Watang-Rizhao Railway Launches Spring Maintenance to Bolster Energy Transport

China Railway Taiyuan Group Co., Ltd. has announced that the Watang-Rizhao Railway, a key heavy-haul corridor for coal transportation from Shanxi Province, launched a comprehensive spring maintenance campaign on March 14. Scheduled to last 17 days, the maintenance aims to fully restore the line’s infrastructure and equipment after the high-intensity Spring Festival travel rush, laying a solid foundation for upcoming summer peak energy transportation.

During the maintenance period, China Railway Taiyuan Group plans to utilize 180-minute daily "window periods"—when train services are suspended—to carry out a series of key tasks. These include 28.354 kilometers of track cleaning by large machinery, replacement of 16,556 sleepers in sections, 169.462 kilometers of track tamping by large machinery, tamping of 134 sets of turnouts, and 242.5 kilometers of track grinding by large machinery. In addition, tunnel defects will be rectified, and equipment such as signal machines and catenary systems will undergo thorough inspection and maintenance.

Compared with previous years, this year’s maintenance involves more operation points and a wider coverage, with nearly 10 additional construction tasks added at multiple stations and sections.

To minimize the impact of construction on transportation, China Railway Taiyuan Group has strengthened overall scheduling and refined construction and transportation organization plans, ensuring the smooth and orderly operation of freight services throughout the maintenance period.

It is understood that the Xingbao Railway, an important coal-specific branch line of the Watang-Rizhao Railway, will officially start double-track operation after the completion of the spring maintenance. This move is expected to further enhance the coal collection and transportation capacity of the Watang-Rizhao Railway.

Meanwhile, during the maintenance of the Watang-Rizhao Railway, China Railway Taiyuan Group is also conducting simultaneous spring maintenance work on the down line of the Beijing-Baotou Railway and the up line of the South Tongpu Railway.

Stretching from Watang Town in Xing County, Lüliang City, Shanxi Province in the west to Rizhao Port in Shandong Province in the east, the Watang-Rizhao Railway runs through three provinces—Shanxi, Henan and Shandong—and connects with seven major railway trunk lines, including the Beijing-Guangzhou, Beijing-Shanghai and Beijing-Kowloon Railways. As China’s first heavy-haul railway with a 30-ton axle load built in one go, it serves as a crucial corridor for west-to-east coal transportation.

During the 2026 Spring Festival travel rush, the section of the Watang-Rizhao Railway under the administration of China Railway Taiyuan Group handled over 10 million tons of cargo, playing a positive role in safeguarding national energy security.