Chassis

A chassis is the wheeled trailer frame a shipping container is locked onto so a tractor can pull it on public roads. Every drayage move needs one: the container is lifted onto it at the terminal or rail ramp, delivered to your dock on it, and returned empty on it. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's trucker guidebook defines it simply as a wheeled flatbed trailer on which a cargo container is mounted for transport.

Who supplies the chassis

• Chassis pools and leasing companies keep depots near the terminals and rent chassis to truckers by the day
• The trucker's own fleet: some drayage carriers own chassis, which matters at facilities with none on site; the Port Authority guidebook tells truckers that at least one facility in the port has no chassis available, so they must arrive with one
• Carrier-designated providers: ocean carriers have designated chassis providers at some ports. On merchant haulage, where the cargo owner's trucker rather than the carrier arranges the inland move, the Federal Maritime Commission's February 13, 2024 order in docket 20-14 established the right of shipper and trucker choice of chassis provider in Los Angeles/Long Beach, Chicago, Memphis and Savannah

Safety rules for chassis

The FMCSA treats chassis as intermodal equipment: trailing equipment used to move containers over public highways in interstate commerce (49 CFR 390.5). An intermodal equipment provider must register with FMCSA, mark each chassis with its USDOT number, systematically inspect, repair and maintain its equipment, and hand over equipment in safe and proper operating condition (49 CFR 390.40). Before taking a chassis on the road, the driver must inspect the listed components, and on return must report any known damage or defects to the provider (49 CFR 390.42).

Chassis split

A chassis split happens when the chassis has to be collected from, or returned to, a different place than the container, for example when the terminal has no chassis available and the trucker picks one up at a nearby depot first. Each split adds a stop and a charge, and it depends on chassis supply on the day, so a quote lists it as a possible charge rather than a certainty.

Heavy containers and the tri-axle chassis

On the Interstate System a truck may weigh no more than 80,000 pounds gross, with 20,000 pounds on a single axle and 34,000 pounds on a tandem axle group (23 CFR 658.17). The tractor, chassis, container and cargo all count. A tri-axle chassis adds a third axle so each axle and axle group stays within its limit, which helps heavy 20′ containers, but it does not raise the 80,000-pound gross limit. Tell the forwarder the gross weight before the container is stuffed; the verified gross mass that satisfies the ship can still be too heavy for the road.

Keeping chassis charges down

• Live unload where you can: the driver waits, and the chassis and container go straight back, so both the chassis days and detention stay low
• Drop and pick and a pre-pull both keep the container on its chassis longer, so count the chassis days when comparing them with demurrage
• Keep the interchange receipt (TIR or EIR) from each gate: it records the condition of the container and chassis and the time at pickup and return, and it is the evidence for disputing chassis, detention and damage charges

Airlift does not own trucks, chassis or a yard. It arranges drayage as a non-asset, FMCSA-licensed property broker: its container drayage service books each move with a contracted motor carrier, which supplies or sources the chassis, and the quote names the chassis charges and their free time.