110,000 Trains! China-Europe Railway Express Writes a New Legend for ‘One Belt, One Road”

With the departure of the 75052 China-Europe freight train from Jiaozhou Station in Qingdao, the total number of China-Europe freight trains has exceeded 110,000.

Since the unified brand was launched in 2016, in less than a decade, the total number of China-Europe freight trains has exceeded 110,000, with a total value of goods sent exceeding 450 billion US dollars. The operation has been safe, stable and smooth.

These astonishing figures demonstrate the practical achievements of China-Europe freight trains in serving the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, promoting China’s high-level opening up to the outside world, and ensuring the stability and smoothness of the international supply chain. They also encapsulate the successful formula of China’s railway in accelerating the construction of an efficient transportation system, a diversified channel system, an innovative development system, and a security guarantee system for China-Europe freight trains, and in continuously promoting the development of China-Europe freight trains towards higher quality, better efficiency, and greater safety.

The channel network has been gradually improved, reaching 26 European countries and 229 cities.

The ancient Silk Road has been awakened, and the space for opening up has been further expanded.

Looking at the operation map of China-Europe freight trains: domestically, the three channels in the west, middle and east are efficient and smooth, and different sources of goods are targeted; overseas, the situation of three lines running in parallel in the north, middle and south has taken shape, and a railway transportation network connecting Asia and Europe is becoming increasingly dense.

“In recent years, we have vigorously carried out trial operations of the southern channel of China-Europe freight trains, opening up a new route into Europe. At the same time, we have fully negotiated with the railway departments of the countries along the line on transportation organization and prices, promoting the diversified development of overseas channels,” said a person in charge of the Freight Department of China State Railway Group Co., Ltd.

The overseas channel network pattern of China-Europe freight trains, which is “smooth and efficient, extending in multiple directions, and interconnected by sea and land”, is becoming increasingly complete. Currently, 128 cities in China have opened China-Europe freight trains, reaching 26 European countries and 229 cities, as well as 11 Asian countries and over 100 cities.

Railway ports are the gateways for the operation of China-Europe freight trains. In recent years, the railway department has successively implemented capacity expansion and renovation projects for the five major port stations of Alashankou, Khorgos, Erlian, Manzhouli and Suifenhe and their rear channels, and newly built and put into use the Tongjiang port station, continuously expanding the capacity of the ports and providing strong support for the expansion of China-Europe freight trains. Currently, the daily capacity for train handovers at the six major port stations has reached 184.

The major channels shape a major pattern. Two thousand years ago, the sound of camel bells echoed along the Silk Road; today, the “steel camel teams” connect land and sea, and the international multimodal transport channels are constantly expanding.

– In terms of sea-rail intermodal transport, new international sea-rail intermodal routes have been developed in the west through the Baltic Sea, the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea, and in the east, seamless connections have been achieved with the Western Land-Sea New Passage, the Yangtze River Golden Waterway and coastal ports, building a new sea-rail intermodal transport channel connecting East Asia, Southeast Asia and Europe. Currently, 28 regular China-Europe freight train routes are starting from coastal cities such as Dalian, Tianjin, Qingdao and Lianyungang.

– In terms of road-rail intermodal transport, road-rail intermodal freight trains such as China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan have been successively launched, effectively alleviating the passage pressure at ports such as Alashankou and Khorgos.

China-Europe freight trains have opened up new channels for trade in the inland areas of Asia and Europe, and have also promoted the better integration of the countries and regions along the line into the open world economy.

The China-Mongolia-Russia Economic Corridor is an important part of the Silk Road Economic Belt, connecting the Bohai Rim Economic Circle in China and the European Economic Circle. In recent years, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region has relied on China-Europe freight trains to accelerate the export of local products such as sunflower seeds and dehydrated vegetables, while also importing goods such as zinc concentrate and copper concentrate from abroad, significantly improving the level of outward-oriented economic development.

Transport organization has been continuously optimized, with the fastest customs clearance time taking only a few minutes.

“The Qingdao Central Station uses a digitalized yard production system and, in collaboration with China Railway Jinan Bureau Group Co., Ltd. and China Railway International Multimodal Transport Co., Ltd., has created a ‘shared yard’, sharing information, space and network systems. It accurately gathers and distributes import and export goods in advance, achieving direct loading and unloading of import and export goods and reducing transportation time by about 2 to 3 days,” said Ge Ran, general manager of Qingdao Branch of China Railway United International Container Co., Ltd. To enhance transportation capacity and operational efficiency, a series of practical measures have been implemented to break down barriers, clear bottlenecks, and strengthen support for the organization of China-Europe Railway Express services.

Increase train load capacity! Based on the characteristics of domestic and international transportation organizations of the China-Europe Railway Express, the maximum number of wagons and the maximum traction weight for the 120 km/h China-Europe Railway Express have been increased to 55 wagons and 3,000 tons, respectively.

Reduce customs clearance time! The 95306 “Digital Port” system has been put into use. Port stations can now handle customs procedures in advance based on the departure information from both domestic and foreign locations, significantly improving the efficiency of customs clearance at ports. Close cooperation with customs authorities has been maintained to actively optimize the railway “fast pass” mode actively, reducing the customs clearance time from about half a day to within 30 minutes, with the fastest taking only a few minutes.

