Auto Transport South Dakota

Though South Dakota is the 17th largest state in the U.S. in terms of total area, it ranks 46th in terms of both population and population density. In other words, South Dakota is a big state with not a lot of people living there – its total population is under one million. Having a lot of space without a lot of people living in it makes for a difficult journey for auto transport carriers, who often rely on pickups and deliveries along the routes they drive and schedule them to occur quite frequently. This doesn’t happen in South Dakota, which is one of the reasons why most carriers try to avoid traveling to South Dakota – and if they do, they will need to increase the price to compensate for the lack of orders in the area.

With just two interstate highways crossing South Dakota, it is not the easiest of states to get around in and this is another reason why many auto shippers prefer to avoid South Dakota. I-90 is the main east-west interstate and serves several different population centers. I-29 is the main north-south interstate and runs along the eastern edge of the state and into North Dakota. I-90 is a popular interstate for auto shippers running routes in the northern regions, especially from Minnesota to Wyoming and Montana, although there are typically fewer carriers in the northern states as opposed to the southern ones.

Though the temperatures in South Dakota are not as extreme as its northern neighbor, it still does see a lot of snow in the winter months, which can cause delays and price increases if you are looking to transport a car during that time. Many car shippers will actually move down to the more southern states and run routes through warmer areas due to the snow. During the summer months, temperatures hover in the mid-to-upper 80’s during the day and overnight lows dip into the low-to-mid 60’s. This is probably the best time to ship a car to or from the state, as the weather is nicer, there are more carriers in the area and prices tend to be lower.

Like most other states in the region, South Dakota’s economy has long been driven by agriculture, with such major crops as sorghum, pork, cattle, soybeans and corn. Over the past forty or fifty years the economy of the state has diversified, however, and though agriculture still makes up a major part of its overall earnings every year it is not the largest sector; that belongs to the service industry, which includes banking and finance firms, health care, and retail. Tourism is also a large part of the state’s economy, which is somewhat surprising.

Ready to ship? Fill out the free quote request form and licensed auto transport companies will contact you with quotes for your route and dates.