China’s First "Multimodal Transport + TIR" Service Launches, Opening New Cross-Border Logistics Channel

On March 27, after completing customs clearance procedures, a container truck marked with the TIR international road transport system logo slowly exited the national border at Irkeshtam Port in Xinjiang, marking the successful launch and smooth exit of China’s first "multimodal transport + TIR" international transport service. This initiative has opened up a brand-new intermodal mode for China’s cross-border logistics.

The goods transported this time are domestic auto parts, which departed from Xi’an Xianyang International Airport on March 16. They were assembled at Kashgar North Station by railway via Xi’an International Port Station, then exited the country via Irkeshtam Port in Xinjiang through the TIR transport mode, and will eventually be delivered to Uzbekistan. The entire journey from shipment to exit at Irkeshtam Port took 11 days, 3 to 5 days shorter than the traditional transport time.

The core innovation of this service lies in the in-depth integration of two efficient transport modes — multimodal transport and TIR — with the customs intelligent supervision system. The front end leverages the advantages of railway transport, such as large capacity, low cost and environmental friendliness, to efficiently gather and distribute goods to Kashgar. The back end exerts the advantages of the TIR mode, including one-time declaration, one-document completion, one-time sealing and fast customs clearance, greatly improving the overall logistics efficiency of goods shipped from inland China to Central Asia and even Europe.

To ensure the smooth operation of the service, Irkeshtam Customs has set up a special service window, connected with enterprise needs in advance and optimized supervision procedures. On the premise of ensuring effective supervision, it has realized efficient inspection and release of goods. 

The launch of this service not only provides enterprises with a more flexible, efficient and economical cross-border logistics solution and reduces comprehensive logistics costs, but also further improves China’s multimodal transport network system to Western and South Asia as well as Europe.

As one of China’s westernmost land ports, Irkeshtam Port is an important node connecting Central Asia, West Asia and even Europe. The selection of this port for China’s first "multimodal transport + TIR" service fully verifies its superior conditions in connecting different transport modes and efficiently handling TIR customs clearance procedures.

The promotion of this innovative mode will effectively promote Xinjiang’s transformation from "channel economy" to "port economy" and "landing economy", injecting new momentum into the high-quality development of regional economy. 

With the deepening of economic and trade cooperation between China, Central Asia and Europe, efficient and convenient international logistics channels have become "golden channels" for promoting regional common prosperity, and the successful practice of the "multimodal transport + TIR" mode has added new vitality to these channels.