Intermodal freight across Russia
rail long haul and container delivery to the door
Intermodal freight across Russia means a container that covers the long haul by rail and the first and last miles on a container truck. The cargo is not handled at the interfaces: at the inland terminal the container is lifted from the flatcar onto a chassis and delivered to the door under the same seal.
Rail plus road beats pure trucking on hauls from about 1,500 km — for example, from Vladivostok to Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg or Moscow. We give a through door-to-door rate and transit time, and handle the interfaces ourselves: truck ready for train arrival, station paperwork, empty return.
Specification
Specification · Intermodal freight across Russia. Standard terms · rate and leg-by-leg timing are confirmed per shipment
Service
- Scheme
- road → rail → road
- Containers
- 20', 40', 40'HC — shipper-owned (SOC), operator's or line's
- Options
- insurance, terminal storage
Terms
- Timing
- Vladivostok — Moscow about 14–25 days door to door
- Documents
- ETRAN waybill and TrN included
- Currency
- USD / RUB
Logistics
- First mile
- warehouse / port → terminal
- Rail leg
- terminal → inland terminal
- Last mile
- terminal → door, empty return
Price
- Base
- through door-to-door rate
- Extras
- waiting at unloading, storage, container detention — on request
Service flow
- 01
Through rate
We compare road and intermodal for your route and choose stations, terminals, operator and container type. You get one door-to-door rate and a transit time for each leg.
1 day - 02
First mile
We collect the container from the port after release or deliver an empty to the shipper's warehouse for stuffing, seal it and bring it to the origin terminal.
1–2 days - 03
Rail leg
We get the GU-12 request approved, load the container onto a flatcar, issue the ETRAN waybill, track its location and update the arrival forecast.
7–20 days - 04
Terminal transfer
At the inland terminal the container is lifted off the flatcar by crane or reach stacker onto a truck chassis; the seal number and container condition are checked against the documents.
up to 1 day - 05
Last mile and empty return
We deliver the container to the door in the agreed slot, wait for unloading within the free time and return the empty to the operator's or line's depot.
1–2 days
Problems
Responsibility blurs at the interface: the rail operator 'released' the container, the trucker 'never received' it, and terminal storage is already accruing.
One point of responsibility for the whole chain: we schedule the truck for the train's arrival and control the container handover at the terminal ourselves.
Unloading at the consignee dragged on and the empty was not returned on time — the operator or line bills detention.
We agree unloading time in advance, count the container's free days and plan the empty return together with the delivery.
Intermodal is offered on a short haul where it loses to a direct truck on both time and price.
We price both options for the actual route and recommend direct trucking when the haul is short or the cargo is urgent.
Documents
Documents for intermodal carriage within Russia: a separate waybill for each leg, but one contract and one rate. The delivery term decides who books the chain.
Incoterms
- DAP
- consignee's warehouse — the whole chain is on the seller
- CPT
- seller pays carriage to the named destination
- FCA
- shipper's warehouse — the buyer books the intermodal chain
Documents
- Rail waybill
- electronic, in ETRAN — for the rail leg
- TrN / e-TrN
- road consignment note for each trucking leg
- Forwarding instruction
- addresses, time slots, stations, container owner and empty return depot
- Packing List
- packages and gross weight — for the waybill and delivery check
- Release / DT
- for an import container — customs release or transit to an inland customs office
FAQ
The container covers most of the distance by rail, which on long hauls is cheaper and more predictable than a truck, while trucks handle only the short ends. On lanes from about 1,500 km the rate difference is significant. On short hauls a direct truck is better.
No. At the terminal the whole container is lifted by crane or reach stacker from the flatcar onto a truck chassis, without opening or re-handling the cargo. One seal stays on for the whole chain, reducing damage risk and shortage disputes.
Yes, it is the typical case. The import container goes from the port onto a flatcar, to a regional terminal and by truck to the consignee — unopened and under single responsibility. For a line container we agree inland use with the shipping line in advance.
About 14–25 days door to door: 10–20 days on the rail leg depending on the service, plus 1–2 days each for the first and last miles and the terminal transfer. Waiting for loading at the port is accounted for separately. We confirm the exact time for a specific departure date.
Usually a few hours of free time, written into the order; beyond that the truck's waiting time is charged. Container use is counted separately: the operator or line gives free days, after which detention applies. If unloading will take a day or more, we agree in advance to drop the trailer with the container.
The forwarder holding the contract for the whole chain, so a claim does not have to be split between the rail operator and the trucker. The seal is checked at each interface, so any shortage can be traced to a specific leg. We recommend insuring the cargo for the whole chain.