How Ports and Railheads Can Finally Beat Dwell Time

Ask any port operator their top vehicle logistics headache, and you’ll likely hear the same two words: dwell time.

For ports, railheads, and automakers, dwell time is a cost driver, a congestion risk, and a customer satisfaction killer. Every extra day a car sits is money tied up in real estate, storage, and financing. It also strains relationships across the supply chain: OEMs get hit with bay allocation penalties, dealers face delays in getting inventory, and consumers wait longer for deliveries.

Why Ports and Railheads Struggle with Dwell Time

Finished vehicle distribution hubs face a unique surge problem. Vessel arrivals create massive spikes in volume: thousands of cars coming off ships in a matter of days. Moving that kind of surge requires fleets of carriers on demand.

But here’s the catch:

• Traditional asset-based carriers can only move so much volume. If you need 2,000 spots cleared in 48 hours, a single carrier may not be able to flex that fast.
• Brokers fill the gap, but often at a cost. Their business model relies on taking 20–35% margins, meaning the rate to the carrier is cut down, slowing acceptance and extending dwell.

As one logistics executive told us, “service from a car-hauling standpoint is consistently inconsistent.” Because of the volumes and frequency of the ships, matching enough equipment to those surges becomes problematic.

The Hidden Costs of Dwell

The price of dwell time is more than just cars sitting still. Every day a vehicle remains in port:

• OEMs pay bay allocation or storage fees.
• Logistics hubs lose revenue from other business that can’t be accommodated.
• Cars accumulate financing costs for dealers and leasing companies.
• Vehicles risk more damage the longer they’re handled, shuffled, or re-parked.

When ports and railheads operate at or near capacity, dwell time snowballs: cars can’t move into load lanes, trucks are delayed, and the entire logistics flow clogs.

The Risks of Relying on Unvetted Carriers

The scramble to source extra carriers often means turning to load boards. These boards are open forums, and while they provide fast access to trucks, they also come with risks.

We’ve heard horror stories like a brand-new Lincoln Navigator, towed backwards on a trailer that meant it was totaled in transit. Or, a carrier loaded an Audi onto a wedge truck using nothing more than two-by-eights as ramps.

These are symptoms of a system where many carriers aren’t vetted for insurance, safety ratings, or even basic equipment standards. In fact, about a third of carriers who apply to digital marketplaces today are rejected for failing to meet safety or insurance requirements.

Why Brokers Slow Things Down

Vehicle gateways also face friction when volume is routed through brokers:

• High margins – Brokers often pocket 30% or more of the OEM’s rate.
• Delays – Every move is a negotiation. Brokers shop loads until they find the cheapest truck, while the cars sit.
• Bottlenecks – Communication runs through the broker, creating delays when updates are needed or pick up details aren't shared.
• Inconsistent vetting – Many brokers aren’t set up to thoroughly vet carriers, especially when they are shopping a load around.

One executive we spoke to recalled end-of-quarter chaos where a premium OEM paid 50–75% more per load just to clear dwell at the last minute. That’s the cost of waiting too long and relying on brokers to play middleman.

The Better Way: Direct Access to Vetted Carriers

The alternative is simple in concept but powerful in practice: connect ports directly to a wider network of vetted carriers, and cut out the middleman.

A marketplace model solves the surge problem by opening access to thousands of carriers beyond the handful of contract fleets most OEMs work with. Instead of relying on a handful of big carriers nationwide, ports can tap into a large pool of quality carriers who already have capacity in the market.

The key is vetting:

• Carriers are checked for insurance, DOT safety ratings, and compliance.
• Unsafe operators are automatically filtered out if insurance lapses or safety scores drop.
• Carriers are graded on performance, so repeat offenders are removed from the network.

This isn’t just theory. When one major OEM tested this model at a congested railhead, average time from post to pickup dropped to just 12 hours. Over 90 days, that saved more than $1 million in bay allocation fees and secondary transport costs. Similarly, rail partners have adopted the approach after seeing clear bottlenecks in days that asset carriers had struggled with for months.

More Speed, More Control

The marketplace model also gives ports and OEMs visibility and control they’re not used to getting from brokers. Every shipment comes with:

• Live tracking – GPS and ELD data tied to the actual truck, not just a dispatcher’s update.
• Inspection photos – Pre- and post-delivery photos for claims protection.
• Performance data – On-time pickup, delivery rates, and carrier reliability.

Instead of wondering why units aren’t moving, see exactly where delays occur, hold carriers accountable, and adjust pricing based on live market data. This level of transparency lets OEMs and ports plan smarter, avoid end-of-month fire drills, and build stronger relationships with carriers who prove themselves.

Ending Dwell Time

When dwell time spikes, ports lose space, efficiency, money, and customer trust. The old way of solving it by relying on brokers and hoping for the best no longer cuts it.

By shifting to a direct-to-carrier marketplace with strict vetting, ports can:

• Clear space faster.
• Eliminate broker margins.
• Reduce risk of damage from unqualified carriers.
• Improve transparency and trust with OEM customers.

In a business where timing is everything, reducing dwell protects relationships and margins.

Because at the end of the day, a Navigator on its wheels is worth a lot more than one being dragged backwards down the highway.

Ready to cut your dwell time? Request your AHX account today.