775,000 in July 2026, covering 300+ port drayage drivers, with a $7.5M penalty if breached. PDX North settled for $7,000,000 covering 1,000+ drivers. These are port drayage cases, not hypotheticals.

How this plays in a sale. Buyer’s counsel will price classification exposure into purchase price, escrow, or specific indemnities — and in drayage they will look for it immediately. A seller who arrives with documented contracts, defensible operational facts and counsel’s analysis already in the data room controls the conversation. A seller who lets it surface in week six of diligence is negotiating from behind. We pressure-test this before a single buyer sees your business.

Deal Mechanics Specific to Drayage

Authority structure

As with any carrier, a stock sale preserves the USDOT/MC numbers, safety rating, CSA history, IRP and IFTA — and all liabilities. An asset sale generally requires the buyer to obtain their own authority, including an 18-month new-entrant monitoring period. For drayage there is an added wrinkle: registry and credential continuity. How DTR registrations, SEA LINK and terminal access carry over should be confirmed early, because it directly affects whether the buyer can operate on day one.

Safety data the buyer cannot pull

CSA BASIC percentile rankings are not publicly available for property carriers (FAST Act §5223). If your safety profile is strong, it is a verifiable asset only if you produce it — typically as a controlled Safety Measurement System deliverable at LOI.

Chassis, equipment and lease exposure

Average Class 8 tractor age industry-wide has reached 6.3 years, a 12-year high (ACT Research), so a younger fleet is a real differentiator. TRAC lease residual shortfalls are the seller’s cash obligation at closing — model them before setting an asking price.

Factoring liens

Paying off an advance balance does not release the factor’s lien. Under UCC §9-513(c) sold accounts are carved out of the standard termination trigger. A clean closing needs a payoff letter, a letter of release to everyone on the notice of assignment, and a filed UCC-3 verified against the Secretary of State record.

Is Now the Time to Sell?

Freight rates reached records in mid-2026 — DAT’s July 2026 national spot averages were $3.01/mile van, $3.42 reefer and $3.64 flatbed, and SONAR’s National Truckload Index hit an all-time high of $3.78/mile on June 28, 2026. That strength is supply-driven: English Language Proficiency enforcement alone produced 60,399 violations and 19,045 out-of-service orders between June 2025 and March 2026, and ACT’s Driver Availability Index fell to a five-year low in April 2026.

Capacity is already returning — Class 8 orders more than tripled year over year in June 2026, with backlogs at a 38-month high. Since buyers underwrite trailing twelve-month earnings, the practical question is whether your numbers still carry the strong period when you go to market.

What we would actually tell you: nobody can time a freight cycle precisely — forecasters predicted a weak 2026 five months before rates hit records. What we can do is show you what buyers are paying today, what your trailing numbers support, and what a realistic process timeline looks like from engagement to funded close. Then you decide.

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Frequently asked questions

What is a drayage company worth in 2026?

Drayage sits inside the asset-based trucking bracket, which averaged about 5.5x EV/EBITDA and 0.9x EV/revenue from 2019 through 2025 according to Capstone Partners. Drayage-specific published multiples do not exist in any credible dataset, so treat precise niche figures from other brokers with caution. What is documented is that drayage and intermodal are actively consolidating, which supports competitive bidding for operators with real credentials, chassis strategy and terminal access.

Who is buying port drayage companies?

Drayage is one of the clearest roll-up categories in trucking. RoadOne IntermodaLogistics, backed by Ridgemont Equity Partners and Nonantum Capital, has assembled more than 100 terminals and 2,500 drivers through acquisition. Kuehne+Nagel acquired a 51% stake in IMC Logistics, which moves roughly 2 million TEUs annually. Hub Group acquired Marten's intermodal operation at about 1.0x revenue. Regional carriers and 3PLs seeking asset-based port capacity are also active buyers.

Why does Port of NY & NJ drayage command buyer interest?

The Port of New York and New Jersey is the largest container port on the US East Coast and the third largest in the nation, handling roughly 8.90 million TEUs in 2025, about 13.5% of US port volume. Port work also requires a layered credential stack including Drayage Truck Registry registration, TWIC and SEA LINK, plus equipment meeting the registry's model-year floor. A buyer cannot simply hire drivers and begin pulling containers, and that barrier to entry is what makes an established operation valuable.

How does the October 1, 2026 NJ contractor rule affect drayage companies?

It is the single largest diligence issue for NJ drayage. N.J.A.C. 12:11 becomes operative October 1, 2026, codifying New Jersey's ABC test. Enforcement has been aimed squarely at port drayage: the NJ Department of Labor settled with STG Logistics for $2,775,000 in July 2026 covering 300-plus port drayage drivers, and with PDX North for $7,000,000 covering 1,000-plus drivers. The Third Circuit held in Bedoya v. American Eagle Express that the FAAAA does not preempt the ABC test, so the federal preemption defense used in other states has already failed here.

How many trucks actually serve the Port of NY & NJ?

Fewer than the registry suggests. The Port Authority's PortTruckPass reporting for May 2026 shows 35,404 trucks registered in the Drayage Truck Registry but only 10,222 actually in service, about 29%. Those trucks made 301,590 gate visits, averaging 29.5 visits per truck. The gap between registered and active capacity is part of why an established, genuinely active drayage operation is harder to replicate than a raw truck count implies.