A freight train carrying light trucks arrived at the intermodal transportation terminal at Xiamen Port – located in Xiamen city, in East China's Fujian province – on April 18.
The trucks, manufactured by a Chinese automaker Jiangling Motors Corporation Limited, or JMC, were transported from Nanchang International Land Port, in East China's Jiangxi province and were exported via a new sea-rail intermodal service being provided by Danish group Maersk Line, the world's biggest container shipping company.
It marks the group's first sea-rail intermodal operation in Xiamen Port and is expected to help expand Maersk's inland logistics network and the city's presence as an international transportation hub.
A freight train carrying light trucks arrives at the intermodal transportation terminal at Xiamen Port on April 18. [Photo/WeChat ID: gh_6233022b6145]
According to an employee of Xiamen Port Holding Group, this one-stop model can greatly shorten waiting times and lower logistics costs for enterprises, making inland manufacturers more competitive with their exports.
Statistics showed that a total of 25,000 TEUs – or standard 20-foot equivalent units – containers were transported by sea-rail intermodal trains via Xiamen Port from January to March, up 136.5 percent year-on-year.
That accounted for more than 80 percent market share of the port's sea-rail transportation business.
Of that, 454 TEUs were transported through the combined transportation mode.
The one-stop combined transportation mode is said to enable cargo owners to enjoy a logistics solution package without paying for different transport means or sections or handling many procedures.