To accelerate the development of a national comprehensive transport system which is multi-tiered and integrated, CAAC and China State Railway Group recently signed the Strategic Cooperation Agreement on Promoting High-Quality Development of Air-Rail Intermodal Transport. According to the Agreement, the two sides will further deepen reform and innovation, promote the “hard connectivity” of civil aviation and railway infrastructure planning and construction, and “soft connectivity” of transport service arrangements, standards, and information. Efforts will be made to fully leverage the combined advantages of air and rail transport to promote high-quality development of intermodal transport, better meeting the people’s needs for higher quality services.
In recent years, CAAC and China Railway have maintained close collaboration. The two sides have worked together in several areas to develop air-rail intermodal transport, including enhancing infrastructure, innovating products, improving services, facilitating information sharing, and promoting demonstration projects, jointly advancing the integrated development of comprehensive transportation services. In terms of “hard connectivity” development, 24 airports have established direct connections to railway stations. As for “soft connectivity” development, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines, and Spring Airlines have taken the lead in connecting their ticket booking systems with the railway’s system, achieving system integration between airline apps and the railway’s 12306 app, allowing passengers to seamlessly purchase air-rail intermodal tickets on either app.
