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What is intermodal?

Intermodal freight transportation uses multiple modes of transportation to bring freight to its destination. In the case of domestic intermodal, a truck transports freight (in a container) to the rail, the rail moves the freight a majority of the distance until it is then picked up by another truck and brought to the final destination. The rails that are typically associated with intermodal loads are Union Pacific (UP), Norfolk Southern (NS), CSX and BNSF.

The truck portion of the intermodal move, also known as intermodal drayage, is typically referred to as the first and last mile of the trip. DrayNow deals with the service on the drayage portion of these domestic intermodal loads. Due to our expansive market reach, we have the opportunity to service both the first and last mile of our customers’ intermodal trips, referred to as the origin and destination drays.

Intermodal offers a cost-effective, more environmentally efficient mode of transportation for shippers. For truck drivers, intermodal drayage keeps them local so they’re driving less mileage and can get home every night.

What is domestic intermodal?

There are two main types of intermodal: domestic and international. DrayNow moves domestic intermodal drayage.

Domestic intermodal consists of 53’ container freight that’s moving exclusively within the United States, primarily by rail. This freight can either originate domestically or internationally, but once it’s in a 53’ container, it’s considered a domestic shipment. These 53’ containers are either rail-owned or privately owned containers.

Rail-owned equipment includes containers provided by UMAX and EMP. There are also companies that engage in asset-based intermodal, where they own their own private containers that share the same space on the rail as rail-owned containers.

International intermodal consists of the 20’ and 40’ containers that are coming off ships at the port from international originations and are moved by train and truck. These are considered international shipments as they move within the country unless the cargo has been transloaded – unpacked and reloaded into a different size container – into 53’ domestic containers.

Typical intermodal drayage moves include:

• Pickup – also called a “live load,” where a driver outgates an empty container from the rail, gets it loaded at a shipper, and then ingates the loaded container back at the rail.
• Delivery – also called a “live unload” where a driver outgates a loaded container from the rail, gets it unloaded at the consignee, and then ingates the empty container back at the rail.
• Drop and Hook – this is similar to a delivery, except in this case the driver outgates a loaded container and instead of getting it unloaded at the consignee, they drop it off and pick up another container to ingate back at the rail.
• Crosstown – a short move where the driver brings a loaded container from one rail to another in the area.
• Empty Repo – a short move similar to a crosstown, except in this case the container being moved from rail to rail is empty.

What are IMCs?

Intermodal marketing companies (IMCs) are used by shippers and consignees to move their freight. IMCs are bidding on freight from these companies to move over the rail for them. Once an IMC wins business, they are in charge of securing rail space and then drayage capacity for the first and last mile of the trip.

Examples of intermodal in action:

• A truck driver in Chicago outgates an empty container from UP Global 2 and gets it loaded at a shipper in the area before ingating back at Global 2. This loaded container travels via rail until it grounds at UP City of Industry in Los Angeles. A truck driver in Los Angeles then outgates this container and gets it unloaded at a consignee in the area before ingating the empty back at UP COI.
• A truck driver in Atlanta is outgating a loaded container from the NS Austell rail down in Atlanta. They drop this container at the consignee in the Atlanta area and pick up another loaded to container to get ingated back at Austell so that this container can get on the train for its delivery in the Chicago area.
• A truck driver in Memphis moves a loaded container from the NS Rossville ramp in Memphis over to the UP Marion yard across the bridge in Arkansas.

DrayNow connects owner operators with local intermodal freight and IMCs with best-in-class drayage service.

If you’re an owner operator looking for intermodal drayage, download the app at the link below to get started on registration.

If you’re an intermodal freight broker interested in getting technology-enabled drayage service, fill out the form below.