Container pulling tractors

[linda brown]

A friend of mine introduced me to container pulling tractors. At that time I was working at a port. My work was mostly in the office and I saw these tractors when I was coming to meet this friend. He was working at this shipping container company at the time. They were delivering one of their containers. I believe they were called terminal tractors. I know this is not what this forum talks about, but I believe it is a fun fact to know.

NB: I believe these things are called spotter trucks in the US.

 

[4570Man]

The local bakery has several of them for pulling trailers around their several warehouses in town.

 

[linda brown]

I thought it was funny that they are called tractors.

 

[mcfarmall]

I thought it was funny that they are called tractors.

Theres aTBN member, Jeff I think, that has some fancy Greek or Latin definition of tractor in his signature line. You'd like it.

 

[countrybumpkin]

Ever heard the term “Tractor Trailer” ?

 

[Oldoak]

I thought it was funny that they are called tractors.

Well, over-the-road 5th wheel transport trucks are also commonly know as tractor trailers.

Edit: I see countrybumpkin posted while I was typing and already brought this point up.

 

[oosik]

At the SeaLand terminal in Anchorage - the units that pull the trailers around are called - tugs.

 

[CMV]

We call them "switch tractors" around here. Most common use is a cross dock, warehouse, or fulfillment operation that is continually moving trailers to/from dock doors.

 

[Big Barn]

We call them "switch tractors" around here. Most common use is a cross dock, warehouse, or fulfillment operation that is continually moving trailers to/from dock doors.

Same here. In the "old days" they were referred to as yard goats also.

 

[MitchellB]

We referred to them as Switchers or the Yard Dog. For us, they were usually just an old tractor that had seen better days and often not fit or legal to be on the open road anymore, but would work find all day long moving semi-trailers around on the yard. One place I worked had two matching little International cabover tractors that ran on propane and we had a large storage tank on the yard to keep them filled up.

 

[Stimw]

I have seen hundreds! Driven dozens!
There are different brands that are made for switching around tractor/trailer yards.
They normally have a half cab and a hydraulic lift on the 5th wheel, open on back of cab so you can reach out and connect air line to move trailer.
I have been at a port where they would load/unload 600 trailers in about 4 hours from ocean going barges for the islands!
They were automatic transmission and have seen drivers not even use the brakes!
They would make a swing going forward, shift into reverse and when the tractor stopped bucking they then backed the trailer into a parking place! Dropped the lift, snatched the air line off, push kingpin release and take off for another one.
It was like watching a beehive.

 

[CWB Wyo]

I drove one of them for years. We where called hostlers, all we did ways move trailers from the yard to the dock and back. We called them yard goats. Are also had a modified log splitter on the front of them to move trailer dollys around, it worked off air pressure. One night I keep a count of how many moves I had in a 8 hour shift it was right at 2 hundred. That was one of my favorite job working for YRC.

CWB.