Research Article

Operation Efficiency Evaluation of the China-Europe Freight Train Based on Grey Cross-Efficiency DEA

Table 1

Preliminary indicator system for operation efficiency evaluation of CEFT.

Indicator layerSubindicator layerIndicator description

Scale rangeAnnual operation trainsThe number of annual operation trains
Annual outbound trainsThe number of outbound trains in one year
Annual inbound trainsThe number of inbound trains in one year
Annual containersThe number of all containers actually carried by the CEFT in one year
Annual outbound containersThe total number of containers actually carried in the outbound CEFT in one year
Annual inbound containersThe total number of containers actually carried in the inbound CEFT in one year
Train return ratioThe ratio of the returned trips to the total trips, reflecting the balance of the two-way trips between China and Europe
Ratio of returned containersThe ratio of the returned containers to the total number of freight containers transported by the train, reflecting the organization of the returned freight of CEFT
Domestic citiesThe number of cities with entry-exit nodes of CEFT in China
Overseas citiesThe number of overseas cities with entry-exit nodes of CEFT
Container conversionThe actual number of containers carried by CEFT is converted into the number of trains in accordance with the standard of carrying 41 containers per train.

Speed efficiencyAverage timeThe “station-to-station” transport time of CEFT, including transit time plus node stay time
Average speedThe ratio of CEFT transport mileage to transport time

Transport efficiencyOperating linesThe number of CEFT running lines among China, Europe, and countries along the belt and road, including trunk lines and branch lines
Entry-exit nodesThe number of entry-exit nodes of CEFT in China
Capacity utilizationThe ratio of actual train operation to the maximum train operation
Average static load rateThe average of the static load of the loaded containers, reflecting the degree of utilization of the freight transport capacity provided by the CEFT to the freight railways
Full-capacity rateThe ratio of the loaded containers with full capacity to the number of all loaded containers
Fulfilled rateThe ratio of the actual number of CEFT to the number of scheduled CEFT
Loaded container rateThe ratio of the number of loaded containers to the total number of containers

Operation costAverage freight charges of operationThe cost of transporting 1 container for 1 km. The average freight charges of the train = (domestic freight + foreign freight)/total mileage
Government subsidyFinancial support by the local government, referring to the benchmark of freight of each train

Economic and tradeTotal value of annual freightThe value of importing-exporting freights on CEFT, reflecting the status and role of CEFT in China-EU economic and trade cooperation
Total value of the outbound freightThe value of exported freights on CEFT in one year
Total value of the inbound freightThe value of imported freights on CEFT in one year
Unit TEU valueThe average value per TEU of freight transported by CEFT, indicating the segmentation and target positioning of the CEFT logistics market
Outbound unit TEU valueThe average value per TEU of freights transported by outbound CEFT, indicating the segmentation and target positioning of the CEFT logistics market
Inbound unit TEU valueThe average value per TEU of freights transported by inbound CEFT, indicting the segmentation and target positioning of the CEFT logistics market
Ratio of key categoriesThe ratio of the number of TEU of the top 5 categories to the total number of TEU
China-EU total tradeThe total international trade between China and Europe

Freight traffic safetySafety accidentsThe number of accidents that affected the normal transport of CEFT due to reasons such as concealing the name of the cargo, overweight, poor loading and reinforcement, and damaged containers
Freight damage and theftThe number of incidents of theft, damage, etc.
Insurance claims businessThe purchase of CEFT full-freight insurance and compensation for the train freight, including the number of insurance business, the proportion of insurance coverage, and the number of claims