After several years of absence on the Polish intermodal market, the freight rail carrier Freightliner PL has launched a new connection between the Brzesko Container Terminal (60km east of Kraków) and the ports of the Tri-City.
Freightliner PL is a freight rail carrier and simultaneously an intermodal operator.
On 6 October we had the opportunity to receive the first freight railcars at the BCT - Baltic Container Terminal in Gdynia, delivered by one of the most technologically advanced locomotives running on the Polish tracks - the diesel-electric DRAGON locomotive manufactured by the Polish Newag. Thanks to the possibility of switching from electric to diesel traction, the locomotive did not have to be replaced by a shunting locomotive at Gdynia Port station and arrived at our terminal directly from the route. Bypassing time-consuming and costly shunting operations, Freightliner PL can offer much faster and more efficient rail freight. DRAGON’s arrival marks the very first time at our terminal, when an electric locomotive has rolled onto our loading tracks.
In addition to adopting the latest rolling stock solutions, Freightliner PL is also a leader in the application of new communication technologies. All locomotives in the fleet are equipped with laptops that allow documentation to be created and printed directly on the locomotive. A recorder with a GPS antenna allows remote access to systems and locating the locomotive, there are cameras recording the progress of the journey, which allows continuous monitoring of the train route. The use of digital solutions significantly accelerates handling operations, eliminates paper documentation and thus significantly reduces vessel turnaround time at port terminals.
This approach to communication and the digitalisation of processes is unfortunately an exception in the railway sector for the time being, but we hope that it is a harbinger of future changes throughout the industry.
We also count on further visits of the freight rail carrier to the BCT.
