2018年CRI Urumchi in Xinjiang on the way to Belt and Road transit hub

 

Local authorities in Xinjiang's regional capital, Urumqi, are working to help turn the city into a major transportation hub along the Belt and Road.

At the service hub for China Railway Express in Urumqi, a cargo² train loaded with construction materials is leaving for Europe.

He Jun is the vice¹ president of Xinjiang China-Europe Logistics. He says China Railway Express has been working to cut both time and costs for its freight services.

"The cargo is being mostly delivered to Russia's capital, Moscow. Each train has a total of 82 cars. The service has been able to reduce transport costs by around 20 percent. Also, it used to take 20 days to deliver cargo to Moscow, but now it only takes eight or nine days."

China Railway Express' Urumqi line to Europe started operation in 2016.

The express train is one month faster than shipping³ to Moscow by container ship, and ten days faster than normal trains.

Urumqi is now the departure point for 19 different routes currently being run by China Railway Express. The routes service 24 cities in 17 different countries in Europe and Asia.

Xie Heng is a delivery driver with China Railway Express.

"There are more and more China Railway Express lines running into Europe. The speed of trains is increasing. They can now run 120 kilometers per hour. And unlike in the past, where cargo was mostly just metal products, today the trains are carrying a much wider variety of cargo, including auto⁴ parts, stationery⁵, sporting goods and tomato sauce, among other things. The variety is increasing."

Li Liangfu, vice president of Zhongtai Chemical, says the train services run out of Urumqi have been key for his firm, noting his companty's sales to Central Asia and Europe have now surpassed 50 billion yuan.

"Thanks to China Railway Express to Europe, its much easier to sell our products to Central Asia and Europe, and also import foreign products to China. It has not only increased the competitiveness of Zhongtai, but also promoted our connection with companies there. It's mutually beneficial."

China Railway Express in Urumqi has inked deals with over 200 import and export firms dealing⁶ with products ranging from commodities to clothes, as well as mechanical equipment and electronic components⁷.

1 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

2 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

3 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

4 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

5 stationery   

n.文具；(配套的)信笺信封

参考例句：

• She works in the stationery department of a big store.她在一家大商店的文具部工作。
• There was something very comfortable in having plenty of stationery.文具一多，心里自会觉得踏实。

6 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

7 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。