The new connection avoids Russia, Belorussia and Ukraine, by travelling through Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, when finally reaching Mannheim in Germany, covering a total distance of 11,300 km.
The new route covers countries and regions that rarely saw China-Europe freight train services in the past, opening up new markets for Chinese and European enterprises, said Yuan Xiaojun, general manager of the Xi’an Free Trade Port Construction and Operation Co., Ltd.
“The new train service has improved transportation efficiency and saved transportation costs for enterprises. Under the current situation, it presents a new opportunity for our company to stabilize exports,” said Jia Min, manager of an international logistics company in Xi’an.
At present, Xi’an has 16 main freight train routes to Europe, passing through 45 countries and regions along the Belt and Road.
In the first quarter of the year, Xi’an launched a total of 790 freight trains to Europe.