Promote the construction of a transportation power with new quality productivity

Wei Jigang

The new quality of productivity is a profound revolution in productivity. The new quality productivity in the field of transportation will surely promote profound changes in the industry, become a strong engine to promote the high-quality development of transportation, and inject strong impetus into the modernization of transportation and the construction of a transportation power. It is of great practical and strategic significance to respond to the new situation of changes in the world, the times and history, and accelerate the formation of a pattern of new quality productivity to promote the high-quality development of transportation.

First, the overall idea of promoting the development of transportation with new quality productivity

The new quality productivity in the field of transportation is an industrial productivity system, covering a multi-dimensional system from the micro factor level to the meso level of modern transportation mode, and then to the macro modern comprehensive transportation system, covering new transportation producers, new technologies, new infrastructure, and high-quality services, from transportation innovation enterprises, scientific research institutions to new forms and models of transportation, and from transportation strategic emerging industries to future transportation industries. From the innovation of a single mode of transportation to collaborative innovation with different modes of transportation, from the tangible innovation of transportation to the intangible innovation of institutional mechanisms, policies and standards, the new quality productivity in the field of transportation is not only systematic, but also structured and hierarchical, with its internal close logical relationship of "four beams and eight pillars".

First, from the demand side, the ultimate goal of transportation empowered by new quality productivity is still to provide high-quality passenger and freight transportation services. From the perspective of specific demand dimensions, there are some differences between passenger and freight transport, passenger transport mainly pursues safety, convenience, wisdom, comfort, low carbon, etc., and freight mainly pursues agility, reliability, wisdom and environmental protection.

Second, from the perspective of the supply side, that is, the level of industrial development, the overall goal of industrial development is comprehensive and three-dimensional, industrial integration, industry-city integration, intelligent and efficient, and green and low-carbon. Among them, the comprehensive three-dimensional mainly refers to the orderly competition, coordination and unification of various modes of transportation, according to their respective economic and technological characteristics and comparative advantages in the comprehensive three-dimensional transportation network; Industrial integration mainly refers to the coordination of transportation with production links and circulation links, and the connection and cooperation between upstream and downstream enterprises to improve the operational efficiency and competitiveness of the entire supply chain; Industry-city integration mainly refers to the better integration and coordination between transportation and regional economy, giving full play to the role of agglomeration and radiation, and promoting the development of regional economy; Intelligent and efficient mainly refers to the fact that transportation should make full use of informatization, networking, digitalization, and intelligent technologies to carry out digital transformation and intelligent upgrading of transportation systems, structures, functions, methods, and equipment, so as to achieve high efficiency and efficiency in transportation services; Green and low-carbon mainly refers to the sustainable development goals of ecological civilization, environmental friendliness, resource conservation and safety, promoting the intensification and conservation of land, energy and resources, reducing pollution, reducing emissions, and minimizing the negative impact of transportation activities.

Third, at the level of products, services and networks, affected by the new scientific and technological revolution and other factors such as information technology, network technology, artificial intelligence, new energy, and new materials, the transportation technology and equipment are more advanced, the network is more accessible, and the services are lean and efficient.

Fourth, at the factor level, it is not only the upgrading of traditional elements that supports the transformation of the transportation industry and demand, but also the addition of new elements. In the field of transportation, the main factors of production include talent, capital, technology, data, management, organization, model, scientific research and education.

In addition, the productive forces determine the relations of production, which in turn have a counterproductive effect on the productive forces. In the process of promoting the development of transportation with new quality productivity, it is also inseparable from the reform of systems, mechanisms, policies and standards. Appropriate systems, mechanisms, policies, and standards can provide a guarantee for the new quality productive forces to play a better role.

Second, the key direction of new quality productivity to promote the development of transportation

(1) Adhere to the direction of safe and reliable development

The safety and reliability of transportation includes two aspects: safety and reliability. Among them, safety refers to the degree of satisfaction that the transportation services provided can make the transportation object intact and safely realize the displacement; Reliability refers to the stability, predictability and reliability of the execution of transportation services to meet the required standards. The safety and reliability of transportation directly affects the normal and stable operation of production and business activities, is related to the safety of people's lives and property, and is of great significance to maintaining the stable development of the country's economy and society.

