Car shipping in Houston

Greater Houston covers a lot of ground. A delivery in Kingwood and one in Pearland can be 45 minutes apart on a good day and much longer at rush hour. Carriers plan the metro in sections: north along I-45 and US-59, west along I-10 to Katy, southwest to Sugar Land, south toward Clear Lake. The more precisely you give us your address, the more useful the delivery window we can give you.

Demand here runs on work. Energy companies, the Texas Medical Center, NASA's Johnson Space Center and a long list of corporate offices keep a steady flow of relocations moving in and out. Add the pickups, big SUVs and work trucks Houston drives, and dealers moving inventory to and from the region's auction lots, and the city stays busy all year rather than in one seasonal burst.

We arrange door-to-door service across Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery and Galveston counties. Here's what to expect in the areas we hear about most:

The biggest inbound flow comes from the West Coast. California to Texas carries a steady stream of relocations from Los Angeles, Orange County and the Bay Area, with Houston at the end of the I-10 run. The reverse, Texas to California, is busy too, often with job changes and people moving home.

Eastbound, Texas to Florida follows I-10 across Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama into the Panhandle and on down the peninsula. It's a common move for families relocating to Tampa or Orlando. Inside Texas, Dallas is a short hop up I-45, and plenty of company transfers go that way.

If your employer is paying for the move, our corporate relocation car shipping service keeps one point of contact for HR and the employee.

Most Houston deliveries are simple. The exceptions are predictable, and almost all of them involve tight streets, standing water or something the car itself needs:

• Inside the Loop, plan on an arterial. Residential streets in the Heights, Montrose and River Oaks are narrow, shaded by big oaks and often posted against through trucks. Expect to meet the driver on Shepherd, Kirby, Westheimer or a similar main road.
• High-rises unload at the curb. Uptown and Galleria towers don't take car carriers into their garages, so the car comes off on the street and you drive it in. Give the concierge a heads-up.
• Respect the water. A heavy storm can flood underpasses and low streets fast. Carriers won't drive into high water and may hold a delivery for a few hours until the roads drain.
• Take the EZ TAG out. Remove your toll tag before pickup so it doesn't register tolls as the truck works its way across the Sam Houston Tollway or the Hardy.
• Lifted trucks need measurements. Give us the height, tire size and any lift or rack, because deck clearance on a car carrier is limited. Our SUV and truck shipping page explains why it matters.
• Port pickups need a credential. Drivers entering secure terminals at the Port of Houston or Galveston need a TWIC card. Tell us the terminal and whether the car has been released, and we'll book a carrier whose driver can get in.

Houston doesn't have a winter rush the way Florida does. Relocations run all year and peak in summer, when families move between school years. The calendar that matters most is the Atlantic hurricane season, June 1 to November 30, and especially August and September. When a storm threatens the upper Texas coast, carriers reroute or pause, and after it passes the region sees a wave of replacement vehicles and dealer moves. If your dates are flexible, give us a wider window in late summer.

Late February into March, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo brings heavy traffic around NRG Park. If a car has been in flood water, tell us before you book. It may not run, and it changes how the car is handled (see inoperable vehicle transport).

Houston has two major airports on opposite sides of town. If you're flying in while the car travels, pick the one closer to where it's being delivered: