Female guardians of China-Europe freight trains

The six-member team of female inspectors at the Dorbod railway line maintenance section built by the China Railway Harbin Group. (Zhang Tao/Xinhua)

What is a typical day for railway workers like? They walk more than 10 kilometers, carrying gauges and hammers, to check and tighten the screws on the rail track thousands of times to ensure the safety of the train as it travels.

There is a six-member team of female inspectors with an average age of 29 at the Dorbod railway line maintenance section built by the China Railway Harbin Group.

Though the team has only been in place for nearly two years, it shoulders heavy responsibility. In addition to the grain and oil lines, the team members are in charge of 148 kilometers of upstream and downstream routes on the Binzhou Line, which is a crucial link in the eastern transit lanes for the China-Europe freight trains. The annual overload of the line amounts to 150 million tons, with an average train-passing interval of 13 minutes during peak periods.

As the rail across the Zalong wetland, the construction areas that suffer from moisture and freeze damage, needs frequent regular maintenance. Even so, summer rain and winter snow do not defeat the female workers but make them the heroines who guarantee the safety of the rail traveling.