Transportation Terminology Glossary of Terms
Accessorial Charge: Amount billed for additional, supplemental or special
services provided, usually a flat fee. Examples include Tarps, dunnage, layovers,
detention, etc.
All-in Line Haul: FSC + Line Haul.
Backhaul (Head haul): The return movement of a transportation vehicle from its
delivery point back to its point of origin
.
Bill of Lading (BOL): A document between a shipper and carrier acknowledging
the receipt of goods for transport and now available in electronic format (eBOL).
Describes the nature of the cargo, amount of cargo by weight, size and/or
number of pieces, and the origin and destination of the cargo.
Blockchain: A unique traceability service-ledger that builds immutable blocks of
information and prevents all risk of tampering with data. Of the logistics
terminology, blockchain is unique in that it can be a private consortia or publicly
traded system.
Bobtailing: A bobtail truck does not have a trailer attached. Bobtailing means
driving a cargo carrying truck (semi-truck) without a trailer. Bobtailing often
happens when a contracted truck driver is first sent out from dispatch to their pick
up site.
Box Truck: A box truck—also known as a box van, cube van, bob truck or cube
truck—is a chassis cab truck with an enclosed cuboid-shaped cargo area. On
most box trucks, the cabin is separate to the cargo area, however some box
trucks have a door between the cabin and the cargo area
Broker (freight): Individual or company that serves as a liaison between another
individual/company that needs shipping services and an authorized motor carrier.
Determines the needs of a shipper and connects that shipper with a carrier
capable of transporting the items at an acceptable price.
Carrier: Utilizes trucks and/or trailers to move goods from point A to point B.
Coil Racks: Prefabricated cradles made of wood or steel made to hold rolled
coils to keep them from rolling on a trailer.
Compliance, Safety, and Accountability (CSA): An FMCSA trucking
regulations program designed to provide motor carriers and drivers with attention
from FMCSA and State Partners about their potential safety problems with the
ultimate goal of achieving a greater reduction in large truck and bus crashes,
injuries, and fatalities.
Commodity: Any article of commerce, including raw material, manufactured, or
grown products.
Common Carrier: A common carrier in common law countries is a person or
company that transports goods or people for any person or company and is
responsible for any possible loss of the goods during transport
Consignee: The person or location to whom the shipment is to be delivered
whether by land, sea, or air.
Container (Shipping Container): Standard-sized rectangular box used to
transport freight by ship, rail, or highway. International shipping containers are 20’
or 40’, conform to International Standards Organization (ISO) standards, and are
designed to fit in ships’ holds. Domestic containers are up to 53’ long, of lighter
construction, and are designed for rail and highway use only.
Distribution Center (DC): A location where goods and materials are stored until
they are ready to be moved to their end destination.
Dead-Heading: Operating a truck without cargo.
Declared Value: The value of a shipment imported for resale, as declared by the
shipper or owner.
Dedicated Fleet: A group of trucks that a shipper uses solely for moving all
freight. Typically comes at a higher cost but with the promise of guaranteed
capacity, better and more timely service, and locked-in rates despite disruption.
Dedicated Team: A team of drivers who take turns driving a dedicated truck.
Dedicated Truck: Refers to a driver pulling freight for one specific customer only,
where only that load is on the truck. No partial loads can be added.
Deft Fluid: Diesel Exhaust Fluid
Department of Transportation (DOT): Oversees U.S. federal highway, air,
railroad, maritime, and other transportation administration functions.
Detention/Demurrage: Charge by the carrier for excess retention of their
equipment. Typically caused by untimely loading or unloading.
Door-to-Door: Synonymous with Thru Trailer Service (TTS) but can also mean
simply handling the shipment from the shipper to the consignee.
D.O.T. Number: License administered to for-hire carriers by the Department of
Transportation. (Not the same as Motor Carrier #).
Double Drop: A flatbed with the lowest deck. Normally used for oversized or
over-height loads.
