China's first dedicated rail line for automated terminal operations, designed to enable direct cargo transfer from ships to trains, begins operating at the Xiamen Ocean Gate Container Terminal on July 29. [Photo/Xiamen Daily]

China's first-of-its-kind dedicated rail line for automated terminal operations, designed to enable direct cargo transfer from ships to trains, began operating at the Xiamen Ocean Gate Container Terminal on July 29.

The 1,586-meter line is designed to handle 250,000 TEUs of containers and 250,000 tons of bulk cargo annually. Unlike conventional layouts, the track runs straight into the terminal at a right angle to the coastline, reaching deep into the core operating area and stopping just 70 meters from the berth. This allows goods to be loaded directly from vessels onto rail cars, creating a truly seamless ship-to-rail transfer.

This perpendicular rail line significantly reduces cargo damage while cutting overall logistics costs by over 15 percent per container for clients and shortening total transit time by two to three days.

As the world's first fourth-generation automated terminal and China's first fully proprietary automated facility, the Xiamen Ocean Gate Container Terminal will also deploy its unmanned equipment — including container carriers and gantry cranes — near the rail line to handle train loading and unloading. This enables high-efficiency transshipment with just 70 meters of transfer distance and a nine-minute turnaround time.

Tapping into Xiamen Port's rich shipping resources, the rail link bridges the terminal's 21 ocean routes with over 20 inland rail channels serving the wider port area.