First Nantong - Hairatan CR Express starts operation on Aug 25, 2016 [Photo/VCG]
Chinese and foreign freight logistics professionals gathered in Nanjing on July 28 to attend the “China International Freight Forwarding Logistic Industry Development Summit 2017”. There, they had their say in the Belt and Road Initiative by focusing on the theme of the China Railway Express (CR Express).
The CR Express is regarded as the major carrier of infrastructure connectivity and also the effective means of unhindered trade. The CR Express has developed rapidly since it began operating in 2013. In Jiangsu, the operating frequency of the CR Express also has been continuously improved. Regular trains, such as the Suzhou-Manzhouli-Europe, Lianyungang-Xinjiang-Europe, Nanjing - Central Asia and Xuzhou – Central Asia railway lines have been in operations.
In the view of the industry participants from home and abroad, there are bright prospects for the development of the CR Express. Algirdas Sakalys, president of the East-West Transport Corridor Association (EWTCA), said that as the number and mileage of vehicles put into operation increases, countries such as Germany, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden will become the fastest-growing regions in international railway freight volumes.
Meanwhile, strong attention should be paid to issues that arise in the operation of the CR Express. In Sakalys’s view, attention shouldn’t merely be paid to the cargo imported from Europe but also more on the mutual participation of countries and regions participating in the “One Belt, One Road” area, in a bid to drive development demand in new infrastructure construction.
