Port Business

Appendix B

Glossary172

Anchorage: Port charge relating to a vessel moored at approved anchorage site in a harbor.

Apron: The area immediately in front of or behind a wharf shed where cargo is lifted. On the “front apron,” cargo is unloaded from or loaded onto a ship. Behind the shed, cargo moves over the “rear apron” into and out of railroad cars.

Backhaul: To haul a shipment back over part of a route where it has already traveled; a marine transportation carrier’s return movement of cargo, usually opposite from the direction of its primary cargo distribution.

Barge: Flat-bottomed vessel designed to carry cargo on inland waterways. Barges have no locomotion and are pushed by towboats. A single, standard barge can hold 1,500 tons of cargo or ...