China Railway Express fast-tracks the Belt and Road Initiative

▲

Click 'CHINADAILY' above to follow us

https://v.qq.com/txp/iframe/player.html?vid=h0397c9ousl&width=500&height=375&auto=0
China Railway Express has opened up new pathways, connecting China and the countries along the Belt and Road Initiative with Europe.

At present, there are 51 routes originating from 27 locations across China, which reach 28 cities in 11 European countries. To date, more than 3,200 shipments have been completed.

Currently, China Railway Express (Yiwu) operates in Spain, Russia, Belarus, Latvia and the UK, as well as five Central Asian countries, Iran and Afghanistan ‑ making eight operating routes in total.

The Yiwu to Madrid service starts at Yiwu West Railway Station and exits China at Alashankou. It passes through Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, France and Spain. The journey is 13,052 kilometers long and takes roughly 18 days.

Yiwu West Railway Station freight yard is China’s sixth international railway port and the country's only county-level city railway port.

On April 16, Wuhan Railway Bureau sent a train filled with Chinese-made electronics, food and beverages to Hamburg in Germany.

It was the 36th freight train bound for Central Europe to depart from Wuhan this year.

From March 2012, when the first train left Wuhan for Poland, to the end of March this year, China Railway Express (Wuhan) has made the trip 453 times. Six export routes have been opened up covering the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Spain, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and other countries.

In 2016, the China Railway Express service from Chengdu to Europe made 460 trips, accounting for a quarter of the freight sent by train from China to Europe.

Since China Railway Express’ northern route between Chengdu and Europe was officially opened, another two routes have been formed, connecting Chengdu with northern, central and southern Europe.

The China Railway Express route from Chengdu to Lodz, initially only visited Poland once per week. But now, it is a daily service, sometimes departing two, or even three, times a day.

Zhong Junlan drives the first leg of China Express Railway's Chengdu to Lodz service. He is carrying out inspection work before departing.

The route operates like a relay race, with the baton passed from driver to driver for different sections along the route.

Zhong Junlan hopes that one day, he will be able to drive directly to Europe.

On April 18, China Express Railway’s freight train X9081, bound for Almaty, departed from the assembly center in Urumqi, at the foot of the Tainshan mountains.

This is the 251st freight train to complete the journey since the route opened in May last year. The train will stop at Alashankou station for transshipment.

Alashankou has the largest transshipment warehouse in Asia. Because China’s railway tracks are 1435mm wide, and Kazakhstan’s are 1520mm, outbound freight needs to be transferred into broad-gauge Kazakhstani freight cars to complete its journey.

Alashankou port is a national-level port, and its railway station is dominated by international freight.

Directing & editing: Huang Zeyuan

English subtitles: Tian Zhang, Liu Xuan

Copy-edit: Greg Fountain