Drayage glossary
The words that show up on quotes and in conversations with carriers and terminals, alphabetically.
Last updated 2026-10-02
- Appointment
- The time window booked for picking up at a terminal or delivering to a warehouse. Many terminals and large warehouses will not admit a truck without one; a missed appointment means a dry run or a rebooking fee.
- Bobtail
- A tractor running without a chassis. A bobtail charge can apply when the driver has to go pick up or return a chassis separately.
- Chassis
- The trailer frame the container rides on. Charged per day from pickup until the empty is returned; the quote states the daily rate and the minimum days.
- Chassis split
- When the chassis and the container are picked up or returned at different places, so the driver makes an extra trip; charged per the accessorial schedule.
- Clean Truck Fund (CTF)
- A per-container fee at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, passed through at the actual amount.
- COC (carrier-owned container)
- A container owned by the ocean carrier; it must be returned to the designated depot, and per diem applies past free time.
- Demurrage
- What the terminal charges per day when a container sits there beyond its free days. Billed by the terminal to the cargo owner; not part of the drayage quote.
- Detention
- What the trucker charges by the hour when the driver waits at the warehouse beyond free time (usually two hours). Ocean carriers also use "detention" for per diem, which is a different charge.
- Drayage
- Short-distance trucking of a container between a port or rail ramp and a warehouse: the leg QuoteDray quotes.
- Drop
- The driver leaves the loaded container at the warehouse and comes back later for the empty, instead of waiting for the unload. Free or charged depending on the delivery address.
- Dry run
- The driver arrives at the terminal or warehouse but cannot pick up or deliver (not released, no appointment, refused). Charged per the accessorial schedule.
- ETA
- The vessel's estimated arrival. Where a quote shows an ETA window, the price applies to containers arriving in that window.
- Free time
- Days or hours without charge: terminal free days (then demurrage), ocean-carrier free days for the container (then per diem), and the trucker's free waiting time and free chassis days.
- FSC (fuel surcharge)
- A fuel charge many carriers list separately. QuoteDray's linehaul already includes fuel; there is no separate FSC.
- Hazmat
- Cargo that must move under hazardous-materials rules. Classification and documents are needed in advance; a hazmat fee applies per the schedule.
- LFD (last free day)
- The last day a container can sit at the terminal without demurrage. Pre-pulls usually exist to get the container out before the LFD.
- Linehaul
- The base trucking charge from pickup point to delivery address. QuoteDray quotes it as one price per container, fuel included.
- Live unload
- The driver waits while the warehouse unloads and takes the empty away. The opposite of a drop.
- Overweight
- Cargo above the legal limit (44,000 lbs for 40'/45', 38,000 lbs for 20'). Needs a tri-axle chassis and permits; priced in tiers. Saying so up front avoids a dry run.
- Per diem
- What the ocean carrier charges for each day the container is out beyond free time. Billed by the ocean carrier to the cargo owner; not part of the drayage quote.
- PierPass / TMF
- The Traffic Mitigation Fee at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, a fixed amount per container passed through at cost.
- Pre-pull
- Pulling the container from the terminal to a yard before the delivery day (to beat the LFD or because the terminal only has an appointment today), then delivering later. Pre-pull and yard fees apply.
- Rail ramp
- An intermodal rail terminal. Containers for inland destinations usually move by rail to the nearest ramp and are trucked from there; Chicago, Dallas and the like are ramp pickups.
- Residential
- Delivery to a home or an address without a dock or forklift. A residential fee applies, and a liftgate truck may be needed.
- SOC (shipper-owned container)
- A container the shipper owns. It is lifted off at delivery and not returned; the driver leaves with the chassis, so the move is priced one-way.
- Split delivery / stop-off
- One container delivered to two addresses; the second stop is charged per the schedule.
- Street turn
- Using an emptied import container directly for an export load instead of returning it to the terminal, saving a trip; needs the ocean carrier's approval.
- Terminal fee
- A fixed per-container charge by the terminal or port (PierPass, CTF, gate fees), passed through at cost.
- Transload
- Unloading the container's cargo onto a truck or pallets at a warehouse for onward shipping. Often paired with drayage but not part of the drayage quote.
- Tri-axle
- A three-axle chassis required for overweight containers; charged per the schedule.
- Yard storage
- A per-day charge for a container parked at the trucker's yard, typically after a pre-pull or when the warehouse cannot receive.