What is Drayage?

Drayage Service

Drayage is an important service that encompasses transporting goods over a short stretch, between the long intermodal transportation journey. It’s an essential part of the shipping and transportation process. For major industries, such as the container industry and cold logistics, drayage is an important component. Container firms use drayage to transport innumerable loads, such as automobiles, steel, metals, etc. These vessels can weigh over 1,000 tons.

Because it is a short-haul solution, mostly involving a single shift of a trucker, this service usually serves one city area, leading to more efficient and faster shipping of goods. Read on to find out more about drayage.

Important Characteristics of Intermodal Drayage 

Along with the process of transport of goods over short distances, it also has some other meanings in the transport industry. Occasionally, the term can also denote a pickup by an automobile to or from a boarder or inland point, a seaport, or an intermodal terminal.

Drayage can also be used to refer to the name of the fee on an invoice for such services, commonly used in the container shipping industry for worldwide commerce.

There are other circumstances where the term is often used. For instance, during a regular freight move, in which many shipping methods are used for transportation, e.g., truck and rail, drayage arises when the freight is moved from the truck and loaded on the train. Shipping documents are updated at this point, and perhaps, the freight may be reordered for the next part of its voyage.

Types of Drayage

Drayage facilities are grouped depending on their efficiency and size when handling cargo. According to the Intermodal Association of North America has it can be classified into the following groups:

• Inter-carrier Drayage: This involves the movement of units over short distances between various carriers, e.g., transporting goods from a trucking point to a railway yard. 
• Intra-carrier Drayage: This comprises taking freight to two separate locations possessed by the same transporter.
• Door-to-door Drayage: This is where the goods are transported from the sender straight to the customer through roads.
• Expedited Drayage: This is the transport of time-sensitive goods or cargo over-the-road transport.

 This happens for both loaded and empty units.

• Pier Drayage: This is when a truck uses roads and highways to transport intermodal elements to a pier or dock from a previous rail yard.

The History of Drayage Service

Drayage has a history that goes back very far in the past. Although current service methods utilize container equipment and modern shipping, it actually precedes the present industrial era and started with older types of containers.

This practice was used through the 1800s, until the early 1900s, when trucks became the standard transport equipment.

Why Drayage Service is Required

In shopping malls, for example, getting cargo in and out of stores, particularly those without external loading bays, takes organizing with a drayage service to get a consignment from the transport truck to the shopfront. Usually, a shared delivery spot is accessible at retail malls. Nevertheless, this short distance is key for the store to cover on a consistent basis.

The eventful world of trade shows also relies on the service to transfer exhibitors in and out of the location in a well-organized manner. Once resources for each exhibitor reach the site, it is a frenzy of movement to have everything ready.

 Although it covers a comparatively short distance, the whole lot is typically is happening at a stable pace. Teams are close by to get seasonal products stores or transfer exhibit equipment and booths to the correct spot.

. When the show is over, the service comes back to move everything back out to the loading dock, ready for transporter pickup.

From time to time, the question of whether this service is required may come up.