THE Indian ports of Mundra and Pipavav are benefiting from the country’s current rail growth.
The rail growth includes the opening of the first stretch of a dedicated freight corridor (DFC), which is designed to speed up cargo flow.
Since the launch, freight trains can run up to 100 kilometers per hour between Rewari in Haryana State and Madar in Rajasthan State. The connector is a part of a 1,506-kilometre DFC network that’s almost complete.
“Currently, Indian Railways’ freight trains can carry 61- to 71-ton weight per freight carriage at 60 kph. The newer, advanced railcars can carry weights up to 81 tons per car at 100 kph,” said Indian authorities.
The fast trains will result in cargo making the Mundra to North India trip in only four days instead of five days as they were before the new speed.
“The transit time of our trains will reduce significantly, and we will be able to provide an even more reliable service to our customers through our North India ICDs [inland container depots] at Garhi Harsaru, Faridabad and Ludhiana,” said Gateway Rail Freight.
Train speed and on-time operations have been a significant hurdle for companies because of network bottlenecks and government prioritisation of passenger transport.
“The ultimate benefit of this infrastructure dedicated to rail transportation of cargo will help industries in North India and will help the Indian manufacturing industry in NCR [northern capital region] to be internationally competitive,” said GatewayRail Freight.
DFC will also allow terminals to increase double-stack train services already being touted as a tool to compete with trucking, with APM Terminals Pipavav seeing a record 181 double-stack offerings in November.
“Double-stack trains are truly a benefit to the logistics industry as it ensures fast, safe, and pollution-free movement of cargoes,” said APMT managing direct Jakob Friis Sorensen.
