Short answer
Drayage is the short truck move that connects a port or rail ramp to the next stop. A drayage carrier picks up an ocean container or intermodal box on a chassis, hauls it to a warehouse, rail yard, or transload site, and returns the empty. Most dray moves stay in one metro area and are priced per move plus accessorials.
Types of drayage moves
| Move | Route | Why it happens |
|---|---|---|
| Door move | Marine terminal to importer’s warehouse, then empty back | The standard import delivery |
| Ramp move | Rail ramp to consignee, or shipper to rail ramp | The truck legs of a domestic intermodal shipment |
| Cross-town | Port terminal to rail yard, or terminal to terminal | The container continues inland by rail |
| Pre-pull | Terminal to the dray carrier’s yard ahead of the appointment | Beats the terminal’s last free day |
| Street turn | Empty import container reloaded for export | Saves a trip back to the port |
How a drayage move works
- The container is discharged and released. Customs clears it, freight charges are paid, and the ocean carrier or forwarder issues a release, often a delivery order.
- The dray carrier books a terminal appointment and makes sure it has a chassis.
- The driver picks up the loaded container, and the terminal records an equipment interchange.
- The container is delivered live (driver waits) or dropped for the receiver to unload.
- The driver returns the empty to the terminal or depot the ocean carrier names.
To pull equipment from ocean carriers and railroads, dray carriers generally sign the UIIA, the standard interchange contract maintained by the Intermodal Association of North America. IANA says it covers about 95% of North American intermodal equipment interchanges. FMCSA rules also require equipment providers to inspect and maintain the chassis and containers they hand to motor carriers.
Why drayage matters to brokers
Drayage runs on a clock. The terminal gives a set number of free days before demurrage starts, and the ocean carrier gives free days before per diem or detention starts on the container outside the terminal. Chassis rental, pre-pull, yard storage, and driver wait time stack on top. A dray quote that ignores those dates can lose money on a load that looked profitable.
Weight is the other trap. The federal gross limit on the Interstate System is 80,000 lbs, with axle limits of 20,000 lbs (single) and 34,000 lbs (tandem). A heavy container can need a tri-axle chassis or a permit before it can legally move.
Some importers skip the warehouse and send containers to a transload site, where freight moves into 53-foot trailers for the long haul.
Example: pricing one container
Example, with illustrative numbers. A broker quotes a door move 25 miles from the port.
- Base drayage: $650
- Chassis, 3 days at $45: $135
- Pre-pull fee: $150
- Yard storage, 1 day: $50
Carrier cost is $985. If the container sits two days past the last free day instead, and the terminal charges $150 a day in this example, that’s $300 of demurrage the quote never covered.
Common drayage mistakes
- Quoting the base move only and absorbing chassis, pre-pull, and wait time later.
- Tracking the terminal’s last free day and the ocean carrier’s per diem free days as if they were the same date.
- Booking a carrier that can’t interchange equipment with that ocean carrier or terminal.
- Forgetting that the empty return location can differ from the pickup terminal.
- Not agreeing in writing who pays accessorials when the receiver holds the container.
Rules that touch drayage
The Federal Maritime Commission’s demurrage and detention billing rule, 46 CFR Part 541, took effect for most provisions on May 28, 2024. It requires billing parties to issue invoices within 30 calendar days of when charges were last incurred and to give the billed party at least 30 days to request mitigation, refund, or waiver.
In September 2025 the D.C. Circuit set aside the section that limited who could be billed, and the FMC removed 46 CFR 541.4 in December 2025. The other provisions remain.