Open, enclosed, and expedited auto transport across Boston and the inner suburbs, planned around the streets a trailer cannot use.
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Boston, Massachusetts
Car shipping in Boston works well once you accept that a seventy-five-foot trailer cannot use half the streets.
Ship Guy is a licensed auto transport broker. We book vetted carriers across Boston and the inner suburbs, and we do not own the trucks.
Storrow Drive bans trucks and shears the roof off one every September. Beacon Hill and the North End are narrower still. Carriers meet you where they fit.
This page covers the streets, the September first moving frenzy, and the tunnels. It also covers the winter parking bans and the lane south to Florida.
Most pickups happen within 1 to 3 days. The meeting spot is usually near Route 128 or the Pike.
Providence and Portland are same-day lanes. New York takes a day. Florida runs three to four.
September first is the busiest moving day of the year here. If your lease turns over then, book the car two to three weeks out.
The Streets
Boston has more streets a carrier cannot use than almost any city in the country.
Storrow Drive bans trucks outright, and its low bridges peel the roof off a rental truck every fall. Memorial Drive across the river is the same.
Beacon Hill is cobblestone, one-way, and gaslit, with streets barely a car wide. The North End, Charlestown, and the South End alleys are nearly as tight.
Resident permit parking covers most of the city, so a truck cannot idle at the curb for long. Carriers plan around all of it by meeting on wide roads.
Commonwealth Avenue in Allston and the big retail centers along Route 1 both work. So do the lots near the stadium in Foxborough. Tell us your neighborhood and we will name a spot.
September First
Most Boston leases turn over on September first, and the whole city moves at once.
Allston, Brighton, Mission Hill, and Fenway fill with rental trucks and discarded furniture. Streets close, and a car carrier cannot get near them.
For addresses in the student neighborhoods, we schedule the car a few days before or after the turnover. Late August is the sweet spot.
Boston University, Northeastern, Harvard, MIT, Boston College, and Tufts all bring cars in that week. The handoff happens at a lot near Route 128 rather than at the dorm.
Late May and early June run the other direction, with cars heading home. Both windows fill fast, so book ahead.
The Tunnels
Boston’s highways run underground through the middle of the city, and that shapes a carrier’s route.
Interstate 93 dives through the O’Neill Tunnel downtown. The Pike reaches Logan through the Ted Williams Tunnel, and the Sumner and Callahan tunnels carry Route 1A.
All of them have height and hazmat limits, and the tolls are built into every quote. Carriers use them without trouble.
Route 128 loops the city and Interstate 495 loops the suburbs. Most carriers stage on those rings and enter only for the pickup.
Logan is reached through the tunnels, and fly-and-ship is routine. You land, and the car shows up a few days behind you.
Lanes & Costs
The corridors out of New England, with estimated open-transport ranges. Price your exact route above.
| Route | Corridor · distance | Est. transit | Est. open rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Providence, RI | I-95 · ~50 mi | Same day | $150–$240 |
| Hartford, CT | I-90/I-84 · ~100 mi | Same day | $170–$280 |
| Portland, ME | I-95 · ~110 mi | Same day | $180–$290 |
| New York, NY | I-95/I-84 · ~215 mi | 1 day | $230–$350 |
| Philadelphia, PA | I-95 · ~310 mi | 1 day | $270–$400 |
| Washington, DC | I-95 · ~440 mi | 1–2 days | $370–$540 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | I-90/I-79 · ~575 mi | 2 days | $450–$650 |
| Charlotte, NC | I-95/I-85 · ~840 mi | 2–3 days | $600–$880 |
| Chicago, IL | I-90 · ~985 mi | 3 days | $700–$980 |
| Orlando, FL | I-95 · ~1,300 mi | 3–4 days | $860–$1,220 |
*2026 estimates, running sedan, open trailer. Larger vehicles cost roughly 10 to 25 percent more, enclosed more again. Season and carrier availability on your dates determine the real quote.
Interstate 95 south is the workhorse lane. New York, Washington, and Florida all ride it, and carriers run it every day.
Florida lanes swing with the snowbird season, and the Pike west to Chicago is steady year round. See the cost guide for the other variables.
Winter
Boston winters shape where and when a carrier can stop.
When the city declares a snow emergency, parking bans clear the main arteries. A carrier cannot stage on them until the ban lifts.