After years of development, especially since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, China's transportation safety production system and mechanism have been continuously improved, laws and regulations have been gradually improved, the quality of personnel has been significantly improved, the safety performance of equipment and facilities has been significantly improved, and transportation safety production has made great progress. However, there is still a big gap from the goal of "people's satisfaction, strong security, and the world's forefront" put forward by the transportation power, especially the weak safety foundation, the lack of strict safety responsibility, the lack of safety reform and innovation, and the lack of adaptation to the safety supervision of new business forms are still relatively prominent, and the safety production of transportation is still a long way to go.

(2) Adhere to the development direction of digital intelligence

With the continuous advancement of science and technology, digital and intelligent technologies have a profound impact on traditional transportation tools, transportation modes and operation management models. Adhering to the development direction of digital intelligence can improve the speed and processing efficiency of traffic information, improve the convenience and comfort of travel, optimize the allocation of resources, and improve the service efficiency and quality of transportation.

In recent years, the level of digitalization and intelligence of China's transportation has been continuously improved, and the informatization and digitalization of the industry have made great progress, but there are still shortcomings in the following aspects. First, the data base is still weak. The data collection capability is difficult to meet the development needs, and the scope and depth of dynamic perception are narrow. There is little systematic and large-scale public data in the industry, and there is still a gap between data openness and social expectations. Second, the application synergy is not strong. The development of different methods and fields is unbalanced, and there are few vertical national integration and collaborative applications, and horizontal comprehensive applications have not been fully integrated and effectively linked. Third, the level of security needs to be improved. The capabilities of active protection, in-depth defense, and comprehensive prevention of network security are not adapted to the new situation, and the ability to protect critical information infrastructure and key data resources is insufficient. Fourth, the development environment needs to be improved. The depth and breadth of the integration of advanced information technology and transportation are still insufficient, the models and standards that can be replicated and promoted on a large scale have not yet been formed, and the problem of emphasizing construction and neglecting operation and maintenance still exists.

(3) Adhere to the green and low-carbon development direction

The increasingly serious global environmental problems pose a huge threat to human survival, and controlling carbon emissions and slowing down global warming have become one of the important issues in the world. In September 2020, China clearly put forward the "dual carbon" goal of striving to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. Transportation is one of the most important areas of carbon emissions, accounting for about 10% of China's total carbon emissions. The green and low-carbon development of transportation is of great significance for promoting the high-quality development of the industry, accelerating the construction of a transportation power, and promoting the realization of the "dual carbon" goal.

In recent years, the transportation industry has comprehensively and deeply promoted the green development of transportation and achieved positive results. For example, we will continue to accelerate the application of new energy and clean energy, with the total number of new energy urban buses, taxis and urban logistics distribution vehicles reaching more than 1 million, more than 290 LNG-powered ships, about 7,500 berths covered by shore power facilities in ports across the country, and more than 10,000 charging piles in highway service areas. China has strengthened international exchanges and cooperation on green transportation, released a white paper on "Sustainable Development of China's Transportation", and actively participated in negotiations on greenhouse gas emission reduction in shipping.

Although the green development of the transportation industry has achieved positive results, there are still some difficulties and problems, the transportation structure needs to be further optimized, the industry pollution prevention and carbon emission reduction face some bottlenecks, and the means of promoting green transportation are not perfect.

(4) Adhere to the development direction of integration and coordination

Transportation plays a pivotal role in the supply chain with a significant impact on the cost, efficiency, and service levels of the supply chain, and the layout and type of transportation directly affect the layout, capacity, and efficiency of the supply chain. At this stage, there are still differences in ownership between different modes of transport in China, the degree of marketization of roads, railways, water transport and civil aviation is inconsistent, road transport is highly competitive, and the marketization degree of railway, water transport and civil aviation still needs to be improved.