Strengthen the source organization! Fourteen China-Europe Railway Express assembly centers have been formed in different regions within China, accelerating the formation of an efficient transportation system that combines trunk and branch lines and is centered around hubs, and creating modern logistics hubs with international influence. The number of China-Europe Railway Express services departing from these assembly centers accounts for 88% of the total number of services nationwide.

“We have successively established overseas subsidiaries in Kazakhstan, Germany, Russia and other countries, and deepened practical cooperation with local railways, logistics, ports, and freight forwarders to jointly organize and develop two-way cargo sources,” said a relevant person in charge of China Railway Container Transportation Co., Ltd.

At present, the number of China-Europe Railway Express services departing and returning is basically balanced, and the comprehensive load factor is basically stable at 100%. Freight forwarders, logistics companies and other participants along the route have also gained more and more stable income due to the China-Europe Railway Express, and people in the countries along the route have gained more job opportunities and income sources.

Service levels continue to improve, with goods sent covering 53 categories and over 50,000 types of commodities.

“In the past 10 years, the China-Europe Railway Express services here have grown from nothing to something, and from few to many. There are not only export goods but also cross-border goods from Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asian countries. The types of goods have evolved from a single category of clothing and shoes to household appliances, high-end manufacturing equipment, and more,” said Gao Yitian, the person in charge of the Jiaozhou Branch of Jinan Railway Logistics Center.

In recent years, the service capabilities of the China-Europe Railway Express have been continuously upgraded and improved. The flow of people, goods, capital, and information has accelerated, allowing the world to witness the vitality of Chinese manufacturing and Chinese brands.

The operation cycle has become more stable. The railway department has innovatively launched China-Europe Railway Express services with a full journey timetable, with 17 services running stably each week. The average running time is reduced by more than 30% compared to ordinary services, and the average value of each container has increased by 41% compared to ordinary China-Europe Railway Express services.

The product system has become more diversified. On the basis of traditional bulk materials and daily necessities, services have been provided that are targeted at the transportation needs of special goods, such as international mail, cross-border e-commerce, food cold chain, and commodity vehicles, meeting the diverse, personalized, and refined market demands of enterprises in the countries and regions along the “Belt and Road”.

The types of goods have become increasingly diverse. Currently, the types of goods transported by the China-Europe Railway Express have expanded to 53 categories and over 50,000 types of commodities. High-value-added goods such as automobiles and auto parts, mechanical equipment, and electronic and electrical products have become the main sources of export for the China-Europe Railway Express. In 2024, the proportion of these three types of goods exceeded 60%. The safety issues of transporting new energy vehicles and consumer lithium batteries by rail have been successfully resolved, allowing China’s “new three major products” – new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, and photovoltaic products – to be transported to the world by the China-Europe Railway Express.

Customer experience has been continuously improved. 131 container return and storage yards have been established in 17 countries overseas, covering most of the key cities along the China-Europe Railway Express route, making it convenient for customers to return and store containers. A customer service center for the China-Europe Railway Express was established, and a portal website for the China-Europe Railway Express was launched. A one-stop comprehensive service platform was built, covering demand submission, contract signing, container pick-up and return, customs declaration and inspection, etc. Special services such as full-process insurance, cargo information tracking, electronic seals, and Internet of Things containers were provided for global customers to meet their diverse needs.

Roads are not only physical channels but also carriers of cultural exchange. In May, the railway department explored the operation of an international cultural train from Xi’an, China, to Almaty, Kazakhstan, connecting the historical and cultural veins of the two countries and initiating a new era of the Silk Road journey. When Chinese elements such as ceramics, tea, props for artistic performances, and cultural exhibits are transported abroad by train, the China-Europe Railway Express brings more opportunities for cultural exchange and integration between China and Europe.

Gathering strength and unity leads to success. Behind the 110,000 trains, there are practices of seeking novelty and quality, and various practical measures are continuously transformed into real productivity.

The future is promising. The National Railway Group will continue to implement the eight actions for high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, uphold the Silk Road spirit of peace, cooperation, openness, inclusiveness, mutual learning, and mutual benefit, and promote the development of the China-Europe Railway Express towards higher quality, better efficiency, and greater safety, providing strong transportation service guarantees for promoting economic and trade exchanges between Asia and Europe and serving high-level opening up.

Supplier

Luoyang Fonyo Heavy Industries Co., Ltd, founded in 1998, is a manufacturer in railway casting parts. Our factory covers an area of 72,600㎡, with more than 300 employees, 32 technicians, including 5 senior engineers, 11 assistant engineers, and 16 technicians. Our production capacity is 30,000 tons per year. Currently, we mainly produce casting, machining, and assembly for locomotive, railcar, high-speed trains, mining equipment, wind power, etc.
We are the railway parts supply to CRRC(including more than 20 branch companies and subsidiaries of CRRC), Gemac Engineering Machinery, Sanygroup, Citic Heavy Industries, etc. Our products have been exported to Russia, the United States, Germany, Argentina, Japan, France, South Africa, Italy and other countries all over the world.
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