On December 8, China Energy Investment Corporation announced a major breakthrough in one of its top ten flagship science and technology projects—the Heavy-Haul Grouped Train Operation Control System—with the successful trial of the world’s first 35,000-ton heavy-haul train group.
The achievement marks a transformative milestone set to reshape railway technology and significantly affect global railway development.
The 35,000-ton train represents the longest heavy-haul train group test in China. During the trial, seven separate train groups at Nalingoumen, Shabazi, Guannianfang, and Dalad North stations in Inner Mongolia, were dynamically assembled into a single “virtual train group” using wireless virtual coupling. The trains operated in a closely synchronized mode and eventually traveled to the south yard of Wanshuiquan South Station, where they automatically decoupled and entered the station separately.
The heavy-haul freight train control system project aims to replace traditional mechanical couplers used between 20,000-ton and 30,000-ton long heavy-haul trains with a “virtual soft coupling”, allowing multiple smaller formations to operate as a single train in an autonomous, closely-following grouped mode. Since its launch in 2022, the project has set a series of world firsts. (....)