Drop and Hook: “Drop-and-hook” is the trucking industry’s term for when a
driver drops a full container at a facility and hooks their tractor to a pre-loaded
trailer at the same facility. This grab and go efficiency makes drop-and-hook a
win-win: reducing transportation costs for shippers, increasing potential earnings
for carriers, and saving time for everyone involved.
Dunnage: Filler material placed in empty spaces to keep cargo from moving or
falling. Typically lumber, foam padding, or inflatable bags.
Duty Status: Drivers must maintain a daily 24-hour logbook (Record of Duty
Status) documenting all work and rest periods. It must be kept current to the last
change of duty status. Records of the previous 7 days must be retained by the
driver and presented to law enforcement officials on demand.
Electronic Logging Device (ELD): Digital device that tracks applicable data for
truckers, including drive time, mileage, speed and more. It is required by the ELD
mandate in the US and will be required with the current implementation of the
Canadian ELD mandate as well.
Escorts: Vehicles assisting in the movement of large, over-dimensional
shipments. Escorts make sure the truck has plenty of space to move and alerts
drivers of a shipment coming towards them. Help stop traffic with beacon lights
and/or flags.
Excess Value: Amount of declared value of a shipment that is above the carrier’s
limit of liability.
Expedited: The process of shipping at a faster rate than normal. Usually
includes team drivers, overnight, and/or air services.
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA): Operates within the
D.O.T. with a mission to prevent commercial motor-vehicle related fatalities and
injuries by enforcing safety regulations and improving safety information systems.
Flatbed: a truck that carries a flat trailer which is used to transport oversized and
oddly shaped cargo. The flatbed definition is a vehicle with a flat load-carrying
area.
FMCSA: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Forced Dispatch: in simple terms, means that a company says that a driver
MUST take a load. If a truck driver is unable to take a load or has legitimate
reasons that they do not want to take the load, companies that force dispatch
say, “Take it anyway.
Freight Class: In LTL shipping, the category of freight as defined by the National
Motor Freight Traffic Association. Identifies the size, value, and difficulty of
transporting your freight. This determines the carrier’s shipping charges.
Freight Forwarder: Facilitates shipping of goods for a third party. Similar to a
‘Freight Broker’ but typically handles international goods, is defined as a carrier
and can be held responsible for claims and loss of cargo.
Fuel Surcharge (FSC): The price of fuel can substantially change the cost of
moving freight. Therefore, the Energy Information Administration of the U.S.
Department of Energy publishes a U.S. National Average Fuel Index every week.
Transportation companies will often include an FSC to the cost of moving freight
either based on cents per mile or percentage of the line haul amount.
Full Truckload (FTL or FT in logistics terminology): Refers to the use of a full
dry van, flatbed or reefer truck to move freight. Can be leveraged for smaller
shipments, including LTL and parcel, provided they go through freight
consolidation.
Ghost load: Loads you call on that rarely ever mature to real loads. New brokers
just starting out without the funds to pay for more expensive reliable services are
well known for posting Ghost Loads.
Hazmat: Hazardous materials as classified by the US Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA). Transport of hazardous material is strictly regulated by the US
D.O.T.
Hot Shot: Smaller trailers that are pulled by larger pickup trucks. Typically 24-40’
in length and cannot handle as much weight as a regular tractor-trailer. Common
for moving smaller loads or LTL shipments.
Hours of Service (HOS): Regulations that put limits for when and how long
drivers may drive.
Interchange Agreement: Agreement and/or contract between two companies to
switch or take control of a trailer in order to pick up and deliver shipments.
Common along with border towns between Mexican and U.S. companies in order
to cross the border.
Intermodal: A single trailer or container that encounters multiple forms of
transportation along its routes, such as truck/ship or truck/rail.
Interstate: refers to shipments originating from one state which are destined for
another. During the shipment, the commercial vehicle will cross state lines;
sometimes the trucks will travel across multiple states carrying a shipment.
Intrastate: refers to goods being carried via commercial vehicle from one
location to another within the same state.
Jack Knife: Jackknifing is the term used to describe when the trailer of a large
semi-truck or big rig pushes the front towing vehicle to one side or all the way
around so that it faces backward, creating a shape that resembles a pocket knife,
or jackknife.
