Freight trains loaded with containers stop in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/cnnb.com.cn]

As of 5:00 pm on Oct 22, more than 1.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) had been shipped via the sea-rail combined transport model at Ningbo Zhoushan Port this year, official statistics show.

The amount was more than the total volume recorded in 2021 and represented a year-on-year uptick of 25.4 percent.

This year, the container throughput volume via this mode at the port is expected to surpass 1.4 million TEUs this year. The sea-rail combined transport model refers to the mechanism where goods are first loaded onto trains to Ningbo before being transported overseas by sea, and vice versa.

To date, Ningbo's sea-rail combined transport business covers 63 prefecture-level cities in 16 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions across the nation since its inception in 2009.

The shift to using freight trains instead of trucks to transport goods to ports has slashed logistics costs for enterprises located in the nation's inland cities. Freight trains are also more environmentally friendly as they consume only 25 percent the amount of fuel required for trucks.

From 2009 to 2021, Ningbo handled about 4.81 million TEUs via the sea-rail combined transport model, which reduced carbon emissions by 1.62 million metric tons and resulted in fuel savings worth more than 5 billion yuan ($769.23 million).