The Last Free Day, usually abbreviated LFD, is the final day of a container's free time — the last day it can be picked up from the terminal (or, for equipment, returned) before storage or demurrage charges start accruing. After the LFD passes, the daily meter runs.
The LFD is the single most watched date in a drayage operation. Dispatchers build their scheduling around it: appointments, chassis, and drivers all have to align to get the container out on or before that day. A container that misses its LFD because of a terminal appointment shortage, a chassis split, or a congestion backlog starts generating demurrage that erodes the shipment's margin.
Because terminals, ocean carriers, and railroads each calculate free time differently — and holidays and closures can shift it — confirming the true LFD for every container is a core discipline of drayage planning.
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