With the expansion of online businesses, whose services and sales are not centralized in a specific location and deliver products nationwide, logistics becomes one of the most crucial factors for increased sales and the development of these businesses. The more efficiently logistics for small cargo can be improved, the further the development of e-commerce can go. One of the most important and effective methods of cargo transportation is by train.
As reported by IDEA, on the sidelines of the third day of the tenth round of the Rail Transportation Exhibition, held at the permanent location of international exhibitions in Tehran, the company “Pishtaz Rah va Shahr” unveiled a service that contributes to the country’s e-commerce.
The introduction of the Ghatarbar (Cargo Train) service was carried out by Majid Faghani, the CEO of Pishtaz Rah va Shahr, Mehrdad Malek Mohammadi, the co-founder and CEO of the startup Tapin, Hadi Tayanloo, another co-founder of Tapin, and under the guidance of Arash Sarvari.
Majid Faghani stated at the beginning of his speech: Iran’s national railway has been in operation for about 85 years, and from the very beginning, it was anticipated that along with passenger stations, there would be a need for transporting small cargo through the country’s rail network. However, for unknown reasons, this service was neglected for many years. But over the past 20 years, various companies have made efforts to revive this service.
He continued: Until just over three years ago, most of the country’s rail transport capacity was dedicated to passenger service or heavy cargo transport, with limited use for small cargo. However, with the launch of the “Ghatarbar” service by Pishtaz Rah va Shahr, rail transport is now also available for small cargo.
The Role of Rail Transportation in the Development of E-commerce
With the development of online businesses in the country and the addition of online stores every day, logistics becomes one of the most important factors for the success of these businesses because delivering products safely and on time to customers becomes a reason to trust online shopping, an issue that is crucial for the development of e-commerce.
One of the factors that reduces product damage in logistics is minimizing the loading and unloading of goods. In the case of van or truck transportation, loading and unloading occur multiple times, whereas in rail transport, this is much less frequent.
There are approximately 600,000 active online stores on Instagram in Iran, all of which are engaged in logistics on a daily basis.
The Importance of Rail Transport in Leading E-commerce Countries
Today, in most leading e-commerce countries around the world, the development of freight transport by rail is one of the most critical infrastructure development factors because rail transport offers numerous advantages compared to other modes of transportation.
One of the key advantages of Ghatarbar is its ability to move large volumes of cargo. Experts suggest that a single railcar can transport approximately three to four times the cargo of a truck. Additionally, rail transport is significantly more cost-effective compared to truck transport.
Furthermore, rail transport has a much lower environmental footprint compared to truck transport, contributing to environmental protection. Another advantage of using rail transport for the development of e-commerce is its speed.
One of the reasons leading e-commerce countries prioritize rail transport is the shortage of trucks available for nationwide or international transportation.
According to experts, truck transport should be primarily focused on last-mile delivery within cities because railway stations are limited, and trucks are needed for the final stage of transportation after arriving by train.
Use of the Ghatarbar Service
The Ghatarbar service, with the assistance of knowledge-based companies like Tapin, which has developed a Ghatarbar platform, has been registered as a knowledge-based product in the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology of the Presidency.
Pishgaman Rah and Shahar Company, three years ago, entered into an agreement with the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways to develop and upgrade rail transport infrastructure for small cargoes.
Furthermore, this service provides online stores with APIs and web services for direct use. Key players in this market include logistics platforms, factories, stores, and regular customers.
Challenges in Rail Transport Development
In response to a question about how they manage businesses and customer orders during internet disruptions, Faghani explained: The cargo manifest registration and issuance system we use can be connected to both the internet and intranet. If, for any reason, the internet is disconnected in the country, it does not create any disruption in the system, and our stations continue their operations without interruption.
The CEO of Pishgaman Rah and Shahar, when asked about the challenges of developing small cargo rail transport within the rail industry, stated: This industry is very expensive, and not every company can easily enter it because the minimum cost of purchasing a small cargo railcar with the basic facilities is 6 to 9 billion Iranian rials.
Sanctions are Once Again a Concern
Faghani also addressed whether this rail transport service is used by foreign countries. He said: Due to sanctions about 8 years ago, we lost passenger trains going to Damascus, Syria, Turkey, and Armenia, along with this passenger transport, we also had small cargo transport railcars, which we currently do not have. If passenger trains resume their activities, this service will also be available to destination countries.
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