A
Accounts Payable or AP Brokerage side of Dr Dispatch only – the carrier bills. What you owe the carriers. Doesn’t
calculate in DRD until you invoice the load(s) for the carrier.
Accounts Receivable or AR The amount your customers owe you. Doesn’t calculate in DRD until you invoice the loads.
Advance (to your driver) – A number sequence(com check, T –check etc) given to a driver to pay load or road expenses,
can also be for personal stuff.
AFV – Alternative Fueled Vehicle. A vehicle that runs on something other than gas or diesel.
Agent (Broker) Person who represents a truck company or brokerage, usually they bring loads or carriers to the table.
Very often remote user that brings security concerns (not wanting to see all customers on your books for example).
Alligator – A shredded tire on the side of the road. Running over a gator can cause it to bounce up and “bite,” causing
damage to fuel lines or a tractor body. Baby alligators are smaller pieces, and gator bait refer to several small
pieces.
A Service (Truck Maintenance) A preventative checkup for a truck or trailer without an oil change
Authority motor carrier authority is mandatory for trucking companies operating as for –hire carriers transporting
passengers or regulated commodities while engaged in interstate commerce.
Axle Load – The official weight limit for trucks, calculated by distribution over each axle.
B
Backhaul – The trip back to the point of origin after delivery.
Bear – Law Enforcement Officer, especially a State Trooper.
Bear Bait – A speeding four –wheeler that other vehicles use to protect themselves from speed traps.
Bear in the Bushes – Hidden law enforcement; potential speed trap.
Berth – Sleeping cabin used for resting on long –haul trips. Also, called a sleeper.
Berth – Sleeping compartment behind the cab.
Bill of Lading – a legal document describing the freight and pickup/drop locations in a trailer or load
Bill of Lading – Itemized list of goods contained in a shipment.
Bill of Lading (BOL or B/L) – An itemized list of what a shipment contains.
Bills ALL paperwork accumulated during course of hauling a load from A to B
Billy Big Rigger – A driver who thinks a little too much of himself/herself or his/her big, fast, shiny truck.
Black Eye – A headlight is out.
Bobtail – A tractor –trailer with no trailer.
Bobtail – Tractor operating without a trailer. Also a deadhead.
BOL See Bill of Lading
Bridge Formula – A bridge protection formula used by federal and state governments to regulate the amount of weight that
can be put on each of a vehicle’s axles, and how far apart the axles must be.
Broker – A person with industry experience who negotiates shipping arrangements and rates for an owner –operator or
fleet.
Broker (see also Agent above) (see Relationships Between Broker And Dispatcher) – Person who acts as a intermediator
between a shipper/customer and a carrier. The broker will shave some of the revenue for their pay and often handle
dispatch and everything related to the outside carrier to keep the experience consistent for the Shipper. Dr Dispatch
has a Broker and a carrier module and can handle dual authority with ease. A broker with many agents will want office
splitting and login security to hide their carriers and customers from others. Dr Dispatch can handle that too. Dr
Dispatch was written by a Diesel tech turned dispatcher turned broker and agent.
Brokerage (dollar amount) – Base profit for a broker (gross pay(customer pays) – carrier pay). DRD staff might say “is
the brokerage amount missing from the report”? In that case we mean brokerage to be profitable. Sometimes abbreviated to
‘Brok’
B service Preventative checkup for a truck or trailer WITH an oil change
Bumper Sticker – A vehicle that is tailgating. Also, called a hitchhiker.
Bunk – Sleeping compartment behind the cab.
C
Cab – Driver compartment of a tractor –trailer.
Cabover – Cab –Over –Engine (COE). A type of truck design with the cab over the engine.
Camelback – Truck body with a floor that curves downward at the rear.
Cargo Insurance – REQUIRED for all trucks to cover DAMAGE of freight items. Brokers want to be sure their outside
carriers maintain insurance.
Cargo Weight – The weight of the loads, gear and supplies on a vehicle.
Carrier Advance – A number sequence(com check, T –check etc) given to a carrier to pay load or road expenses, can even
be partial load payment. to get REIMBURSED the driver must have proper receipts
Carrier – A trucking company or for –hire owner –operator that transports freight for shippers commercially. A Dr
Dispatch user can be a carrier or as a broker use a carrier. An Owner Operator can be a carrier.
