A container-laden train bound for Hamburg left Beijing on Tuesday, beginning the 10,000 km journey that will take just under twenty days.
The route will take the container train from the Chinese capital through the Mongolian Republic, along the Trans-Siberian Railroad, through Belarus and Poland and through to Hamburg.
This is another test for what is called the Eurasian Land Bridge. Deutsche Bahn co-operates with five other rail companies on this project: the Russian and Chinese Railways as well as the national railroads of Mongolia, Poland and Belarus. The six rail companies intend to develop competitive offerings to gain market share from ocean- and airfreight.
The booming economies in Asia and the upswing in Russia have lent further importance to the Eurasian Land Bridge, and Hartmut Mehdorn, chairman of DB’s management board, said that investment in this Asia-Europe transport corridor will pay off in the long-term.
Norbert Bensel, DB’s management board member for transportation & logistics, added: “We're aiming to achieve a journey time of fifteen to eighteen days in the future – that's twice as fast as a seagoing vessel from Germany to China and Asia. At the same time, we're considerably cheaper than airfreight for many types of cargo.”
He conceded that many details still need to be tackled, such as providing a high level of vehicle technology and accelerating customs formalities at the borders.
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