Just in Time (JIT): Manufacturing system which depends on frequent, small
deliveries of parts and supplies to keep on-site inventory to a minimum.
Lane: A move from point A to point B. Many companies will have a lane that they
run on a regular basis called a “dedicated lane”.
Last or Final Mile: Describes the literal last movement of an item to its final
destination, may be a parcel with multiple final mile shipments onboard or can
comprise a whole load/truck of goods, provided they are all being delivered to
their final stop in the journey. Also includes a final mile to the retailer and final
mile to the customer.
Layover: When a driver is detained overnight or for a 24-hour period while
waiting to pick up or deliver a shipment. Fees are usually involved.
Line Haul: The rate per mile in dollars and cents for transporting items.
Load Tender: A shipment retrieval request sent from carrier to shipper.
Logbooks: Books carried by truck drivers in which they record their hours of
service and duty status for each 24-hour period. These are required in interstate
commercial trucking by the U.S. D.O.T. and are also known as electronic
logbooks (elogs) too as part of logistics terminology.
Long Haul: any form of trucking where drivers are expected to spend the night
away from home, as the journey is too long to be made in a day. Drivers may
spend the night in their cab, or at some form of motel accommodation
Less-Than-Truckload (LTL): Quantity of freight less than that required for the
application of a full truckload (FTL) rate. Often a carrier will place several LTL
shipments on the same truck to reduce the cost to the shipper.
Lumper: A lumper fee is charged to the carrier when a shipper utilizes
third-party workers to help load or unload the trailer contents. … Lumpers are
often used at food warehousing companies and grocery distributors. These fees
are often reimbursable to the driver by the shipper or the freight broker.
Managed transportation: A type of service, also known as transportation as a
service, in which a company, usually a 3PL takes over and handles all shipping
and logistics needs from tendering through final delivery.
MC: (Motor Carrier number) is also an interstate operating authority and unique
identifier assigned by the FMCSA to moving companies operating in interstate
commerce, in other words hauling cargo across state lines.
Motor Carrier Number (MC#): License administered to for-hire carriers by the
Federal Motor Carrier Administration (FMCSA). Commonly referred to as USDOT
numbers.
National Motor Freight Classification (NMFC): A standard comparison of
commodities moving in interstate, intrastate and foreign commerce. There are 18
commodity classes based on an evaluation of four transportation characteristics:
density, stowability, handling, and liability. These characteristics establish a
commodity’s transportability.
Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC): Type of ocean servicer that
provides all services, such as forwarding, without operating the vessels.
OTR: Over-the-Road truck drivers, also called long-haul truckers, specialize in
driving for 3-4 weeks at a time.
Owner-Operator: A truck driver who owns and operators their truck(s).
Over-Dimensional (Wide Load): Cargo that is larger than the legally defined
limits for width, length, height, and/or weight and cannot be broken down into
smaller units.
Pallet Jack: Also known as small package, typically weighs less than 150
pounds and is the most prominent form of order fulfillment in e-commerce.
Parcel: Also known as small package, typically weighs less than 150 pounds and
is the most prominent form of order fulfillment in e-commerce.
Partial: Truck used to compile multiple shipments from several customers in
order to utilize the entire truck. Due to this, transit times can be longer than
dedicated truck loads due to multiple stops.
Permits: Permission obtained from states allowing carriers to transport freight
that exceeds the legal weight and size limits.
Placard: Warning signs placed on all four sides of a trailer denoting that they are
carrying hazardous materials.
Proof of Delivery (POD): Signed documents (usually a Bill of Lading) that show
a shipment was received at the delivery location. Can also be in electronic format
(ePOD for reference in logistics terminology).
PRO number: A number assigned by the carrier to reference the shipment. This
is also used for tracking.
Pup Trailer: Short semitrailer, usually between 26’ and 32’ long, with a single
axle.
Rail: Transportation by train, usually subject to additional criteria for timelines,
load density and adjunctivity to a local rail ramp.
