At dawn, a China Europe freight train loaded with containers slowly entered Alashankou Station. The customs intelligent system automatically scans, and the train does not need to wait for a long time. It will be released in a few minutes. This kind of scene now plays out almost every once in a while at the port on the edge of the Gobi Desert.

From January to August 2026, the cumulative import and export freight volume at Alashankou Port reached 21.717 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 9.4%. Among them, imports increased by 6.8% and exports increased by 22.2%. From the thousand mile railway to the highway checkpoint, this port is catching the continuous influx of cross-border goods at a faster pace.

Railway stabilizes the main artery

Railways are still the ballast stone for port freight transportation. From January to August, the freight volume at the Alashankou Railway Port increased by 13.9% year-on-year. The local implementation of smart railway ports and local fast customs clearance, parallel operation of railway comprehensive inspection sites, has reduced the overall customs clearance time by more than 20%, and the China Europe freight trains have basically achieved efficient clearance. For bulk commodities such as ore and grain, the port has pioneered joint supervision with the unloading location, reducing customs clearance time by more than 50% and ensuring more stable long-term trade.

Highway running flexibility

The highway passage fills the gap of small batches and multi category goods. Relying on the international road transportation mode, the Alashankou Highway Port implements a direct connection between the highway port and the local area. The enterprise declaration, port inspection and release, and local supervision are interrelated. After the linkage of checkpoint identification and logistics monitoring, the efficiency of goods passage has been improved by about 70%. From January to August, the freight volume at highway ports increased by 61.5% year-on-year, surpassing the total volume of last year by 108 days compared to previous years, becoming a light cavalry in cross-border logistics.

Install intelligent brain in regulation

The scale of freight transportation has expanded, and supervision cannot be left behind. Alashankou Customs has incorporated large container inspection equipment and intelligent checkpoints into daily operations, and the inspection of trains has shifted from manual inspection to non-invasive intelligent supervision. The shortest time for a single train boarding inspection is 10 minutes. In the first 8 months, the customs supervised 6108 China Europe and Central Asia freight trains, a year-on-year increase of 21.1%.

Customs declaration companies have also tasted the sweetness. Zhengmao International Freight Forwarding Company's agency business volume has increased by 20% this year, with no more delays in document declaration and inspection release, significantly accelerated logistics turnover, and an increasing number of cooperative customers.keywords:Infrastructure News

From the sandstorm mouth to the golden passage, Alashankou has put reform in the details and written efficiency between trains and trucks. Behind 21.717 million tons is smoother channels, faster customs clearance, and more active foreign trade. The door to the west is opening wider and wider, and the pulse of land trade between Asia and Europe is jumping more and more vigorously here.Editor/Yang Meiling