Carrier on –boarding – The procedure of adding a new carrier to a brokerages carrier list, once they have insurance,
authority & W9 on file, they are ‘on –boarded’
Carrier pay – Amount to pay outside truck for load (brokerage). The difference between the customer’s pay (gross pay)
and this is your profit as a broker.
Cartage Company – A company that provides local pickup and delivery.
CB – Citizens Band Radio. This is a two –way radio system used to communicate traffic conditions, help requests, and
conversation.
CDL Commercial Drivers License
CDL – Commercial Driver’s License. Allows people to drive a truck or bus that weighs more than 26,001 pounds and is used
in support of a business.
Chassis Weight – The empty weight of a vehicle. Also curb weight and tare weight.
Claim A claim is made by a shipper seeking compensation from a carrier for freight damaged or lost during transmit. A
claim can also be made by a trucking company or owner operator to an insurance company for vehicle damage caused by an
accident.
COFC – Container On Flat Car. Shipping containers on flat railroad cars.
Comcheck Comdata’s way to give a driver expense money. Basically a blank check that can only be used for fuel or other
expenses with special authorization rules.
Commercial Company – A “professional” girlfriend/boyfriend.
Commodity Description of the contents of a load. What is being hauled. Some commodities will have restrictions like
fuel, explosives, hazardous, etc.
Common Carrier – A trucking company that will haul freight to anyone. This is different from other companies that only
haul to private or dedicated customers.
Common Carrier – A trucking company that will haul freight to anyone. This is different from other companies that only
haul to private or dedicated customers.
Common Carrier – A company that will carry freight for any customer, as opposed to a private or dedicated carrier that
only works for one customer.
Company Driver A driver who is hired and certified by a carrier that drives just for this carrier.
Container a trailer that is not attached to chassis, it has no wheels, just a box. allows stacking on ships, train cars
,etc. Used for multi –mode transportation between land/sea. Very popular to see these on the news post COVID on ships
waiting to be unloaded or loaded.
Container Chassis – A trailer designed to carry containers.
Container – Shipping Container. One giant box, about 20 or 40 feet long that will fit in ships’ holds and can also be
carried by rail or truck. Some containers are lighter and longer and are only used in rail and road transportation.
Contract Carrier – A trucking company that hauls freight to less customers under a trucking contract.
Contract Carrier – A company that carries freight for a small number of customers under contract.
CPM – Cents per Mile. The per –mile rate at which drivers are paid.
Crackerhead – An idiot looking for trouble.
Customer The company paying the freight invoice for a load(s). Commonly the shipper.
D
Deadhead – A backhaul with no freight. Deadheading generates no profit and drives up cost per mile.
Deadhead – A truck with no cargo.
Deadhead Miles – driven empty (no freight) to go handle freight. You may charge per mile for this as any truck moving is
costing expense money. You specifically want to watch for the ratio of dead head to loaded miles.
DEF Diesel Exhaust Fluid – Late model engines have small tanks to hold DEF, the engines computer sprays an amount of
this in HOT exhaust to burn fuel better.
Detention Amount given to carrier or driver if DETAINED by loading or unloading facility. Detention fees help carriers
from letting a facility tie up their trucks as you can’t pick up new loads if you’re stuck somewhere. Detention is meant
to discourage a shipping or receiving facility from keeping your assets busy and not out earning. This implication is
the driver is being detained and not the same as blowing a tire and being late – but if you’re charging detention you
already know that. A lot of large detention lines on rates back during Katrina where sending a truck was important and
saving lives but you might not see the truck for weeks. Just stack up detention and the truck is earning for you static.
Dispatcher – Person who receives and transmits information to coordinate operations of vehicles carrying out a service.
Donkey – A slightly politer way of saying someone is very close behind you, as in “you have a bear on your donkey.”
DOT Number (DOT#) – Issued by the Department OF Transportation for operating authority
Doubles – A combination of a truck and two trailers.
Drayage – Carrying freight a short distance as part of a longer trip. For example, a tractor picking up freight from a
rail yard and carrying it 50 miles to its final destination.
Driver – Person with an unknown CB handle; only applies to truck drivers.