After a storm, shoveled spaces sprout space savers, and the side streets narrow to one lane. Meeting spots move to plowed lots.
Nor’easters can close the highways for a day. Carriers wait for plows rather than push through, and windows stretch accordingly.
Road salt runs from November through March. Collector cars often go enclosed in those months.
Who Ships Here
Beyond the students, three groups keep Boston carriers busy.
Kendall Square and the Seaport relocate scientists and engineers from across the country. Those relocations run on start dates, not seasons.
Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford moves personnel on orders year round. Hanscom housing is gated, so you meet the driver outside.
Every fall, retirees from the suburbs send cars south on Interstate 95 to Florida. The return runs in spring.
Ship Guy is a private company with no military link. Our snowbird and military pages cover those moves.
Your Options
Open transport is the standard here, and most Interstate 95 traffic rides open.
An enclosed trailer keeps salt, slush, and grit off the car all winter. Wellesley and Brookline keep enclosed carriers busy with collector cars.
A commuter car does just fine riding open. Our open and enclosed pages describe both.
The Basics
Price it, pick it up, deliver it. That is the entire process.
Once the price is set, a carrier is assigned. The driver writes up the car’s condition on a Bill of Lading. You sign it at the handoff. That write-up is your reference when the car arrives.
The how it works and preparation guides go step by step.
Why Ship Guy
We know which streets a trailer cannot use and which week the whole city moves.
Ship Guy operates with active FMCSA brokerage authority and a $75,000 surety bond, both verifiable on public records.
One coordinator sees your shipment through, quote to delivery. That person can arrange open, enclosed, or expedited transport. The services page has the full range.
Nearby
Carriers that work Boston also cover these nearby cities.
Statewide guide: Massachusetts auto transport · See all 66 cities we serve →
Visit Us
Our office is at Park Plaza in Back Bay. It is steps from the Common and a short walk to the Pike.
Boston FAQ
No, and it is not a reflection on your street. Those neighborhoods are cobblestone, one-way, and barely a car wide. Storrow Drive bans trucks, and permit parking limits idling everywhere else. The driver meets you on a wide road or in a large lot instead. It is minutes from home. The spot is named before dispatch.
Yes, with timing. Most Boston leases turn over that day, and Allston, Brighton, and Fenway fill with rental trucks. A car carrier cannot get near them. We schedule the car a few days before or after the turnover, and late August is ideal. Book two to three weeks out. The handoff happens at a lot near Route 128.
Orlando usually runs eight hundred sixty to about twelve hundred dollars for a sedan. Miami is a bit more. Interstate 95 goes almost the whole way, about thirteen hundred miles. October through December is the pricier window for southbound cars. Larger vehicles add 10 to 25 percent. Run a quote with your actual dates.
They are built into the quote. Carriers pay the Pike and tunnel tolls and price accordingly, so there is no separate charge. The tunnels have height and hazmat limits that a car carrier meets without trouble. Routes around the city on Route 128 avoid most of them anyway.
Parking bans clear the main arteries, so a carrier cannot stage on them until the ban lifts. Meeting spots move to plowed lots. If a nor’easter closes the highways, carriers wait for plows rather than push through. A winter window can stretch by a day. We tell you as soon as the schedule changes.
Yes, fly-and-ship is routine in Boston. Delivery lands in the days after your flight. The handoff happens at your new address if the street allows it, or at a lot nearby. The person meeting the driver has to be over eighteen. Tell us your flight and we plan around it.
Yes, we handle student cars every late August and again in May. The handoff happens at a lot near Route 128 rather than at the dorm. The student neighborhoods are too tight. Whoever meets the driver must be an adult. Both windows fill fast, so book ahead.
Yes, everything inside Interstate 495 is covered. Cambridge and Somerville have the same tight streets as the city, so plan on a meeting spot. Newton, Wellesley, and the outer suburbs are wide enough for curbside. Prices and timing hold across the region.
Yes, cars that will not start ship out of Boston regularly. A carrier with a winch loads it, and the longer job comes with a fee. Report whether it rolls, steers, and brakes. The carrier follows from that.
Two addresses to start: pickup and delivery. Add the vehicle’s year, make, and model. Say whether it runs and rolls under its own power. Select open or enclosed and share a date range. That is what an accurate Boston quote needs. Precise details, tight number.
Get Started
A quote takes two minutes or less. Then tell us your neighborhood and whether you are moving September first, and we will plan the handoff.