# Transportation Coordinator

Source: https://storiara.com/roles/transportation-coordinator
Last updated: 2026-09-14
Author: Spencer Kaufman, Storiara

> A transportation coordinator is the department head responsible for every vehicle on a film or TV production. They budget and rent the trucks, trailers, vans, and picture cars, hire the captain and drivers, plan how base camp and company moves work, and track fuel, mileage, and rental costs through wrap. On union shows in Los Angeles the job falls under Teamsters Local 399.

## Where the job starts in prep

A transportation coordinator usually starts a few weeks into prep, often before most of the shooting crew. The first pass is a read of the script and the [shooting schedule](https://storiara.com/glossary/shooting-schedule) with a pencil, looking for anything with wheels or anything that has to be hauled: picture cars, a school bus in Scene 31, a night exterior on a highway shoulder, a week at a ranch 40 miles out. From that read the coordinator builds an equipment list and a transportation budget, then gets bids from truck and trailer rental houses.

The list for a mid-size feature tends to look like this:

| Unit | What it's for |
| --- | --- |
| Camera truck, grip truck, electric truck | Department equipment, driven by drivers or hyphenate crew |
| Production van or wardrobe trailer | Rolling department space |
| [Honeywagon](https://storiara.com/glossary/honeywagon) | Bathrooms and small dressing rooms at base camp |
| Star trailers and cast trailers | Cast dressing rooms, sized by deal memo |
| Hair and makeup trailer | Makeup stations |
| Crew shuttle vans | Moving crew from parking to set |
| Picture cars | Vehicles that appear on camera |
| Water truck, fuel truck | Wet-downs and generator fuel on location |

Each line gets a weekly rental, a delivery or mileage charge, and a driver. A coordinator who prices the trucks but forgets the driver on the honeywagon for the 8 days at a distant location will be explaining that variance on the [cost report](https://storiara.com/glossary/cost-report).

## Planning base camp and company moves

The coordinator walks locations with the [location manager](https://storiara.com/roles/location-manager) on scouts and on the tech scout. At each stop the questions are practical. Where does a 48-foot trailer turn around? Is there room for [base camp](https://storiara.com/glossary/base-camp) within walking distance, or does the crew need a shuttle? Does the street need a [parking permit](https://storiara.com/glossary/parking-permit) for the trucks the night before?

A [company move](https://storiara.com/glossary/company-move) is where transportation plans get tested. Say Day 12 has three pages at a diner in the morning and 2 4/8 pages at a house 6 miles away after lunch. The coordinator and captain work out which trucks move together, which stay put, and who leads the caravan. If the camera and grip trucks can leave while the cast trailers stay at the diner lot, the 1st AD may get the next setup lit sooner.

## During the shoot

Once cameras roll, the [transportation captain](https://storiara.com/roles/transportation-captain) runs the drivers on the day, and the coordinator shifts to the office side. That means approving time cards for the department, handling rental swaps when a generator trailer breaks down, keeping up with fuel receipts, and reading every [call sheet](https://storiara.com/glossary/call-sheet) and advance schedule for changes that affect vehicles. A night added to the schedule, a location swapped for weather, or a cast member flying in all mean vehicle and driver changes.

A realistic day for the coordinator on a shoot in Los Angeles might run from a 6:00 a.m. check-in with the captain, to the production office by 8:00, a vendor call about a replacement trailer at 10:30, a scout for next week's locations at 1:00 p.m., and the next day's transportation plan finished once the call sheet is approved in the evening.

## Wrap and the paperwork

At wrap the coordinator returns every rental and checks it in against the original condition reports. Damage claims, missing gas caps, and a van returned with 900 more miles than expected all land on this desk. The final transportation costs go to the [production accountant](https://storiara.com/roles/production-accountant) along with purchase orders and rental agreements.

The documents the coordinator touches most:

- The transportation budget and weekly cost reports
- Rental agreements and [certificates of insurance](https://storiara.com/glossary/certificate-of-insurance) for vendors
- Driver deal memos and start paperwork
- The daily transportation plan built off the call sheet
- Picture car lists cross-referenced against the script breakdown

## Pay under Local 399

On union productions in Los Angeles, Teamsters Local 399 covers the coordinator, captains, and drivers. The 2024 to 2027 Local 399 wage schedule lists the transportation coordinator as a weekly classification at a studio minimum of $4,305.60 per week effective August 2, 2026. On a 10-week feature (4 weeks of prep, 6 of shooting) at that minimum, the coordinator's base line in the budget is 10 x $4,305.60 = $43,056 before fringes. Local 399 also publishes separate schedules for distant location, episodic, basic cable, and low budget theatrical work, so check the right sheet for your show on the [Local 399 site](https://www.ht399.org/).

## How people get the job

Most coordinators come up through the department as drivers and then captains. Union shows hire from Local 399 members, and the [Industry Experience Roster](https://www.csatf.org/rosters-lists/industry-experience-roster/) run by Contract Services lists Teamsters Local 399 among the unions whose members may receive hiring preference. On non-union indie shoots the job often gets folded into the UPM's or a production coordinator's work, and the budget line may be a few van rentals and a stake bed.

## Where Storiara fits

Storiara pulls vehicles from the script into its Assets module (it lists animals and vehicles alongside props and wardrobe), and the Locations module holds the real address for each setting. That gives the coordinator a starting picture car list and a set of addresses from the script instead of building both by hand. See the [locations feature](https://storiara.com/feature/locations) for how addresses attach to scenes.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does a transportation coordinator do on a film?

They plan and budget every vehicle the show needs, rent the equipment, hire the transportation captain and drivers, and decide where the trucks park at each location. They also sign off on the transportation portion of the budget and the weekly cost reports.

### Is a transportation coordinator a union job?

On most studio features and series shot in Los Angeles, yes. Teamsters Local 399 covers transportation coordinators, captains, and drivers, and its 2024 to 2027 wage schedule lists the coordinator as a weekly classification.

### What is the difference between a transportation coordinator and a transportation captain?

The coordinator works mostly from the office in prep: budget, vendors, hiring, and planning. The captain runs the drivers on the ground during the shoot and keeps the day's moves on time.

### How much does a Local 399 transportation coordinator make?

The Local 399 studio minimum for a transportation coordinator is $4,305.60 per week for the period August 2, 2026 through July 31, 2027. Many coordinators negotiate above scale, and low budget and episodic schedules differ.

## Sources

- [Teamsters Local 399 2024-27 Basic Feature wage rates](https://www.ht399.org/app/uploads/2024/12/Basic-Feature-Wage-Rates-2024-to-2027.pdf)
- [Teamsters Local 399 contracts and rate sheets](https://www.ht399.org/)
- [Contract Services: Industry Experience Roster](https://www.csatf.org/rosters-lists/industry-experience-roster/)