Driver Compliance – Items required to qualify a driver suck as random drug tests, CDL, physical, clean driving record,
etc
Driver Pay – Amount drive is paid on load
Drop – A paid load stop where freight is removed or ‘dropped’ off. In Dr Dispatch its a stop of type ‘D’ for drop.
E
EDI – Electronic Document Interchange. An electronic system for sharing transportation –related documents like bills of
lading.
EDI “Electronic Data Interchange” – the concept of businesses electronically communicating information that was
traditionally communicated on paper, such as purchase orders and invoices and location updates
E –Log – A computer system that keeps track of a truck driver’s miles and service. When using an E –log, carriers will
have instant access to their driver’s logs. This allows carriers to improve scheduling drivers.
E –Log – A computerized system to keep track of their hours of service and miles. The carrier and dispatcher have
instant access to this information, which improves their ability to schedule drivers appropriately. The federal
government favors the use of E –Logs over traditional hand –written logs.
EOBR – Electric On –Board Recorder. A device that records information about a truck’s trip.
F
Feeding the bears – Getting pulled over for a traffic violation.
Fifth Wheel – Horseshoe –shaped coupling device used to attach trailers to the tractor.
Fifth Wheel – The way tractors and trailers are connected. The fifth wheel accepts a trailer’s kingpin and supports the
front end of the trailer.
Flatbed – An open trailer used for carrying construction materials and equipment and other objects of unusual size and
shape.
Flat bed – trailer
Flat Rate A flat rate to do some work versus the standard rate * mile or rate * unit.
Fleet Owner – In Dr Dispatch you can contract non company drivers as fleet owners. A Main ‘fleet owner’ record exists to
pay the company name that can have 1 to infinite drivers on the load. A load hauled by a fleet owner will note the
driver’s name and details on each load but in payroll the company itself is paid. Contrast that to a normal company
driver that you pay via the payroll module – a fleet owner is for sub contracting. If we ask ‘Is the driver part of a
fleet owner’ we’re asking if it’s a company driver or a driver attached to a fleet company.
Floor Load Boxes stacked on the floor requiring someone to LOAD & UNLOAD all the boxes (hire a LUMPER for the job) – no
pallet
FMCSA – Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Regulates the US commercial trucking industry.
Forced Dispatch – When the company dispatcher assigns a load, customer and delivery time to a driver and the driver must
take the load or suffer consequences (such as being forced to wait around several hours or another day for another load,
or even being fired).
Four –Wheeler – Any vehicle that isn’t a tractor –trailer rig.
Fuel Surcharge – When fuel prices are higher than normal customers usually pay a surcharge to cover this overage. It’s
helpful to offer a good per rate with the fuel overages offloaded into this line item to signal to the customer that the
rate is mostly higher due to fuel prices.
Fuel Tax – If a truck travels 350 miles across a state, the companies FLEET AVG MPG is used to decide how much fuel was
burned in that 350 miles, if you do not buy enough fuel in that state you OWE fuel tax, if you bought more than enough
you get a refund. Use our fuel tax module to report on this. You need miler integration or something to auto break down
the state miles on a load. Using our fuel import integrations with a miler integration means nearly 100% automated fuel
tax reporting as the fuel purchases and state miles are figured.
G
GAWR – Gross Axle Weight Rating. The manufacturer’s rating of how much weight an axle can carry.
GCW – Gross Combination Weight. The total weight of an entire loaded vehicle including truck, trailer and cargo.
Governor – A device that regulates the truck’s top speed. Large fleets use these to ensure their drivers stay within
guidelines to improve fuel efficiency and safety.
Grade – The steepness of a hill. A 5% grade means a hill rises 5 feet per 100.
Gross Pay Gross customer revenue for the load aka customer pay
GVW – Gross Vehicle Weight. The total weight of a vehicle and everything on it.
GVWR – Gross Vehicle Weight Rating. How much the manufacturer approves the vehicle to carry.
H
Handle – A nickname used to refer to an individual over a CB radio.
Hazmat – Hazardous materials, classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and subject to strict federal
regulations.
Hazmat – Hazardous materials.
Headache Rack – Heavy –duty barrier mounted behind a tractor cab designed to prevent a forward –shifted load from
tearing through the cab.
Headache Rack – A barrier behind the truck cab designed to protect the driver from behind in the case of a load shifting
forward from the trailer.
