What do common drayage terms mean, from the ramp to your dock?

Arrival notice. Your ocean line's or forwarder's notice that the shipment is about to arrive. For a rail move, it names the inland ramp. What to do next

Customs release. CBSA releases imported goods once its requirements are met, as its importer guide explains. Your customs broker requests the release. The two releases

Ocean line release. The line's OK for its container to leave, once its charges are paid. Also called the freight release. Before pickup

Pickup number. The number the ocean line issues once it releases the container. The trucker needs it at the ramp. Where it comes from

Gate appointment. A booked time to collect a container at the ramp. We book the CN Brampton gate appointment or the CPKC Vaughan pickup. Ramp statuses

Arrived. A rail tracking status. On CN, Arrived means the container reached a location, and At Destination means its final terminal. Neither means it is ready for pickup. What each status means

Deramped. Taken off the train. In CN's event codes, Deramped means available for pick up, and the first storage day stays blank until then. Container status

Notified. The railway has sent its notice, which may go to only one party. If you did not get it, ask your forwarder or customs broker. The railway's notice

Available. Ready for a truck at the ramp. Available is not released: the two releases and storage paid or guaranteed must also be in place. Released or not

Hold. A stop placed by customs, the ocean line or the railway. The container stays at the ramp until that party lifts it. What holds a container

Embargo. A railway's notice that it will not accept certain traffic for a time. A strike is different: see rail strikes. Embargoes and congestion

Off-site yard. Where the railway can move a container left at the ramp too long. It adds cost and time, and it can change the pickup point. What it means for pickup

Chassis. The wheeled frame a container rides on. We pull containers on our own chassis. Equipment terms

Pool chassis. A chassis from a shared pool, not the trucker's. If the move needs one, tell us at tender and name the steamship line. How it changes a rate

Tri-axle chassis. A chassis with three axles instead of two. It lets a heavier container stay within Ontario's axle weight limits. Heavy containers

53 ft domestic container. A 53 foot container for domestic rail and truck moves. CN lists its 53 foot containers as domestic equipment. We haul them, dry and reefer, on the truck legs. Reefer drayage

Reefer and set point. A reefer is a refrigerated container. The set point is the temperature it holds, and it comes from you with the tender. Before a reefer moves

Merchant haulage. You, your forwarder or your customs broker book the truck from the ramp. The ocean line's booking ends at the ramp. Who hires the trucker

Carrier haulage. The ocean line arranges the truck to your door and bills it with its own charges. Which one you have

Re-brokering and double brokering. Re-brokering means passing an accepted load to another carrier. Double brokering does it without the shipper's knowledge or consent. See how to choose a carrier. How to spot it

Shipper load and count. A note that the shipper loaded and counted the goods out of the trucker's sight. Where you load, count or seal the container yourself, that is your load, your count and your seal. Damage in a sealed container

Seal. The numbered seal on the container doors. Check its number against the paperwork before you break it. Sealed containers

Conditions of carriage. The terms freight moves on with a carrier. Ours restate Ontario's Carriage of Goods regulation in plain English. Read ours