A  China-Europe freight train departs from Deyang, Southwest China's Sichuan Province en route to Moscow in Russia on Tuesday. It is expected to arrive in Moscow in 13 days. There were 1,352 China-Europe freight trains in July, up 8 percent year-on-year, the 15th consecutive month in which there were more than 1,000 trains, according to data from China Railway. Photo: cnsphoto

The number of journeys made by China-Europe freight trains exceeded 10,000 in 2021 as of August, maintaining a strong growth. 

By the end of August, China-Europe trains have made 10,030 journeys, with the annual trips exceeding 10,000 two months earlier than in 2020, an increase of 32 percent year-on-year, according to a statement shared by the China State Railway Group Co (China Railway) on Thursday.

A total of 964,000 Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of containers were transported during the trips, up 40 percent on a yearly basis, and more than1,000 trips have been made each month for 16 consecutive months since May, 2020. 

China Railway has been focused on international cooperation, strengthening management of port access, improving operation quality, and providing efficient services for transporting epidemic prevention materials in response to a growing demand. 

As the capacity of rail freight hubs is being expanded, the inbound and outbound passage capacity of China-Europe trains has been boosted, with 5,125, 1,766 and 3,139 trains operating across the network’s western, central, and eastern corridors from January to August, representing a year-on-year increase of 37 percent, 15 percent and 35 percent respectively. 

A total of 73 operational routes have been planned and constructed, reaching more than 170 cities in 23 European countries and transporting more than 50,000 types of goods, providing transport support for the economic and social development of regions and countries under the Belt and Road Initiative framework.

Meanwhile, China-Europe trains have transported a total of 12.8 million items and 99,000 tons of epidemic prevention materials to European countries since the outbreak of the epidemic. 

Global Times