Hours of Service (HOS) – Federal regulations that govern the number of hours a truck driver may operate a commercial
vehicle.
Hours –Of –Service – FMCSA safety regulations governing how long and when drivers may be on duty and driving.
IFTA International Fuel Tax Agreement – companies used to have to file cards for each state, now one form does it all.
Intermodal When a load takes multiple travel methods from point A to B (ship to yard to truck to yard to warehouse to
box truck). Same as Intermodal above. For Dr Dispatch it means container handling with container numbers and last free
date. Multi mode and Intermodal need to be turned on in Settings to use.
J
Jackknife – When the tractor and trailer are at a sharp angle to one another.
JIT – Just –In –Time. The art of getting goods to a customer extremely close to the time he needs to sell it. This keeps
the seller’s costs low by reducing inventory.
Just in Time (JIT) – Small, frequent shipments of production parts that a manufacturer uses to minimize on –site
inventory.
K
Keying Up – Talking on the radio constantly, cutting off other drivers.
Kingpin (axle) – An axle’s wheels pivot around a kingpin.
Kingpin (trailer) – Connects the truck to trailer.
Kojak with a Kodak – Law Enforcement Officer with a radar gun.
L
Landing Gear – Supports to hold up the front end of a trailer when it is not attached to a tractor.
Layover Truck unloads on Friday, cannot find another load until Monday = layover. This is not detention
LCV – Long Combination Vehicle. A vehicle longer than a double trailer, like a triple.
Lessee – A company or person that pays money to use someone else’s property.
Lessor – A company or person that owns the property someone else is paying to use.
Less –Than –Truckload (LTL) – A small shipment charged at a different rate than a full truckload, usually under 10,000
pounds. Shippers frequently carry multiple LTL shipments for different stops on a single run.
Lift Axle – An extra axle that can be lowered and put into use for a heavier load so that the vehicle can meet federal
and local weight standards.
Load Board – A confusing one. The list of active working loads is called the “Load Board” in Dr Dispatch but we also
integrate with online load boards that are actually marketplaces for freight.
Load number – Older term meaning Progressive Number. In DRD the Pro is the unique numeric ID for your loads (no letters
allowed). The pro also doubles as the invoice number for each shipment.
Load Posting The module (that was an addon but included with DRD now) in charge of posting your available loads to the
various Internet Load Boards.
Logbook – Record of mileage, driving hours, and rest time that complies with federal Hours of Service regulations. A
logbook can either be paper or electronic.
Logbook – A truck driver’s book for recording hours and activities during a 24 –hour period.
Logistics – The art and science of getting people and materials where they need to be when they need to be there.
Long –Haul – A long –distance drive that is usually several hundred miles or more. This is also called Over –the –Road
(OTR).
Long –haul – Driving long distances.
Lowboy – A flatbed trailer with a low deck used for carrying taller materials like construction equipment.
LTL Carrier – A company that specializes in combining smaller shipments for multiple customers on one truck.
LTL – Less –Than –Truckload. Carrying less cargo than a full truckload weight for a customer. This includes shipping one
package or half of a truckload.
LTL Less –than –truckload. LTL freight consists of small shipments from multiple customers that are consolidated before
being transported. Dr Dispatch consolidates on “Trips” which can put 2+ Pro Numbers together for billing and dispatch.
The customers get their bill off the Pro and the equipment is off the 1 consolidation trip.
Lumper a person hired to unload a trailer of freight. Can be part of your rate breakdown.
M
Manifest Invoice – Invoice a customer for multiple loads in a batch. Each load is 1 line on the invoice whereas normally
each load is a page of invoice.
MC Number Motor – Carrier number or docket number. This is being replaced by a DOT number. in both cases you apply for
number, provide proof of public liability insurance then agency issues a unique number for the company
Miler – Dr Dispatch doesn’t maintain geo location data or anything that can be used to do routes and mileage. We rely on
products like Trimble Maps (Formerly PCMiler) or ProMiles Prime for these tasks. We may ask “Do you use a miler?”
meaning are you using any software to run your miles and do routes. Typically we mean software meant to handle over the
road trucks vs consumer products like Apple Maps.
