Why it matters
Terminal performance is one of the most consequential topics in ocean freight. Historically, negotiations and routing decisions have stalled because carriers and terminals bring their own conflicting data to the table, leaving BCOs and forwarders with zero visibility.
The Terminal Activity tab solves this by providing a global, neutral, and independent view of terminal activity and performance. By leveraging independent AIS data and port geometries, you can stop relying on guesswork, anticipate disruptions, and make proactive decisions.
Where to find it
In the MarineTraffic app, navigate to the left-hand menu, expand the Containers section, and select Intelligence to enter the Container Intelligence workspace. The platform will load the Overview map tab by default. From the top menu bar, simply select the new Terminal Activity tab to begin analyzing the data.
What information is now available: Understanding the Terminal Activity Tab
Integrated Workspace: Terminal Activity is a new tab inside the existing Container Intelligence workspace, not a separate product.
Independent Data: It delivers historical and live terminal activity derived neutrally from observed vessel behavior, covering every carrier and terminal in the network.
Granular Focus: Data is computed at the terminal-call level, meaning it tracks down to one vessel, one terminal, one port, and one service rotation.
Forecasting: Number of calls and vessel capacity are predicted based on the future calls we predict.
Core Metrics Explained
The Terminal Activity tab provides several key metrics to help you assess congestion and performance. By default, you can aggregate these metrics by median, but you can also select sum, average, max, min.
Number of calls: The count of unique terminal calls.
Waiting time: The hours of pre-berth wait recorded per call, displayed as a median, sum, min, max, or avg.
Berth stay (Berth time): The Actual Time of Arrival (ATA) to Actual Time of Departure (ATD) in hours.
Vessel capacity (TEU): The capacity of the vessels calling at the terminal.
Vessel capacity x Berth time (TEU-h): A load proxy used for comparing relative terminal workloads.
Waiting %: The share of calls where waiting occurred.
Filtering and Customizing Your View
To help you benchmark performance and identify faster alternatives, the tab includes advanced filtering to compare dimensions side-by-side.
Available Filters: You can filter by 1. Carrier: Alliance, Carrier Group, Operating Carrier, Country, 2. Ports: Country, Port, Terminal, 3. Vessel: Specific name or TEU size class, 4. Waiting and stay time, 5. Split: carrier, carrier group, alliance, country, port, terminal, vessel, or TEU size
Historical Depth: You can view historical data from June 1, 2025, onward.
Time Controls: Data can be aggregated daily through yearly, and you can select date fields.
Transparency and Methodology
We believe that data is only useful if both sides of a negotiation can verify it.
Visible Sample Sizes: Call counts are displayed directly on every view so you can easily judge the sample size for yourself.
Open Methodology: Past calls keep the alliance or service designation exactly as it was at the time of the call.
How to use it
Select your scope: Choose the specific countries, ports, or terminals you want to analyze.
Apply filters: Include all carriers or filter by specific ones, and adjust your view based on vessel TEU capacity.
Define your split: Choose how you want to plot the data, allowing for side-by-side comparisons by carriers or terminals.
Analyze the metrics: Navigate through the different views to assess relative workloads, TEU capacity, and waiting times.
Benchmark over time: In just a few clicks, you unlock global, independent visibility. You can aggregate and benchmark your data daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly, leveraging historical records from June 2025 to today.