To this end, the Ministry of Transport has carried out special pilot projects for comprehensive transportation services "one single system" and "one box system" to become a transportation power, and at the same time accelerated the healthy, standardized and orderly development of new forms of Internet freight transportation, and the integration and coordinated development between transportation and upstream and downstream enterprises has been effectively improved. In August 2023, the Ministry of Transport, together with the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Customs, the State Administration of Financial Supervision and Administration, the State Railway Administration, the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the State Post Bureau, and the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd., issued opinions on accelerating the development of the "one single system" and "one box system" for multimodal transport.

However, on the whole, there is still a lot of room for improvement in the integration and coordinated development between transportation and upstream and downstream enterprises. With the development of platformization, networking, and digitalization, information sharing and data security between transportation and upstream and downstream enterprises, differences in laws and regulations, and the shortage of related talents are still the key factors restricting the overall efficiency of the supply chain.

Third, the key focus of new quality productivity to promote the development of transportation

(1) Adhere to the drive of scientific and technological innovation

Adhere to the drive of scientific and technological innovation, strengthen the supply of high-quality science and technology, focus on the main problems restricting the high-quality development of transportation, promote the integration of new technologies and transportation, and promote the innovation and development of the transportation industry. The first is to adhere to independent innovation, strengthen basic research and applied basic research, strengthen the research and development of key common technologies, cutting-edge leading technologies, modern engineering technologies, and disruptive technologies, and strive to break through the "bottleneck" technical problems in the field of transportation, achieve high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-reliance, and seize the commanding heights of science and technology in the field of transportation. The second is to improve the layout of key laboratories and R&D centers related to transportation, and promote the inclusion of a number of relevant scientific research platforms in the national scientific and technological innovation system. Accelerate the open sharing of scientific and technological resources such as scientific research infrastructure, large-scale instruments and equipment, and scientific data in the field of transportation. The third is to speed up the development of intelligent transportation, promote the application of advanced information technology and intelligent technology and equipment, strengthen the construction of intermodal transport systems, intelligent management systems and public information systems, and promote the construction of a number of autonomous driving, intelligent shipping test bases and pilot application pilot projects. Fourth, strengthen the capacity building of scientific and technological innovation, improve the system and mechanism, stimulate the internal motivation of scientific and technological innovation of transportation enterprises, and better play the key role of scientific and technological innovation in promoting the high-quality development of transportation.

(2) Continue to optimize and adjust the transportation structure

We will continue to optimize and adjust the transportation structure, promote the in-depth integration of various transportation modes, improve comprehensive transportation efficiency, reduce social logistics costs, promote energy conservation, emission reduction and carbon reduction, and make transportation contributions to achieving the goals of carbon peak and carbon neutrality. The first is to strengthen the overall planning and guidance, improve the integrated layout and construction level of transportation infrastructure, accelerate the construction of a comprehensive three-dimensional transportation network, accelerate the completion of infrastructure shortcomings, tap the existing trunk transportation capacity, and improve the function of comprehensive transportation channels. The second is to optimize the spatial layout of the hub, improve the level of national, regional and regional comprehensive transportation hubs, improve the comprehensive service functions of the hub, optimize the transit facilities and collection and distribution network, strengthen the zero-distance transfer of passenger transport and the seamless connection of freight, realize the coordination and efficiency of different modes of transportation, give full play to the comprehensive advantages, and improve the overall efficiency of the comprehensive transportation system. The third is to innovate the multimodal transport organization model, promote the development of specialized intermodal transport such as cold chain, hazardous chemicals, and domestic mail express, encourage key urban agglomerations to build green freight distribution demonstration areas, and encourage port shipping, railway freight, air delivery, freight forwarding enterprises and platform enterprises to accelerate the transformation to multimodal transport operators. Fourth, strengthen the docking and data sharing of information systems of railways, ports, shipping companies, civil aviation and other enterprises, and establish and improve the system of rules for cargo loading and handover, safety management, payment and settlement.

