The North Regional Transportation Control Center (North RTCC) under Kazakhstan Temir Zholy JSC wrapped up 2024 with a slate of operational achievements that tightened freight capacity across four northern branches spanning Akmola, Kostanay, Pavlodar, and Karaganda regions.
Container train volumes posted a 9.6% increase compared to 2023, climbing to 2,189 through trains formed over the year. Of these, more than half—1,292 trains—operated outside the standard transportation formation plan, reflecting growing demand for flexible, time-sensitive logistics solutions. Route speeds for container services also improved, reinforcing the corridor's attractiveness for export-oriented cargo.
Infrastructure Optimization and Maintenance Windows
North RTCC delivered more than 1,500 "technological windows" for major and intensive medium track repairs across its jurisdiction—670 more than the prior year. These scheduled maintenance intervals allowed crews to conduct infrastructure rehabilitation without severely disrupting freight flows, a balancing act managed through the center's dispatch coordination.
Extending warranty legs for train servicing drew dedicated attention. To facilitate longer uninterrupted runs, even and odd freight trains now stop at Yesil station for a 15-minute locomotive crew change, while Tobol and Atbasar stations handle technical maintenance. Full technical servicing is provided at Myrza and Nura stations through to Saryshagan, and at Akadyr station through to Sorokovaya and Astana, with crew changes at Karaganda-Sortirovochnaya completed within a tight 15-minute window. These measures lifted throughput capacity at Karaganda-Sortirovochnaya and Yesil stations.
Digital Transformation Gains Traction
The center launched the "Paperless Maintenance of the Schedule of Completed Train Movement" project across five train sections: Tobol-Yesil, Sorokovaya-Yermentau, Sorokovaya-Karaganda-Sortirovochnaya, Karaganda-Sortirovochnaya-Kulaigyr, and Kulaygyr-Moiynty. Integration into the automated GID "URAL" system sharpened dispatcher response times and data accuracy. Two additional corridors—Ermentau-Ekibastuz and Atbasar-Astana—will join the program in 2025.
A pilot initiative dubbed "E-Telegram" also went live, enabling KTZ structural divisions to relay requests and warnings in electronic format directly to dispatcher workstations. The shift accelerated operational management and decision-making cycles.
Broader performance metrics moved favorably: freight turnover, section train speed, car cycle times, dwell periods at technical stations, and average daily car productivity all registered improvements against prior-year baselines.