In the shipping industry, it is rare that a product or a package is loaded on one truck at its point of origin, and stays on that same truck all the way to its final destination. This might be slightly truer in smaller packages, but when shipping large amounts of freight, if often is being sent to several different destinations, and instead of being shipped all on one large truck, it will be distributed to smaller vehicles, or to respectively smaller trailer space in other big trucks, at certain points along its journey. The places where things are redistributed are called terminals, and they are used by regular courier services, full scale trucking services, and even a medical courier service will find uses for terminals.

LTL shipping is when terminals are used the most often. LTL stands for less-Than truck load, and is when a large shipping truck if filled with orders from multiple customers that are all going in generally the same direction. For example, if someone from Chicago was shipping things to LA, and another person from Chicago was shipping to Seattle, the courier company might rent them each part of the first truck which is leaving from Chicago. Then, at some point along the way, the cargo would be redistributed in a terminal, where part of it would be put on a truck going more towards Seattle, and the other more towards L.A. This process might in fact take place several times over the course of a delivery. Many couriers have their own terminals, but these tend to be the larger companies. Smaller companies may share terminals with other couriers and just lease a share of them to use.

Terminals are often the points that you will see referenced when you check the status of a package that you are shipping with a courier company. Everything that goes in and out of a terminal is carefully logged and weighed, which is then put into the companies computer system. Then, when you check your status over the phone or online you will be able to see what the last major terminal the product passed through was.

The postal services work on a similar terminal model to this. The system and the word mostly originate though from rail terminals which were used to redistribute cars to different engines. Today, the word applies to any place where goods are redistributed in any branch of the transportation industry.