Rail is cheaper than road, but MSMEs remain locked out of the savings
A KPMG-FICCI report says rail freight costs Rs 1.96 per tonne-km versus Rs 3.78 by road, yet terminal gaps, access charges and wagon constraints limit MSME use. Fixing these barriers could shift 100 million tonnes of freight annually to rail.
A KPMG-FICCI report finds Indian MSMEs cannot fully access rail freight’s lower rates because of weak goods sheds, terminal access costs, wagon shortages and restrictive small-consignment schemes. Improving these could unlock 100 million tonnes of annual MSME freight and Rs 8,700 crore in rail revenue.
Why this matters
The MSME access gap follows Indian Railways commissioning 142 Gati Shakti Cargo Terminals and expanding Kashmir parcel services, showing that network additions need last-mile and wagon access to broaden freight adoption.
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