Car shipping from a border city beside I-40
Fort Smith sits on the Arkansas River at the Oklahoma line, and it has been a transportation town since its frontier days. ArcBest, one of the country’s larger freight companies, has its headquarters here. For vehicle shipping the useful fact is simpler: I-40, one of the main coast-to-coast truck routes, passes just north of the city through Van Buren.
Carriers running between Oklahoma City and Little Rock or Memphis come within a few miles of Fort Smith every day. They reach the city on I-540, which leaves I-40 at Van Buren, crosses the river, and runs down the east side of town past Rogers Avenue and Zero Street. A stop here adds very little to a truck’s route, and that helps with both timing and price.
Where carriers load in Fort Smith
- Downtown and Belle Grove. Garrison Avenue is unusually wide, but the Victorian blocks of the Belle Grove Historic District beside it have narrow, shaded streets. On festival weekends the avenue itself can be closed to traffic. Drivers usually pick a broad cross street or a lot nearby.
- Rogers Avenue and Phoenix Avenue. The commercial east side, around Central Mall, has the biggest parking lots in town and sits close to I-540. It is the most common place to meet a truck.
- Chaffee Crossing. The newer development on former Fort Chaffee land has wide, modern streets and easy access from the southeast side.
- Fianna Hills and south Fort Smith. The streets wind uphill here. Carriers tend to wait at the bottom, along Highway 71 South, and have you bring the car down.
We also arrange pickups in Van Buren, Alma, Barling, and Greenwood.
Across the state line
Part of the Fort Smith area is in Oklahoma. If you live in Arkoma, Pocola, Roland, or Sallisaw, we ship from your address in the same way. Enter your own ZIP code in the quote form, because the price is based on where the truck actually stops, and an Oklahoma ZIP keeps the paperwork straight.
Many local shipments are short hops: a car bought from a Tulsa dealer, a student’s vehicle headed to Norman or Fayetteville, a pickup sold to a buyer in Oklahoma City. With so many carriers passing by, these can often be arranged on short notice. A 60-mile trip to Fayetteville, though, is one you may decide to drive yourself.
Ebbing Air National Guard Base and Fort Chaffee
Fort Smith has a growing military community. Ebbing Air National Guard Base, beside the regional airport, now hosts a training mission for allied F-35 pilots, which brings aircrews and support staff, some with families, to the city for extended assignments. Fort Chaffee, on the southeast side, is a Guard training center that fills with visiting units for weeks at a time.
We arrange transport for people arriving for those assignments and leaving when they end. Two things help: tell us the dates on your orders, and plan to meet the carrier outside the gate, since commercial trucks are not waved through security. If you bought a car locally for a temporary posting and sell it when you leave, we can deliver it to the buyer.
Students, plant transfers, and other reasons to ship
The University of Arkansas–Fort Smith and the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education at Chaffee Crossing bring students from other states every year. Health-sciences students in particular often arrive from far enough away that shipping beats a multi-day drive. The city’s factories and hospitals also move managers, engineers, and nurses in and out.
If your employer is paying for the move, ask whether vehicle shipping is covered and which documents they need. If you are paying yourself, flexible dates are the easiest way to keep the cost down.
Fort Smith car shipping routes
Distances and typical transit times for trips along I-40 and beyond. Westbound trips start with a run across Oklahoma.
| Destination | Distance | Typical time on the truck |
|---|---|---|
| Tulsa, OK | About 115 miles | 1 to 2 days |
| Little Rock, AR | About 160 miles | 1 to 2 days |
| Oklahoma City, OK | About 180 miles | 1 to 2 days |
| Dallas, TX | About 270 miles | 2 to 4 days |
| Memphis, TN | About 290 miles | 2 to 4 days |
| Kansas City, MO | About 300 miles | 2 to 4 days |
| St. Louis, MO | About 420 miles | 2 to 4 days |
| Albuquerque, NM | About 720 miles | 3 to 5 days |
| Phoenix, AZ | About 1,180 miles | 4 to 6 days |
| Los Angeles, CA | About 1,510 miles | 5 to 8 days |
Mileage is approximate. Transit times are typical ranges once the vehicle is loaded, not guarantees. Weather, traffic, and other stops on the truck can shift them.
Timing a Fort Smith pickup
Because trucks pass on I-40 daily, a Fort Smith pickup can often be arranged within a few days of booking. The busiest stretches are June through August, when families move, and the weeks in late summer when students arrive. Book further ahead then.
Winter needs a little patience. Ice in eastern Oklahoma or the Ozark foothills can slow I-40 for a day at a time, and a wreck on the interstate can do the same in any season. Your driver will call if the schedule slips, so there is no need to wait at home.
Fort Smith car shipping questions
Do you pick up in Van Buren, or do I need to come into Fort Smith?
We come to you. Van Buren is right on I-40, so it is often the easiest stop in the area for a carrier. The same goes for Alma, a few miles east at the I-49 junction.
I am in Fort Smith for a training assignment. Can I ship a car here and back?
Yes. Book the trip in when you have your arrival date, and book the return once your departure is confirmed. Assignments get extended, so it is better not to lock in the second leg too early.
Do you ship motorcycles and side-by-sides?
Motorcycles, yes. Call the office with the make and model. ATVs and side-by-sides are quoted by phone as well, because their size and weight vary so much.
Is open transport fine for a long trip to the West Coast?
For most vehicles, yes. Open carriers are what dealers use to move new cars across the country. Your car will arrive dusty and will need a wash. Choose enclosed if it is a collector car or has delicate paint.
What happens if I-40 is closed or the truck is delayed?
Delays from weather and accidents are part of trucking. The driver updates you by phone and gives a new arrival time, and you can call our Fort Smith office at any point for a status check.