Mechanics in Shanxi ensure a safe, smooth journey home for millions

Geng Luyao doesn't wear a white coat or hang a stethoscope around his neck, but he is a highly trained "doctor" nonetheless, the kind that ensures the "health" of railway carriages at a depot in Taiyuan, Shanxi province.

As night falls, Geng, 32, an EMU mechanic, and his colleagues begin work at the Electric Multiple Unit Depot of China Railway Taiyuan Group.

Although the Spring Festival travel rush, which began on Monday this year, is an exceptionally busy time for Geng and his colleagues, the rest of the year can hardly be described as relaxed.

"Maintenance is the core guarantee of high-speed rail safety," he said. "Usually, EMU maintenance is divided into two levels, focusing on inspection, maintenance and troubleshooting of the running gear, braking system and traction drive."

Level 1 inspections are generally conducted at night and involve quick routine checks and tests of a train car's roof, undercarriage, sides, interior and driver's cabin.

Level 2 inspections are conducted during the day and involve periodic maintenance, testing and trials of all systems and components, ensuring that nothing is overlooked or overdue.

The EMU mechanics are divided into ground crew and onboard teams. "Ground crew mechanics are like primary care doctors, focusing on maintenance of carriages at the depot. Onboard mechanics are like emergency doctors. They are responsible for equipment inspections and emergency troubleshooting during operations to minimize the impact of a problem on passengers," Geng said.

He himself is responsible for inspecting high-voltage components on the roof of carriages and equipment in the driver's cabin and for conducting dynamic tests of the train — standard duties of ground crew members.

"We not only inspect the appearance of components, but also listen for any unusual noises during equipment operation, similar to a doctor listening to a patient's heart and lungs," he said.

"Every detail affects passenger safety. An eight-car standard EMU has nearly 10,000 components that mechanics must inspect, leaving no room for even the slightest anomaly."

This is the seventh year that Geng has been working during the Spring Festival travel rush, or chunyun, the busiest time of the year.

The 2026 chunyun will last till March 13, when around 540 million railway trips are expected to be completed around the country, a year-on-year increase of 5 percent.

Last year, the China Railway Taiyuan Group handled 9.47 million trips, which is projected to be 9.8 million this year. Some 1,000 EMU mechanics will work in shifts around the clock to ensure the maintenance of 112 EMU sets.

Trains get only a brief rest at the depot before departing again. Within that limited time, mechanics must identify and resolve potential malfunctions efficiently — a rigorous test of their endurance, both physical and mental.

"We have to keep up to ensure safe homecomings and festival travels," Geng said, adding that intelligent technology is a great help.

A prognostic and health management system and an EMU detection system used when a train is on the move can provide early warnings and precise locations of potential risks in key areas, such as the running gear, electrical equipment and pantographs — devices mounted on the roof of railway carriages to draw electricity from overhead wires to help the train move.

"That allows us to quickly pinpoint problems, enhancing maintenance efficiency and malfunction-handling capabilities," said Zhao Xiaosheng, a 36-year-old senior EMU diagnostic engineer, the first of his kind in the group, who handles complex and difficult malfunctions.

Zhang Liguo, director of the EMU department, said: "Before the holiday rush, we dynamically adjust maintenance plans, scientifically extend maintenance cycles and continuously improve emergency response efficiency to fully meet the demand. Currently, the depot inspects more than 30 standard EMU sets per day, ensuring that all trains are thoroughly prepared for optimal performance."

Contact the writers at zhouhuiying@chinadaily.com.cn