The China Railway Express (abbreviated as CR Express) rail freight service has come a long way since March 19^th, 2011, when the block train “Yu Xin Ou” first departed from Chongqing to Duisburg.

Eight years later, the Belt and Road project is now transitioning from the stage of planning into intensive implementation. It is moving forward on the road of high-quality development - outlining a new landscape for the blooming Silk Road Economic Belt.

As one of the leading global integrated logistics providers and the top rail freight carrier in Europe, DB Schenker has participated in, and witnessed the development of the CR Express over the years, with an annual transport volume of almost 20,000 containers. To date, DB Schenker remains in the leading logistics position. Over the past month, DB Schenker Greater China has launched two new trains on the CR Express!

• The first “Chang’an” CR Express block train from Xi’an to Verona

On August 13^th, 2019, the “Chang’an” CR Express, bearing new energy products as well as automotive and industrial parts, successfully departed from Xi’an, China and arrived in Italy’s Verona on 29^th August. Through the launch of the first block train, we solved the previous problem of having 2-3 transits, and succeeded in reducing the transportation time from 25 days to 15 days, thereby ensuring timeliness and greatly improving efficiency.

China-Europe trains, an outcome of the One Belt and Road Initiative, help to eliminate the economic and cultural distance between the two trade partners. The success of the “Chang’an” express will not only open the door for Italy and west China but also improve the west China impact to Europe, while promoting sustainable and bilateral trade growth.

Verona, located in Northern Italy, is a major hub connecting Italy with other parts of Europe through both rail and land transportation. Following the launch of the Verona-Xi’an eastbound train, Italian specialties like garments, building materials and wine now have a faster and cheaper land transport option to reach Chinese customers.
 

• The first “Qilu” CR Express block train from Yantai to Duisburg

The first “Qilu” CR Express block train from Yantai to Duisburg, which was loaded with electrical appliances, auto parts and mechanical equipment, successfully completed its journey on August 12^th, 2019, thus marking the comprehensive flow of the international logistics channel between the north, west and south.

With the availability of this new integrated “Qilu” CR Express, more Shandong cities will be connected to freight train routes covering over 48 destinations. For the majority of exporters in cities along the Belt and Road who prefer the combined sea-rail transport network due to its cost advantages, shipments will be transported to the sea ports and then carried along the “Qilu” route to other countries. DB Schenker will continue to cooperate with all partners from various industries to make continuous efforts in innovation, providing optimized solutions and contributing to the Belt and Road Initiative!