Spring Festival Travel Rush: Maintenance staff on China-Laos border work to ensu

Editor：莫颖艺   2022-01-29 11:53:20
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The China-Laos Railway has welcomed its first Spring Festival travel season. Apart from taking measures to ensure the smooth increase of passenger journeys, some workers are working at the border to keep inbound and outbound freight trains running safely. Yang Jinghao has the story.

It's been seven years since Ye Rongmao worked as a maintenance worker on the railroad. When the China-Laos Railway opened about two months ago, he was transferred to the Mohan Station at the border.

YE RONGMAO Freight Train Maintenance Worker "Our duty is to ensure all inbound and outbound freight trains work in a good condition and run safely through our maintenance."

The workers need to check more than 100 parts for each train, including the couplings and brake systems.

It's never been an easy task, especially working in a tropical region with high temperatures and heavy rainfall.

YE RONGMAO Freight Train Maintenance Worker "To do the job well, what matters most is a high sense of responsibility."

And it's not your average nine to five. Workers are on call all day, ready for whenever a train arrives.

YE RONGMAO Freight Train Maintenance Worker "During the busiest time, we would work from the midnight until morning with only a one-hour interval."

They will even be on duty during the Spring Festival, an important occasion for family reunions.

For veteran workers like Liu Yongping, who has more than 30 years of work experience, it's no surprise.

LIU YONGPING Freight Train Maintenance Worker "Over so many years, I just celebrated the festival with my family once or twice. I feel sorry sometimes, but this is just my job."

Since its opening, the cross-border line has witnessed a surge of goods, which are expected to further grow as the pandemic eases.

LI SHUAI Chief, Freight Train Maintenance Staff Mohan Station, China-Laos Railway "I'll try to help them hone their professional skills, which will be conducive to further guarantee transportation safety and improve efficiency."

Workers say it would be tedious to repeat the same work procedures, but they say it's an honor to be "health guardians" for the trains at an international gateway. YJH, CGTN, Yunnan Province.