(3) Deeply promote the construction of a digital transportation system

We will further promote the construction of a digital transportation system, significantly improve the digital, networked and intelligent level of the industry, and strongly support the high-quality development of the transportation industry and the construction of a transportation power. The first is to promote the construction of a comprehensive transportation big data center system, strengthen the integration and sharing, comprehensive development and intelligent application of data resources, and build a comprehensive transportation "data brain". The second is to accelerate the promotion of new transportation infrastructure, promote the integrated development of new technologies and transportation infrastructure, empower traditional transportation infrastructure, promote the digital transformation and intelligent upgrading of transportation infrastructure, and improve the safety and security capacity and operational efficiency of infrastructure. The third is to build an integrated digital travel network, encourage enterprises to integrate multi-mode travel information resources, provide passengers with full-chain, multi-mode and one-stop travel services, and promote the development of passenger intermodal transportation and the digitalization of full-process services. The fourth is to build a smart logistics network for multimodal transport, innovate the smart logistics operation model, promote cross-mode and cross-regional sharing and mutual recognition of electronic waybills, and promote the development of "Internet +" efficient logistics. Fifth, upgrade the modern industry management information network, coordinate and promote the integrated operation of transportation government management and service networking, promote the construction of digital government departments in transportation, and improve the modernization level of industry governance.

(4) Promote the green development of transportation

With the global pursuit of carbon neutrality, it will become increasingly important to promote the green and sustainable development of transportation and the conservation and intensive use of resources. The first is to strengthen the promotion and application of standardized, low-carbon, modern transportation equipment and energy-saving and environmentally friendly transportation vehicles. Accelerate the promotion and application of new energy vehicles in the fields of urban public transportation, taxis, logistics and distribution, and promote the priority use of new and clean energy for new and replacement port operating machinery, port vehicles and tugboats, and freight station operating vehicles. Promote the construction of charging (swapping) facilities in highway service areas, passenger transport hubs and other areas to facilitate green transportation and green travel. The second is to promote the integrated development of safe and green technologies and transportation. Research and development of new power systems, efficient and clean transportation equipment, new energy safe storage and transportation equipment, ship and wharf oil and gas recovery and safety testing equipment. Develop new materials and technologies such as biodegradable packaging, intelligent packaging, recycling and shared packaging. The third is to improve the system of green transportation standards and norms. Revise the green transportation standard system, and strengthen the effective supply of standards for new technologies, new equipment, new materials, and new processes. Fourth, strengthen the assessment and supervision of green transportation. Improve the green traffic statistics system, coordinate the existing monitoring capabilities, and use online monitoring systems and big data technology to build a monitoring and evaluation system. Improve the assessment plan and management system, and strengthen the ability to supervise green transportation.

(5) Strengthen the construction of traffic safety guarantee system

Efforts should be made to strengthen the construction of the safety and security system and lay a solid foundation for the safe development of a strong transportation country. The first is to improve the safety production investment guarantee mechanism, improve the safety guarantee capacity of infrastructure, optimize the safety performance of transportation equipment, improve the safety environment of production operations, and continuously improve the safety level of transportation production. The second is to strengthen safety education and training, and comprehensively enhance the safety quality of the industry's talent team. Establish and improve online and offline education and training bases and platforms for safety production, improve the professional qualification system related to safety production, strengthen the professional knowledge training of safety supervision teams, strictly enforce the training and assessment of the main persons in charge of enterprises and full-time and part-time safety management teams, and strengthen the key safety skills education of front-line employees. The third is to improve the system of safety production laws and regulations, and effectively implement the main responsibility of enterprises and the supervision responsibility of management departments. Straighten out the relationship between comprehensive safety supervision and industry safety supervision, promote the integration of safety supervision functions, deepen the reform of comprehensive traffic law enforcement, improve the rural traffic safety management system, improve the inland river emergency rescue mechanism, and accelerate the modernization of the safety production governance system and governance capacity. Fourth, strengthen emergency capacity building and comprehensively improve the level of emergency response and rescue. Intensify the investigation and management of hidden dangers and risk control, highlight safety supervision in key areas, comprehensively implement safety production risk management, and resolutely curb the frequent occurrence of major accidents. Fifth, we should increase the work of safety science and technology innovation, and give full play to the role of scientific and technological innovation in guiding, supporting and guaranteeing safety development. Strengthen the research and development of cutting-edge key technologies for safe production in the industry, encourage the active participation of scientific research forces and social resources inside and outside the industry, and promote the deep integration of modern technologies such as the Internet, blockchain, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and big data with safety supervision.

