Simplified freight procedures to support social distancing introduced by Russian Railways

Russian Railways (RZD) has reported that it has introduced a simplified procedure for remote interaction with freight customers, “to help prevent the spread of coronavirus infections”.

It said a procedure has been established for automatically prolonging contracts between cargo owners and the owners of private railways by three months, in order to increase social distancing while supporting businesses.

Furthermore, it said documents that are expiring soon which are necessary for customers’ loading and unloading operations have been extended.

Alexey Shilo, Director-General at RZD’s Centre of Corporate Transportation Services, said: “Using electronic document management and email, the remote co-ordination of new cargo loading schemes, and certifications for cargo owners performing loading and unloading operations for the first time will ensure not only high-quality services and transparency, but will also protect the company’s employees and partners from possible infection through personal contact.”

The company has reported an increase in the number of customers using electronic document processing since the beginning of March. More than 4∙5 million electronic documents have been issued, accounting for about 75 per cent.

For more information visit eng.rzd.ru 

7th April 2020