A machine that rolls off a ship at Dundalk is only half delivered. The dealer, the rental yard or the farm is still 200 miles away. That last stretch is where a tractor misses a permit, a car picks up a scratch, or a 15-foot-tall excavator sits for a day because it cannot enter a Baltimore tunnel. Ro-ro and vehicle logistics from Baltimore 3PL covers the stretch between the terminal processor and the final address, with the permits and the routing priced before the vessel docks.
The Port of Baltimore handled 728,225 autos and light trucks in 2025, second in the United States. It is the No. 1 US port for ro-ro farm and construction machinery, with 887,513 tons in 2025. Dundalk Marine Terminal, 570 acres with 13 berths and Norfolk Southern rail on the terminal, is the ro-ro and breakbulk terminal. Fairfield and Masonville are auto terminals. Tradepoint Atlantic, the private port at Sparrows Point, has its own vehicle processors and ro-ro berths.
How it runs at the Port of Baltimore
The vessel discharges to the terminal processor. The processor inspects and releases. Our desk takes it from there.
- Autos and light trucks. Carrier partners with open and enclosed car haulers load at Dundalk, Fairfield or Tradepoint Atlantic and deliver to dealers from Washington DC to Pittsburgh, or stage at a partner yard for dealer stock.
- Farm and construction machinery. Step-deck and lowboy partners load at the Dundalk machinery yard. Loads under 14 feet 6 inches and 11 feet wide can use the harbor tunnels. Taller or wider loads loop the west side of I-695.
- Rail. Dundalk has a unit-train machinery yard and more than 50 auto-rack spots. Units for the Midwest can leave by rail. See intermodal rail.
- Exports. Vehicles and machinery arrive by truck at a partner yard near the terminal, stage for the booking and deliver to the terminal on the cut-off date.
Customs clearance is coordinated through our licensed customs broker partners. Daily status by email lists units released, units loaded and units delivered by VIN or serial number.
Partner yards near the terminals
Dealer stock does not always need to move the day it is released. Partner yards in Dundalk, Curtis Bay and Sparrows Point hold units until the dealer calls. You pay yard storage per unit per day instead of terminal storage, which is higher.
What the partner network brings
Baltimore 3PL does not own a car hauler or a lowboy. We own the relationship with the carrier partners who load at these terminals every week, and we own the result. That network took 50 years to build. No fleet to fill, so the right truck wins every time.
A car hauler and a heavy-haul tractor are different businesses. A nine-car open hauler serves a dealer group. An enclosed hauler serves a luxury brand. A 13-axle lowboy with a pilot car serves a mining excavator bound for a quarry. We place freight only with partners whose permits and equipment fit the load. One desk, (419) 745-9492 or operations@sams3pl.com, Monday to Friday, 07:00 to 18:00 Eastern, covers all three.
What it costs and what moves the price
Autos price per unit by destination zone. Machinery prices per load. The price moves with:
- Distance. Zones radiate from the terminals: Baltimore metro, Mid-Atlantic, then the Midwest.
- Hauler type. Enclosed costs more than open. A full load of nine costs less per unit than a load of three.
- Dimensions and weight. Over-height, over-width and overweight loads add permits, escorts and sometimes a route survey.
- Tunnel detour. Loads that cannot use the harbor tunnels add 30 to 35 miles and 45 to 60 minutes per leg.
- Yard storage. Units that wait at a partner yard bill per day.
- Delivery window. A dealer with a fixed receiving window pays for the appointment.
High and heavy and the tunnel rule
The Francis Scott Key Bridge carried I-695 across the harbor until March 26, 2024. The rebuild opens in late 2030. Until then, every cross-harbor truck uses the I-95 Fort McHenry Tunnel or the I-895 Harbor Tunnel, and neither tunnel allows a load over 14 feet 6 inches high or 11 feet wide. Most autos clear. Most farm and construction machinery on a lowboy does not.
That changes the map for machinery. A combine leaving Dundalk for a dealer in Pennsylvania runs north on I-95 or I-83 and never sees a tunnel. The same combine bound for Anne Arundel County, Northern Virginia or Richmond must loop the west side of I-695, about 30 to 35 extra miles and 45 to 60 extra minutes. We quote the loop, permit the loop and schedule the loop. The Key Bridge truck routing guide explains the limits. Project cargo and breakbulk covers machines that come in pieces rather than on wheels.
What to send for a quote
Email operations@sams3pl.com or use the quote form. We reply within one business day. Include:
- Unit count and type: autos, light trucks, machinery
- Dimensions and weight for each machinery model
- Vessel, terminal and estimated discharge date
- Delivery addresses and receiving windows
- Open or enclosed hauler preference for autos
- Whether units need to stage at a partner yard before delivery
Questions shippers ask
01Which terminals handle ro-ro in Baltimore?
Dundalk Marine Terminal handles autos, ro-ro machinery and breakbulk. Fairfield and Masonville are auto terminals. Tradepoint Atlantic at Sparrows Point is a private ro-ro port with its own vehicle processors.
02Do you process vehicles?
No. The terminal processors do that. We move the units from the processor to the dealer, the auction, the rental yard or a partner storage yard.
03Can you move a 15-foot-tall machine to Northern Virginia?
Yes. Loads over 14 feet 6 inches cannot use the Baltimore harbor tunnels until the Key Bridge reopens, so the route loops the west side of I-695 with the permits the state requires. We price that in.
04Do you handle exports?
Yes. Vehicles and machinery come by truck or rail to a partner yard, stage for the vessel and deliver to the terminal on the cut-off date.
05How is vehicle transport priced?
Autos price per unit by destination zone. Machinery prices per load by dimensions, weight, permits and escorts.