Multi mode – When a load takes multiple travel methods from point A to B (ship to yard to truck to yard to warehouse to
box truck). Same as Intermodal above. For Dr Dispatch it means container handling with container numbers and last free
date. Multimodal and Intermodal need to be turned on in Settings to use.
Net pay – This is gross pay less advances and expenses.
O
Open Top – Trailer with sides and no permanent top. It is typically used to carry heavy equipment that must be lowered
into place with a crane.
OTR – Over –the –Road. Long –haul trucking, as opposed to local or regional.
Owner Operator A person that owns their own truck and hauls freight commercially with proper regulatory authority,
insurance, etc. Sometimes a team. Sometimes one person runs the business/books from home and the driver is out earning.
Owner –Operator – Trucker who owns or leases and operates his own truck(s).
P
P&D – Pickup and delivery.
Paid miles vs Actual miles – Paid miles are as they sound – miles driven that earned revenue. Actual miles are all the
miles on the odometer. Driving paid or not (home, to the shop, around the yard, etc)
Pallet Exchange (rate item) – The shipper may require the pallets they’re putting in the trailer (usually 24 4×4
squares) be exchanged or replaced at loading time.
Pallet – Wooden structure that boxes of freight are stacked on so a forklift can easily load/unload boxes. Not cheap but
often stolen or lost.
Payload – Cargo weight.
Pay the Water Bill – Bathroom break, or the need for one.
Per Diem (rate item) – Tax exempt earnings, drivers may be allowed $xx per day or per mile that are exempt from payroll
taxes because they are spent on legit expenses on the road.
Permits (rate item) – Trucks must have authority to operate in each state, this is usually part of the MC# or DOT#
authority. However, some special loads (oversized/hazmat) can have additional permit requirements you may want to pass
the cost.
Pick (or pickup) – Paid stop where some or all freight is picked up. DRD is multi stop so we do support several picks
and drops per load.
Pickup Number glossary of trucking terms – A number sequence provided by the shipper used to ID and pick up the correct
load from the shipping facility.
Pigtail – Electrical connection between tractor and trailer.
Pintle Hook – Used to connect doubles and triples.
PO number Purchase Order number, could be the same as PO number, not always
Private Carrier – A fleet that hauls goods for their own company.
Private Carrier – A fleet that specializes in carrying goods for its own company.
Pro Number – one of the most important terms in our glossary of trucking terms!
Proof of Delivery (POD) – A signed document, usually the Bill of Lading, that documents the delivery of a load.
PSI – Pounds Per Square Inch. Used to measure pressure in the tires and air brake system.
PTDI – Professional Truck Driver Institute. This organization certifies truck driver training programs. It does not
teach CDL classes.
Public Liability Same as car insurance, it covers the public for any damages caused by carriers equipment
Pup Trailer – Short semitrailer used with a converter dolly and another semitrailer to create a twin trailer.
Q
Qualcomm – Carriers use wireless communication that uses GPS, text messaging and email. A Qualcomm allows the trucking
company to keep track of their drivers along with the status of deliveries and weather
Qualcomm – A wireless communication system that carriers use to keep in touch with drivers. It’s like a combination of
GPS, email and text messaging. The system helps the company keep track of its trucks and it helps drivers know the
status of their next load and the weather.
R
Ragtop – Open, tarp –covered trailer.
Receiver Facility – where all or part of a load is delivered or unloaded
Reefer – A refrigerated hauling unit.
Reefer – Refrigerated trailer that has a cooling unit in the front and insulated walls. It’s like driving a giant
freezer. These are usually used for perishable food items.
Reefer Slang for a refrigerated trailer – Reefer fuel ‘off road’ diesel fuel for refrigerated trailer, many times there
is not tax at pump OR the carrier reports how many gallons per quarter are REEEER and gets a refund on fuel tax for
those gallons.
Reference number (or REF #, ref no., customer reference) – The shipper or customer’s number used to reference the load.
Often needed referenced on billing paperwork to get paid. In DRD we call it just the reference number, ‘ref no’ or
customer reference.
Relay – A run in which two drivers from different origin points meet at a central location, exchange loads, and return
to their point of origin.
Relay – Two drivers start out in two different origin points several hours apart with loaded trucks. They meet in the
middle, exchange cargo and return to their points of origin.
Retarder – Helps the brakes slow down the vehicle. Also Jakebrake.
Rig – A truck, or any combination of tractor –trailer.
