Beijing: The Ministry of Railways will be consolidated into the Ministry of Transport this year, according to an official from the Ministry of Railways, adding that the announcement might be officially made at the party conference this year.
“The move will probably benefit the intermodal shipping in the long term, as currently water transport and rail transport are controlled by different ministries, however, the railway system is very huge and complex, the consolidation work might take a long time,” said Liang Chao, a logistics analyst.
“The cancellation of the Ministry of Railways is very necessary; it is good for the healthy development of the transport and logistics industry, CAAC has already been consolidated into the Ministry of Transport earlier, now it’s time for the railway system to break the monopoly and have reforms,” said Rong Chaohe, a professor from Beijing Jiaotong University. “The Ministry of Transport should set up a consolidated transport group and the railway departments should just be responsible for public services,” he added.
China’s intermodal connections lag behind other major economies with less than one in ten containers shifted by rail at present. [26/02/13]
