China and beyond

In Shandong, the first cold-chain train departed from Jiaozhou in May 2021. Since, the specialized service for perishable goods has expanded, with regular trains running from Qingdao, Jinan and Zibo, carrying fresh vegetables, seafood and frozen products to European markets.

"The growth has been transformative in the past decade," said Shang Mingzhu, a manager at the Jinan branch of China Railway Container Transport. "Cold-chain trains, designed to match Shandong's strengths in fresh produce and seafood, support Shandong products going global."

Across inland hubs, from Xi'an in Shaanxi province to Chengdu in Sichuan province, local governments and logistics providers are leveraging the railway to connect their industries to global supply chains.

For exporters of high-value goods, from electronics to auto parts, the railway has become a reliable bridge to European markets.

European partners are equally enthusiastic. "The China-Europe Railway Express provides customers with stable and fast transportation services," said Alona Toprak, managing director of DB Cargo Eurasia, a subsidiary of Germany's Deutsche Bahn, specializing in cross-border rail logistics for China, Central Asia and Europe.

"Many high-quality products are transported between Europe and China via the service. Now, with more frequent departures, our cooperation has expanded from traditional manufacturing to green energy, new energy vehicles and cross-border e-commerce, further facilitating consumer markets," she said.

Chinese goods, including consumer electronics, home appliances and daily-use products, can reach Europe faster and at better prices. At the same time, specialty products from Europe and other parts of Asia, such as Spanish wine, Dutch cheese, Polish apples, Thai durian and Laotian bananas, are increasingly available to Chinese consumers. This has created bigger markets and improved people's daily lives along the route.

The railway's rapid growth has also boosted industry, trade and investment. Railways, freight companies and logistics providers along the route are earning more stable income, while local people have gained jobs. Major cities served by the trains, including Lodz in Poland, Duisburg in Germany, and Madrid in Spain, have modernized their infrastructure, helping related industries grow quickly.

In June, the 110,000th train departed from Qingdao, Shandong province, carrying 55 containers of LCD displays and refrigerators worth 20 million yuan ($2.75 million) on a three-week journey to Moscow.

For Gao Yitian, head of the Jiaozhou branch of Jinan Railway Logistics Center, the milestone was another ticked off on his 25-year career in the railway industry. Gao began handling international trains in 2016, when services were still in their infancy.

"At the start, we were unfamiliar with the processes. Customs checks and documentation were slow. Sometimes we couldn't even gather enough cargo for one train in two weeks," Gao said.

"Now, the systems are optimized, efficiency has soared and trains depart daily.

"In 2016, cargo mainly consisted of clothing and footwear. Today, shipments range from home appliances to high-end manufacturing equipment. The trains now run at 120 kilometers per hour, up from 80 km/h a decade ago," he said.