RO (Maintenance Module) – Repair Order
RoadRailer – A trailer made to travel on both road and rail.
Runaway Ramp – Often seen on a steep grade, these are wide, soft areas a truck can pull into to slow down when its
brakes lose power.
S
Salesman Payroll – A commission based pay amount for a person responsible for a company having said freight. This is
usually tied to customers an employee brings to your business from their books.
Seal Number – Typically on high valued loads or multi mode – a seal that would be broken if the door is open to show
tampering. Typically numbered with an ID so you can tell if one was replaced with another. This is the Seal number.
Sesame Street – Channel 19, the channel most frequently used by truckers.
Shipper In DRD this is the shipping facility and ties to the pick(s) on a load. This is often just the customer or one
of the customer’s many facilities
Shipping Weight – The weight of a truck not including the liquids like fuel and coolant.
Shutter Trouble – Difficulty staying awake.
Sleeper – A space to sleep behind the truck’s cab.
Sleeper Team – When two drivers work together so one can sleep while the other one drives, allowing freight to move as
fast as possible while staying within federal hours of service regulations.
Sliding Fifth Wheel – A fifth wheel that can move back and forth to change weight distribution among axles.
Slip Sheet Many boxes of freight can be put on a slip –sheet, has NO pallets, but slip –sheet machine can instead easily
load/unload the freight
Stop Any point noted on a load where the truck stops to do something. This can be a Pick/Drop (paid loading/unloading
point) OR the starting part of the Deadhead to the first Pick, A yard waypoint (non paid stop) or something else out of
route.
Straight Truck – A one –piece truck with the cargo area attached to the chassis, as opposed to a tractor –trailer
combination vehicle.
T
Team – Two drivers who alternate driving and sleeping schedules to make a delivery as fast as possible while staying
within federal Hours of Service guidelines.
Team – When two drivers work together so one can sleep while the other one drives, allowing freight to move as fast as
possible while staying within federal hours of service regulations.
Through the Woods – Taking backroads.
TL – Truckload. A fully –loaded freight.
TL Carrier – A trucking company that hauls a single freight on one truckload.
TL Carrier – A trucking company that carries a single shipper’s freight on one truckload.
TL – Truckload. A full trailer –load of freight.
TMS Truck Management System – Software to operate your overall transportation company with a focus on over the road
trucks. Dr Dispatch is a TMS.
Tracking (A good example of how this Glossary of Trucking Terms is tied to Dr Dispatch TMS) the process of tracking a
load's progress day to day, hour by hour. This includes driver calling in to report location (check call) or GPS
positions. Our Tracking module was originally the “Check Call” screen where you would record the daily check in with the
drivers. Now GPS and other data can flow into this and build a real tracking experience.
Tractor – Vehicle designed to pull semi trailers while supporting part of the load weight.
Tractor – A truck that is made to pull a trailer.
Tractor Trailer – A truck and trailer together.
Transfer Company – A firm that specializes in handling cross –border transactions.
Truck Drivers – are a rare breed. It is only natural that the jargon they use over the CB (Citizens Band) radio is as
funny and colorful as they are. Here are some terms you might hear on a long haul.
Truck Load – Full load of freight from 1 customer. Opposite of LTL where you have 1 trailer with multiple customer’s
freight on it (UPS and FEDEX are the huge LTL examples)
U
Upper Coupler – Part of the connection between the tractor and trailer, it carries weight from the trailer, and houses
the kingpin, which connects to the fifth wheel of the tractor.
V
Van – A simple enclosed trailer with no reefer (refrigeration). You wouldn’t load liquids, produce, or anything other
than simple dry goods.
VIN – Vehicle Identification Number. The manufacturer gives a unique VIN to every vehicle.
W
Waypoint – A special stop type in Dr Dispatch. The name is taken from airplane navigation where a waypoint is a
geographical point of interest. In DRD it’s an unpaid stop like returning to the shop, yard, or something you want
marked out or route on the load. Most customers add their home base, yards, etc into here. Especially useful for
dropping a split.
WIM – Weigh –In –Motion. A way to measure the weight of a vehicle as it rolls through a station, instead of making it
come to a complete stop.
Y
Yard Tractor – A tractor that moves trailers around a warehouse or distribution center.
