Document And Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012	May 11, 2012 Common Class A [Member]	May 11, 2012 Common Class B [Member]
Entity Registrant Name	COVENANT TRANSPORTATION GROUP INC
Document Type	10-Q
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		12,371,552	2,350,000
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Central Index Key	0000928658
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Non-accelerated Filer
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1