Etihad Rail, the developer and operator of the UAE’s National Rail Network, today (February 2) launched a national awareness campaign designed to encourage logistics providers, manufacturers and heavy industry to shift long-haul freight from road to rail. 

The campaign comes as the UAE’s industrial and logistics sectors enter a new phase of growth, placing increased pressure on road networks, delivery reliability and operating costs. 

Spanning nearly 900km and directly connecting ports, industrial zones and logistics hubs, Etihad Rail’s freight network enables bulk and high-volume cargo to move on fixed schedules, on dedicated corridors, with a level of predictability that road-based logistics increasingly struggles to match.

Each freight train can carry the equivalent of up to 300 heavy trucks, reducing congestion on key corridors while improving certainty for manufacturers operating on tight production timelines.

This national awareness campaign positions rail freight not as an alternative in principle, but as a practical, scalable and proven solution already operating across the UAE.

Omar Alsebeyi, Acting CEO at Etihad Rail Freight, said: "For heavy industry, logistics is no longer just about speed, it’s also increasingly about certainty. Delays, congestion and volatility carry real costs. Rail addresses those challenges at their root by offering scale, reliability and predictability, day in and day out."

According to him, the campaign highlights how rail freight enables companies to stabilise transport costs, reduce inventory buffers and plan production more confidently - benefits that compound as volumes grow.

Importantly, Etihad Rail emphasised that the campaign is not about replacing road freight, but about rebalancing the logistics system.

"Road freight remains essential, particularly for last-mile delivery," stated Omar Alsebeyi, the Acting CEO at Etihad Rail Freight. 

"What rail does is remove long-haul and bulk movements from roads to help with easing congestion, and therefore, freeing trucks to operate where they are most effective. It’s about making the entire system work better," he noted.

The campaign will feature across trade media, industry forums and digital platforms, supported by case studies demonstrating how rail integration is already improving efficiency for customers in sectors including construction materials, petrochemicals, metals and containerised cargo. 

The launch also reflects broader national priorities to strengthen supply-chain resilience, improve industrial competitiveness and future-proof logistics infrastructure as trade volumes increase.

"The UAE has invested in a national rail network designed to support growth for decades, not quarters," stated Alsebeyi. "This campaign is about ensuring industry fully benefits from that investment. Rail freight is operational, reliable and ready to scale. Now is the time to use it and benefit from it," he noted

As industrial output continues to expand, Etihad Rail believes early adopters of rail freight will gain a strategic advantage through lower long-term costs, improved reliability and the ability to grow without adding pressure to already-busy road networks, he added.-TradeArabia News Service