Rail freight: priority order for requests when line capacity is insufficient approved, containers ranked high, from 20 December

By order dated 14 October 2026, Kazakhstan's acting Minister of Transport amended the Rules for the carriage of goods by rail. Zakon.kz reported this on 22 October 2026. The rules now define the capacity of an infrastructure section as the maximum number of trains and train pairs that can pass through it per day.

The new provisions set the order in which shipper requests are reviewed when capacity on a specific direction is insufficient. First come shipments to restore traffic and fight fires, cargo for emergency response, and special and military shipments. Next come container shipments in all types of service and international transit. They are followed by high-value-added goods from the priority list and energy hydrocarbons in specialised rolling stock; perishables and socially important food, and coal for power plants and utilities during the heating season; raw materials, components and equipment for domestic factories; exports of raw energy cargo in universal rolling stock; and other cargo.

Within one priority category, the carrier allocates available capacity automatically using a proportionality coefficient — the ratio of available section capacity to the total requested volume. If the volume still exceeds what the section can handle, the carrier offers an alternative route or another period. Up to 5% of capacity in each category is reserved for requests submitted after the planning period closes. The order takes effect on 20 December.

For Gateway Logistics rail clients this is a planning benchmark: container shipments and transit get high priority, and equipment for domestic production has its own category. We forward wagons, containers and container flatcars: Khorgos/Altynkol and Dostyk – Alashankou to Almaty, Astana, all regions of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Iran and Turkmenistan.

Source: Zakon.kz, 22 October 2026.