Wuhan-Yangshan shipping service had more than 290 sailings in 2012

THE river shipping service from Wuhan to Shanghai's Yangshan port area that started operation in July last year, has had 290 sailings so far this year, Xinhua reports.

The 518-TEU, 8,000 dwt ships, the biggest on the Yangtze, move IT major Foxconn's products from its Wuhan factory to the coast and expects to transport 32,000 TEU this year up from 24,000 TEU last year.

The service was first launched six years ago but was suspended three times due to lack of cargo.

In 2011, Wuhan introduced nine measures to improve the efficiency and punctuality of the service. A year ago, the service was recommenced. In the first month, the service ran 30 sailings. Each arrived within 72 hours. The Ministry of Transportation also supported the idea of developing the service into a feeder line.