Intermodal Transport is the movement of cargo in a single container across two or more modes of transportation — ocean vessel, rail, truck, sometimes barge — without the cargo itself being handled between modes. The container is the unit; the modes change beneath it.
A representative intermodal flow for a U.S. inbound shipment:
- Truck — factory in Suzhou to Port of Shanghai
- Ocean — Shanghai to Los Angeles on a container vessel
- Rail — Los Angeles to inland intermodal terminal in Chicago via BNSF or Union Pacific
- Truck (drayage) — Chicago intermodal yard to consignee's warehouse
Intermodal is the economic engine of containerization. It works because container dimensions, lifting points (corner castings, ISO 1161), and chassis interfaces are standardized worldwide — a 40-foot box loaded in Suzhou can fit any U.S. flatcar, any chassis, any vessel.
In the U.S., intermodal rail service is dominated by the Class I railroads — BNSF, Union Pacific (West), CSX, Norfolk Southern (East), with Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City spanning North America. The largest intermodal hubs include Los Angeles/Long Beach (transcontinental gateway), Chicago (Midwest hub), Kansas City, Memphis, and Houston.
Intermodal Bills of Lading — sometimes "through bills" or "combined transport bills" — issued by NVOCCs or freight forwarders cover the entire intermodal journey under a single contract of carriage.