Improved service

Since last year, the station has operated a set schedule for China-Europe freight trains. Unlike regular cargo carriers, the trains adhere to a set schedule along the entire route, allowing customers to calculate journey times between cities, thus improving service quality.

To boost competitiveness and offer a more stable schedule, railway operators and service providers from seven countries, including China and Germany, have drawn up a coordination plan to manage set schedules, China Railway Container Transport Corp said.

Meanwhile, at the beginning of last year, China State Railway Group started formulating schedules along four routes between China and Europe.

After several rounds of discussions with railway operators and service providers in countries along the routes — including Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland and Germany — the first set schedule for the China-Europe freight train service between Xi'an and Duisburg was completed in October. Trial operations began along the route on Oct 26.

As the service provider, China Railway Container Transport Corp has played an important role in ensuring the smooth operation of the trains.

In China, the company provides containers and loading plans, inspects freight notes and assists with the handling of customs.

It also works with railway operators in the provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu, as well as Xinjiang, to ensure that the trains follow the set schedule in China.

When the trains leave the country, the company conducts real-time monitoring and offers the information to local railway operators and service providers.

The next step will be to develop more routes with set schedules to improve service quality, which will better support the smooth operation of the international supply chain, the company said.

The improvement in the service matches a development plan for China-Europe freight trains devised by China State Railway Group.

"The company should play a leading role in the international cooperation mechanism and in China's Domestic Transport Coordination Commission to better organize these trains, thereby improving cooperation, enhancing the corridor's transportation capacity and boosting service quality," said Liu Zhenfang, president of CSRG, at the company's annual conference last month.

Contact the writer at luowangshu@chinadaily.com.cn