Glossary of Terms
There are 74 entries in this glossary.All
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Lift axle |
An air-powered axle which may be raised or lowered to the ground to provide greater load-carrying capacity. |
| Linehaul |
A trip that involves more than two destinations; multiple stops running in a line or circle. Linehauls are often short runs for intra-city drivers (i.e. UPS). When the route is both intercity and involves dead-heading, over short portions, it's also know as dump-n-go routes. Often the drivers of linehaul routes will switch trailers at various points, delivering in actuality the trailer itself, as opposed to merchandise and materials inside. Such hauls are known as drop-n-hook lines. If multiple trailers are involved in any combination of other listed linehaul routes, it's known as a Chain Haul, or less often, chain train. A linehaul almost always ends at the originating terminal or yard prior to the end of the maximum 14 hour day. |
| Log book |
Every driver of a CMV is required to keep track of his/her time with a log book. A log book is simply a notebook with a grid pattern on every page, dividing the 24-hour day into 15-minute (1/4-hour) segments. Drivers are required to make carbon copies of each page, so one page may be kept with the driver (to be produced upon inspection by DOT officers), and so the other copy may be sent to the driver's employer. |
| Lowboy |
A Lowboy is a Semi-trailer that has two drops in deck height one drop right after the goose neck and one drop right before the tires. This allows the deck to be extremely low versus normal trailers. It offers the ability to carry legal loads up to 12' tall that other trailers could not. |
| Manifest |
A document that describes the contents of a shipment. Often supplements the information contained in a bill of lading. |
| Motor carrier |
A person or company providing transportation of property or passengers using commercial motor vehicles. |
| OTR (Over The Road) |
Over-the-road is any trip that involves more than the maximum per-day period of 14 hours without returning to the home location. Regional OTR is one or more deliveries that are within a multi-state region from the originating base location. Long-Haul OTR involves being away for weeks, or months at a time, often cross-country or even intercontinental. |
| Oversize/Overweight load |
A unit of cargo which is larger than the legally defined limits for width, length, height, and/or weight; which cannot be broken down into smaller units. Oversize loads are normally hauled on flatbed trailers. Overweight loads typically utilize trailers with extra axles, resulting in a truck with more than the typical 18 wheels. Some carriers and drivers specialize in these types of loads. In the United States an oversize load is a vehicle and/or load that are higher than 13' 6", wider than 8' 6" longer than 80'. |
| Owner-Operator |
In the United States and Canada, an owner-operator is a self-employed commercial truck driver or a small business that operates trucks for transporting goods over highways for its customers. The Motor Carrier Act of 1980 deregulated the industry and made it easier for manufacturers to set their own prices on shipping goods, and also allowed owner-operators to be more successful by taking some of the control out of the hands of the larger motor carriers. It was now possible to find a carrier willing to haul goods for what customers wanted to pay, rather than what the larger carriers' rates were. |
| Pallet |
A pallet or skid is a flat transport structure that supports goods in a stable manner while being lifted by a forklift, pallet jack, or other jacking device. A pallet is the foundation of a unit load design, which can be as simple as placing the goods on a pallet, and securing them with straps or stretch-wrapped plastic film. While the majority of pallets are made of wood, pallets manufactured from plastic, metal, and paper can also be found. |
| Private carrier |
A carrier contracted to or owned by a shipper that does not hold itself out to the general shipping public. |
| Pup |
A 28-foot (8.5 m) long trailer that can be used singularly as a delivery trailer in congested areas or in combination with another 28-foot (8.5 m), 52-foot, or 57-foot (17 m) trailer for over the road. "Pup" comes from the Class-B (US) drivers' use of the 28' trailer on large (class 3-class 5) pickup or box-trucks, often seen for landscapers or light-duty construction jobs. Pup trailers are also used for Rocky Mountain Doubles and Mountain Triples in the American West by chaining, respectively, one or two 28' pup trailers on the back of a full size trailer or box truck. |
| Reefer |
A refrigerated and insulated box trailer. |
| Regional |
A driver or carrier who transports cargo in a limited geographical area, usually within a certain radius of one's own home or company terminal, and may or may not maintain a schedule. |
| Retarder |
An engine brake is a system used primarily on semi-trucks or other large vehicles that modifies engine valve operation to use engine compression to slow the vehicle. They are also known as compression release engine brakes. The driver controls consist of an on/off switch and, sometimes, a multi-position switch that controls the number of cylinders on which the brake is active. When the compression release engine brake is turned on, it will activate when the driver releases the accelerator. |