(6) Raise the level of opening up and international cooperation

Build a new pattern of all-round, multi-level and multi-channel transportation opening up and international cooperation. The first is to strengthen infrastructure connectivity and promote the development of international intermodal transport. Strengthen the interconnection of transportation infrastructure with neighboring countries and the "Belt and Road" countries, promote the construction of logistics parks and freight stations with international logistics functions, actively promote international shipping and international aviation cooperation, and promote international transportation facilitation. Second, it actively participates in the affairs of international transport organizations, conscientiously fulfills various international obligations, and plays a constructive role in important transport international organizations such as the Railway Cooperation Organization, the International Maritime Organization, the International Civil Aviation Organization, and the Universal Postal Union. The third is to speed up the pace of "going out" and actively expand business areas and cooperation methods. Actively explore many business fields such as transportation infrastructure construction, port operation, ocean transportation, transportation equipment, ship inspection, navigation education, etc., and transform from traditional labor export and project contracting to capital output, technology output, management output, and standard output.

(7) Cultivate a team of high-quality talents

Talent is the most active factor in productivity, and the development of transportation is inseparable from the support of new quality productivity. The first is to aim at the "main bull's-eye" of technological innovation, gather talents from various disciplines, industries and with their own characteristics, solve the problem of large but not strong transportation talent team, and strive to cultivate more masters, strategic scientists, first-class scientific and technological leaders and innovation teams. The second is to build a high-skilled talent training system based on vocational and technical colleges and schools (including technical colleges), with industry enterprises as the main body, and combined with government promotion and social support, so as to create a group of high-skilled talents with high political quality, strong comprehensive quality, high professional level and strong innovation ability. The third is to cultivate a team of high-quality professional traffic management cadres, encourage leading cadres to consciously make up for their knowledge weaknesses, ability shortcomings, and experience blind spots, and train the cadres to become "policy experts" and experts in their own positions in various fields of the transportation industry. Fourth, we should establish a scientific and effective system for the selection and cultivation of key core technical talents, explore and implement the shareholding system of intellectual property rights such as technology and patents and the shareholding system of innovative scientific and technological talents, set up special funds for talent development, and actively introduce relevant talents in urgent need.

(8) Strengthen the capacity building of modern governance

Deepen the reform of systems and mechanisms in the field of transportation, optimize and improve the management system, operating mechanism, laws, regulations and standard system, and promote the modernization of governance capacity. First, deepen reforms in key areas. further clarify the relationship between the government and enterprises in the railway industry, and promote the market-oriented reform of competitive links in the railway industry; Promote the reform of the highway toll system and maintenance system, and promote the differentiated toll collection of expressways; We will continue to promote the reform of the air traffic control system, improve the joint operation mechanism of military and civilian air traffic control, implement the classified and refined management of airspace resources, optimize the national air route network, and deepen the reform of low-altitude airspace management; Realize the separation of postal universal service business and competitive business. The second is to speed up the formation of a unified and open transportation market. Efforts should be made to get through the difficult problems such as institutional mechanisms, institutional environment, standards and rules, and promote the construction of a unified and open, orderly competition, complete system, and perfect governance of the transportation market system. The third is to improve the working mechanism of industry standards. Give full play to the role of enterprises in standard research, and smooth the channels for international exchange and cooperation on transportation standards. Fourth, innovate the investment and financing system and mechanism. Comprehensively implement the reform plan for the division of fiscal powers and expenditure responsibilities between the central and local governments in the field of transportation, optimize the debt structure, and prevent and resolve the hidden debt risks of local governments.

(The author is a deputy director and researcher at the China Center for International Knowledge on Development)