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Container off the ramp and onto your dock.

Port and rail drayage with the chassis handled, the free time tracked, and the charges explained before they hit.

The short leg

What is drayage?

Drayage is the short-haul trucking move that connects a container to the rest of the supply chain: from a port terminal or rail ramp to a warehouse, a transload facility, or your dock, and back again. It is usually under 100 miles. It is also the leg where most container delays and most unexpected charges happen.

What we handle

We are a broker, not a carrier. We source the truck and the chassis, work the terminal, and stay on the clock so you are not the one watching it.

Moves we cover:

Port drayage: container from the marine terminal to your facility

Rail ramp drayage: container off an intermodal ramp, the other end of a rail move

Transload: container unloaded and reloaded into a domestic trailer so you stop paying on ocean equipment

Empty return and drop-and-pick: box back before per diem stacks up, and no driver sitting at your dock

Where drayage actually costs you

01

Demurrage

Charged by the terminal, for your container sitting inside the port or ramp past its free time. Free time is usually three to five days. After that it accrues daily, and the rate escalates the longer it sits.

02

Per diem, or detention

Charged by the ocean carrier, for keeping their container and chassis past the allowed free days once you have pulled it out. Also usually three to five free days, then daily. It is a separate charge on a separate clock, and the two are constantly confused.

03

How we keep both off your invoice

We track the last free day from the moment the container is available and schedule the pull against it. If the box is going to sit, you hear it from us while there is still time to do something about it.

04

The chassis problem

A container needs a chassis to move on the road, and in most US markets that chassis is separate equipment with its own pool, its own supply and its own charges. Chassis shortages are one of the most common reasons a container that is ready does not move.

05

When to transload instead

If the box is going to sit, or the freight splits to more than one destination, transloading usually beats holding it. The container is stripped near the port or ramp and reloaded into a domestic 53-foot trailer. Ocean equipment goes back immediately, which stops per diem, and a 53-foot van holds meaningfully more than a 40-foot container.

06

Drop and pick

The container is dropped at your dock and collected when you are done, instead of a driver waiting on the clock while you unload. It costs a chassis for the duration, so it is worth doing when your unload window is genuinely unpredictable.

How we work a container

Indianapolis and the Midwest rail ramps first. That is where we are and where our carrier density is real. We will tell you plainly when a market is one we have to go source rather than one we already know.

We watch the last free day

From the moment the container is available, not from the moment you ask. The pull gets scheduled against the clock rather than against a wish.

The chassis is part of the move

We source it with the truck and flag a tight market before you promise a receiving date you cannot hit.

We price the alternative

If another day of per diem costs more than a transload, we will say so and quote you both.

FAQ

Common questions
about drayage

The questions that come up most, answered straight.

Drayage is the short-haul trucking move connecting a container to the rest of the supply chain: port or rail ramp to warehouse or dock, and back. It is typically under 100 miles, but it is where most container delays and unexpected charges occur.
Demurrage is charged by the terminal for your container sitting inside the port or ramp past free time. Per diem, sometimes called detention, is charged by the ocean carrier for keeping their container and chassis past the allowed free days after you have pulled it out. Both usually allow three to five free days, and both can run at the same time.
Typically three to five free days from when the container is available, though it varies by terminal and by contract, and the rate escalates the longer it sits. We track the last free day from the moment the box is available and schedule against it.
A chassis is the wheeled frame a container sits on to travel by road. In most US markets it is separate equipment from its own pool, with its own supply and its own charges. Chassis shortages are a common reason a container that is ready to move does not.
Transload if the box would otherwise sit, or if the freight splits to multiple destinations. You return the ocean equipment immediately, which stops per diem, and a 53-foot domestic trailer holds more than a 40-foot ocean container, so you often need fewer onward loads.

Got a container?

Give us the container number, the terminal and the last free day. We will tell you what it takes to get it out clean. Or call 1-800-632-1760.

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