NEW SILK ROAD: A NEW WAY TO CONNECT ASIA & EUROPE
Ship Your Cargo Fast, Cost-friendly and Sustainably With Rail
The New Silk Road, or the connection of China and Europe via Rail Freight, is packed of with potential: environment protection, lead time reduction and multimodal capabilities… As a consequence, it has grown both in terms of demand and supply over the past few years – discover this strong alternative to Air and Ocean Freight.
The Potential of the New Silk Road
The unique advantages of Rail Freight can be broken down into four pillars:
- Mastering the growth of two economies
It not only connects China and Europe, but multiple surrounding emerging markets, too. - A new way with a clear value proposition
Rail is a serious alternative to Air and Ocean Freight, opening up previously unavailable routings for shippers. - Creating multimodal platforms
Enabling seamless interoperability between transport modes, it leverages the global harmonization of rules and processes. - Addressing the growing need for sustainable business
Rail offers a reduced CI2 footprint in comparison to Air Freight. In addition, the Rail network also enables shorter distances to hinterland areas to be covered by e.g. Road Freight.
The Success of Rail Freight
After the launch of the Belt & Road Initiative by the Chinese government in 2013, the development of the New Silk Road brought 12,400 new trains on the tracks in 2020, connecting more than 40 rail hubs. By 2025, rail freight is estimated to transport 1.5 million twenty-foot equivalents (TEUs) of cargo.
Rail Freight found new levels of success amidst the extraordinary supply chain disruptions brought about by COVID-19 or the recent Suez Canal issue, as it offered capacity and a clear way forward for shipper:
- It enabled transit time improvements when the Ocean Freight industry was facing equipment challenges, blank sailings and port congestions
- When Air Freight rates soared to new heights, it enabled to decrease both costs and CO2 emissions
Over the Western and Northern Corridors, DHL Rail Services cover the needs for every shipment size – from LCL services up to our full, own Block Trains – offering sustainable and innovative solutions for almost every industry sector: Engineering & Manufacturing, Chemicals, Consumer, Automotive, and Technology...
