In early 2019, under the guidance and facilitation of the East China region, the Changzhou branch of CTS International, the Shanghai branch of China Railway International Multimodal Transport Co., Ltd., and Jiangsu Chengtong Logistics Co., Ltd. co-launched the “Changzhou-Luchao Port sea-rail multimodal transport train.” The successful launch of the project has added a new channel for the foreign trade of goods in Changzhou when entering and exiting Yangshan Port in Shanghai, and it has also provided a new platform for the company’s business in sea-rail multimodal transport.

In recent years, stubbornly high global oil prices have caused rising domestic transportation costs for international containers entering and exiting Shanghai port, making logistics and transportation cost control of foreign trade enterprises a key concern. Since the beginning of 2018, Changzhou branch has worked to fulfill a “marketing-driven” strategy, ramped up efforts to analyze the needs of the comprehensive logistics market and focused on the pain points of its clients. Initiated by individuals with major responsibility, a special project team was set up to identify new approaches for working and taking proactive efforts to meet the new needs of new logistics forms. With the guidance and support of the East China region, the headquarters’ sea freight management center, and the railway business center, active communication has been maintained with railways and ports in Shanghai and Jiangsu to properly handle problems caused by the different administrations of different regions and departments, thus ensuring the smooth materialization of a highway-turn-railway product, namely the project for Shanghai-Nanjing cargo freight containers to enter and exit Yangshan passage. The “Changzhou-Luchao Port sea-rail multimodal transport train” is dispatched each Monday, and the first batch of 52 40-foot sea freight containers departed from Changzhou via railway and arrived in Yangshan Port.

The successful trial operation of the train is a specific move of the company in responding to the state’s Three-year Action Plan for Promoting Transport Structure Adjustment (2018–2020) and the national strategy of the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta, and it optimizes the import and export transportation model of enterprises in the Changzhou region, as well as the customs clearance working environment. Compared with traditional, single highway transportation, the “Changzhou-Luchao Port sea-rail multimodal transport train” uses less energy and comes with higher safety and transportation timeliness. It will thus greatly reduce logistics costs when it grows in size. Going forward, the East China region will focus on the development of the railway-sea multimodal transport logistics market, and it will add to Shanghai and Nanjing freight transport line stations, such as Hefei, Nanjing, Zhenjiang, Wuxi and Suzhou. Efforts will be made to add seaborne transport space booking, yard operations, customs supervision zones, import transshipment and other services, so as to diversify regional products and business and enhance the core competitiveness of the company in the marine transport market of East China.