Port of Vancouver
Lower Mainland terminals, TLS tags and BC pay checks.
Prince Rupert drayage
Drayage software for Prince Rupert carriers
Prince Rupert is built around rail. This page covers how a drayage company working around the port can use Dispatch Board, and where the work differs from a truck-heavy port.
A rail-first port on the north coast
The Prince Rupert Port Authority governs the port, and the Fairview Container Terminal, operated by DP World Prince Rupert, is an intermodal terminal designed around on-dock rail, with CN as the railway. Most containers are meant to move on and off trains instead of on trucks. For a trucking company, that shapes the work. It tends to be local and specific: shuttling between sites, handling empties, transloading and short deliveries, rather than a steady stream of long-haul pulls out of the gate.
We say this cautiously. Volumes and routings change, and we do not quote port statistics here. Confirm current terminal procedures with the terminal and the port authority, and treat anything below as a description of how our software handles the situation.
Gate hours, closures and holds on the board
Dispatch Board does not read the terminal’s gate system. You enter each terminal’s gate hours and closures by terminal and date, and Plan day then avoids a move timed into a shut gate. Hold alerts appear before a driver is sent to a box that cannot be released. Container tracking runs through Terminal49 for availability and last free day where Terminal49 covers your line and terminal, so check coverage in the trial before relying on it.
- Terminal closures by terminal and date, kept with the load that they affect
- Last free day and availability from container tracking
- Problems tab for holds, late moves and missing information
Ships and trains on the same load
Vessel arrival alerts use AIS data from a provider you choose, with your own key; Dispatch Board supports VesselFinder, MarineTraffic, Datalastic, AISHub and AIS Stream. You see how far off the ship is, its speed and its arrival on the load. Rail timing is not tracked by us as a separate feed, so for rail-connected boxes the date that matters, the last free day, still comes from container tracking or from your own entry.
Remote work and patchy signal
Prince Rupert is a small, remote city by container-port standards. The driver app is a web app that drivers add to the home screen, and photos, signed PODs and PDFs are saved on the phone and uploaded when signal returns. That helps on rural stretches and inside steel-heavy yards. Drivers can chat with dispatch on each load, tap “ready for a load” with a note, and see their stops and documents before leaving.
British Columbia rules and Canadian money
Work at BC container ports falls under the Container Trucking Act. The BC port compliance add-on, $79 a month on any plan, keeps the rate order in the board, runs a pay check each period against what you actually paid your drivers and prepares a file for the Commissioner. It starts from the published 1 July 2026 figures, so confirm them against the current order. We have not claimed that every rule of the Act applies to every Prince Rupert job; check with the Commissioner for your case.
Prices, invoices and pay are in Canadian dollars, with GST and PST on invoices, and distances can be in kilometres. USD is available for cross-border work.
Per diem and chassis, with evidence
When a container is late off a train or stuck behind a hold, per diem can start before you can move it. Each charged day carries a reason, such as a terminal closure, a hold, the container not being available, a later appointment or a late customer delivery, or nothing on record. One click bills the customer’s share, or the dispute letter goes to the line with dates, reasons and a packet of tracking events, appointments and closures. Chassis bills from DCLI, TRAC and Flexi-Van can be checked against your own dates.
What it will not do here
Dispatch Board does not book terminal appointments automatically in terminal systems. You can enter appointment rules and slot capacity and use booking links. There is no EDI. It is a dispatch and billing system for your company, not a feed from the terminal. See the Vancouver page for the largest BC gateway, or all ports.
Getting started in the free trial
Self sign-up gives you a company with sample data and a get-started checklist, so you can look around before you enter anything of your own. Then bring in your real freight: import drivers, trucks, chassis, customers, rate tables and loads from Excel, CSV or a PDF rate sheet. The importer matches columns by heading, checks every row before saving and flags duplicates.
Add your terminals and their gate hours, invite your drivers to the driver app, and run a real week alongside your current system. The Help Center has a guide for every screen. A bar at the top of the board shows the days left in the 14-day trial, and the account owner gets an email two days before it ends. Plans are month to month, and you can download a backup file and a CSV of your loads at any time.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Does Dispatch Board connect to the Fairview terminal’s systems?
No. You enter gate hours and closures yourself. Tracking runs through Terminal49 where it covers your line and terminal, so check coverage in the trial.
Can drivers work where there is no signal?
Yes. Photos, signed PODs and PDFs are saved on the phone and uploaded when signal returns.
Does it handle BC driver pay rules?
The BC port compliance add-on checks pay against the rate order each period and prepares a file for the Commissioner. It starts from the published 1 July 2026 figures; confirm them against the current order.
Can I track a vessel heading to Prince Rupert?
Yes, with an AIS provider key you supply. You see distance, speed and arrival on each load.
Is it priced for a small fleet?
Lite is $149 a month in Canadian dollars and includes 5 trucks. Plans are month to month with a 14-day free trial.
Related pages
Container tracking
Terminal49 tracking, last free day, vessel ETA, holds and closures.
Per diem and detention
A reason for every charged day, rebill and dispute letters.
Put your Prince Rupert loads on the board.
Every company gets 14 days free with no card. Import a week of your own freight and judge it yourself.