A new multimodal train route linking Yokohama (Japan) and Wroclaw (Poland) was launched on the Trans-Siberian railway on May 23. It is called the Trans-Siberian Landbridge.
This was reported by the CFTS portal, citing railfreight.com.
This railway route is being used to link Japan and Europe for the first time. The train service is organized by Russian Railways Logistics and the FESCO Transport Group.
The Trans-Siberian Landbridge intermodal chain is organized along the route Port of Japan – Vladivostok Commercial Seaport – Transsib – Brest – European Destination. The total time for delivery of goods is as short as 19 days, compared with about 45 days when transported by sea through the Suez Canal. A test container of chemical products from the Japanese port of Yokohama is expected to arrive in the Polish city of Wroclaw mid-June.
FESCO is responsible for shipping by sea, handling in ports, and provision of a container fleet. Russian Railways Logistics is responsible for organization of transportation by rail.
Based on the outcome of the test-operation of the train, the two parties will develop a transportation technology that will make the service accessible to customers in June 2019 and subsequently organize transportation of goods on the return trip from Europe to Japan. The Trans-Siberian Landbridge service is expected to deliver car components and consumer goods to Europe.
Currently, all the freight traffic between Japan and Europe (3 million TEU per year) passes through the Suez Canal.
As the CFTS portal reported earlier, 60,000 TEU is expected to be transported on the Trans-Caspian route in 2019. The first container train on the new Luxembourg-China route was launched in April. The train carried fabrics and wine.
