Currently, there are 6.4 million medium and heavy commercial vehicles on European roads, which is 3.2% more than in 2020. The transport giant Poland boasts the largest fleet, with over 1.2 million trucks. However, the most modern fleet of trucks in the EU belongs to Lithuania.

The truck fleet in Lithuania is not the largest—it consists of only 73,000 units (for comparison, Latvia has 33,100, and Estonia has 41,000). However, it has been steadily growing over the years, having increased by nearly 20% since 2017. Moreover, it is considered one of the most modern fleets.

The average age of trucks in the EU is 14.2 years, with Greece having the oldest fleet (22.7 years), while Austria (6.6 years) and Denmark (7.5 years) have the newest vehicles. The average age of Lithuania’s truck fleet is 10 years. Trucks older than 10 years make up 40% of the Lithuanian fleet, while 20% are between 5 and 10 years old.

It’s worth noting that Lithuania’s truck fleet is one of the most modern in Europe, with 10% of Lithuanian trucks (7,600 units) being from 2021 or later. In comparison, transport giant Poland has only 2.7% of heavy trucks from that year. In Italy and Spain, trucks from 2021 make up 3% of their fleets, while in France it’s 7% and in Germany it’s 9%.

In 2022, business investments in new trucks in Lithuania exceeded €1 billion for the first time. Compared to 2021, investments in this segment grew by a quarter. Over the past five years, they have approached €4 billion. Lithuania ranks first in the European Union for relative investments in Euro 6 standard heavy vehicles.

According to the International Transport and Logistics Alliance (TTLA), investments in machinery, equipment, and vehicles for freight transport account for the largest share of total business investments in this category—around 24%. According to Povilas Driza, the head of the alliance, the slowdown in industrial production and export growth in Europe intensifies competition among carriers for freight transportation.