Trans-Eurasia Logistics, AKA CHINA RAILWAY Express, is a

joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...

between German rail company

Deutsche Bahn The (; abbreviated as DB or DB AG) is the national railway company of Germany. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). The Federal Republic of Germany is its single shareholder. describes itself as the ...

and Russian

RZhD Russian Railways (russian: link=no, ОАО «Российские железные дороги» (ОАО «РЖД»), OAO Rossiyskie zheleznye dorogi (OAO RZhD)) is a Russian fully state-owned vertically integrated railway company, both managi ...

, China Railway Corporation from China operating

container A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping. Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...

freight train Rail freight transport is the use of rail transport, railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of Railroad car#Freight cars, freight cars (US) or goods wagon ...

s between

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

and China via

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

. The first such train arrived in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

from

Xiangtan Xiangtan () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Hunan province, south-central China. The hometowns of several founding leaders of the Chinese Communist Party, including Chairman Mao Zedong, President Liu Shaoqi, and Marshal Peng Dehuai, ...

on 6 October 2008, taking 17 days to make the trip. Intermodal companies Polzug, Kombiverkehr, and

TransContainer TransContainer () is an intermodal freight transport company based in Russia. It was founded as a subsidiary of RZD. It is Russia's main intermodal container transport and integrated logistics company; it transports over a million TEUs per year. ...

are also involved in the project. Cargonews Asia
Rail reform picks up steam with foreign aid
24 March 2008 Since end of 2020, Up to 60 trains per week run between Shenzhen and Duisburg (rhine harbour). Container trains travel from China to Germany via the Trans-Mongolian and

Trans-Siberian Railway The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the eas ...

s, and then via

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

- the route collectively known as the "

Eurasian Land Bridge The Eurasian Land Bridge (), sometimes called the New Silk Road (, ), is the rail transport route for moving freight and passengers overland between Pacific seaports in the Russian Far East and China and seaports in Europe. The route, a transco ...

". A

break of gauge With railways, a break of gauge occurs where a line of one track gauge (the distance between the rails, or between the wheels of trains designed to run on those rails) meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock generally cannot ...

needs to be crossed when entering Mongolia from China (or Russia directly from China, if traveling via

Manzhouli Manzhouli (; mn, Манжуур хот; ) is a sub-prefectural city located in Hulunbuir prefecture-level city, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China. Located on the border with Russia, it is a major land port of entry. It has an area of an ...

Zabaykalsk Zabaykalsk (russian: Забайка́льск) is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) and the administrative center of Zabaykalsky District of Zabaykalsky Krai, Russia, located on the Sino-Russian border just opposite the Chinese border ...

), and then another one when leaving Belarus for Poland. Trans-Eurasia Logistics operates the Yiwu - Madrid Railway line, which is the longest goods railway line in the world and connects China,

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental coun ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' ( Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. "China flags train to Madrid to revive Silk Route", Atul Aneja, The Hindu, 23 November 2014

Locomotives Being Used

China

DF4 The DF4 (Chinese: 东风4) is a type of diesel-electric locomotive used in the People's Republic of China. It has been in production since 1969 and is still produced as of 2007 by several local companies. It is the most common locomotive in Chin ...

(Diesel) DF4D (Diesel) DF7C (Diesel) HXN5 (Diesel) HXN3B (Diesel) SS3B (Electric) HXD1(Electric) HXD2 (Electric)

Mongolia

M62 (Diesel)

Kazakhstan

VL80 (Electric) KZ8A (Electric)

Russia

VL80 (Electric)

Europe

Belarus: BCG-1 (Electric) Poland & Germany: ES64F4 (Electric) Austria: ER20 (Diesel) UK: Class 92 (Electric)

External links

Trans-Eurasia Logistics

References

{{Eurasian Land Bridge Rail transport in Europe Rail transport in Asia