GVT and Hunan Xiangou Express Co will run a test train from Changsha in China to Tilburg in the Netherlands, departing on the 16th of August. The freight train will arrive seventeen days later in Tilburg. If the test is successful, Tilburg will receive a weekly train from Changsha, departing the Chinese city every Thursday.

The test is initiated by Hunan Xiangou Express Co, a Changsha-based company in the province of Hunan. This company already has a connection to Duisburg in Germany and is now expanding its reach more westward.

Weekly service

If the trail is successful, Tilburg will receive a weekly train from Changsha departing on every Thursday. The train will take the northern route, exiting via Manzhouli to Russia instead of through Alashankou, where the Chengdu-Tilburg train crosses the Chinese border. The total route will be 12,912 kilometre.

The new connection will be the second linking the Netherlands and China. The Tilburg-Chengdu line is operated by Chengdu International Railway Services (CDIRS) in partnership with GVT. This service commenced in 2016. It covers a distance of 11,000 kilometer in a direct journey, which enables the operators to offer a stable transit time and frequency. The transit time is fifteen days and the train capacity is 41 containers.

Bigger capacity

“Unlike the Chengdu Tilburg Express, this train might have bigger capacity with 50 containers. GVT Intermodal is opening the booking for all shippers and forwarders at this moment”, Jialu Zhang of GVT explained.

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