Ramps: Carried by some open deck truckers to help facilitate the loading and
unloading of shipments. Mostly found on step decks that are trying to haul cars
and other drivable equipment.
Rate Confirmation: A document that confirms the agreed-upon amount for the
cost of service between the shipper and carrier.
Reefer: A trailer with insulated walls and a self-powered refrigeration unit. Most
commonly used for transporting food.
Removable Gooseneck (RGN): A specialized type of heavy-haul flatbed trailer
that can provide drive-on drive-off accessibility. The trailer deck is attached to a
“gooseneck” which can be raised and lowered then removed from the trailer for
transportation.
Sealed Trailer: Trailer that has a seal ensuring the load has not been tampered
with.
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS): Type of software used that offers a
subscription-based payment model and vast flexibility and scalability to enable
better management and a level playing field across organizations of all sizes.
SaaS-based systems can be applied to virtually any system of record or digital
resource.
Shipper: Consignor, exporter, or seller named in the bill of lading, who may or
may not be the same as the party responsible for initiating a shipment.
Sliding Tandem: Mechanism that allows a tandem axle suspension to be moved
back and forth at the rear of a semi trailer, for the purpose of adjusting the
distribution of weight between the axles and fifth wheel.
Spread Axle (Spread Tandem): Tandem axle assembly that is spaced further
apart than the standard spacing of 54”.
Standard Carrier Alpha Code (SCAC): Unique 2-4 letter code used to identify
transportation companies.
Straps: Strong vinyl straps used to secure and tie down freight to a trailer.
Tanker: Cylinder designed to haul liquids like fuel or oil.
Tandem Axle: Pair of axles and associated suspension usually located close
together.
Team (Driver Team): Team of two drivers who alternate driving and resting. This
practice is typically used for expedited shipments but will have a greater cost.
Third Party Logistics/Freight Broker: Individual or company that serves as a
liaison between another individual or company that needs shipping services and
an authorized motor carrier. Provides the necessary transportation but does not
function as a shipper or carrier.
Thru Trailer Service (TTS): When cargo remains on the same trailer during an
international shipment. This is the opposite of a trans-load and is generally
considered safer by most companies.
TONU: an acronym standing for “Truck Ordered, Not Used”, is a cancellation
charge for ordering a truck and then cancelling the order.
Tractor: A Truck Tractor is a vehicle configuration consisting of a power-unit
designed to draw/pull a semi-trailer.
Trans-Load: The movement of a product from one trailer to another trailer in
order to keep a shipment going. This is standard practice at international U.S.
borders where carriers can only operate in one country and must pass off the
load to a carrier authorized to transport loads in the country of the load’s
destination.
Truck-Mounted Crane: A self-propelled loading and unloading machine
mounted on a truck body.
Truck Order Not Used (TORD): When a shipper orders a truck to pick up but
cancels after a truck has been dispatched. There is typically a fee associated
with this.
Transportation Management System (TMS): A system of record for tracking
shipments, tendering loads and communicating with other parties in the
transportation network.
Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC): Needed to gain
unescorted access to secure areas of Maritime Transportation Security Act
(MTSA) regulated facilities and vessels.
ULSD/USLR: Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel
USDOT: A USDOT number is a unique identifier that is given to companies that
engage in interstate, and in some cases, intrastate, commerce. It aids in
monitoring to streamline safety compliance and is used when conducting official
audits, reviews, and accident investigations.
Van: An enclosed boxlike motor vehicle having rear or side doors and side
panels used for transporting goods.
Warehousing: The locations used to physically store and stage goods prior to
order fulfillment. Can be temporary, pop-up warehouses to accommodate sudden
changes during demand peaks.
Warehouse Management System (WMS): System of record for managing
activities within the warehouse. Can be combined with the TMS to enable more
transparency and integration, read “data sharing” to improve efficiency and
throughput.
White Glove Logistics: Specialized form of order fulfillment, coming from the
idea to wear a white glove to ensure damage-free delivery, and includes
installation, debris removal, and extra care during delivery.