DB has established a new unit, DB Cargo Eurasia, to shift more traffic between Europe and Asia to rail over the long term. The new unit will operate service to and from China and will handle all of the related activities at the Group. A dedicated office opened in Shanghai in August for this purpose.

DB is celebrating its tenth year on the New Silk Road this year. “What began with a single train on 6 October, 2008, has long since become a success story,” says Alexander Doll, Member of the DB Management Board for Freight Transport and Logistics. “Our new sales unit, DB Cargo Eurasia, is helping us offer even more products and services and improve our productivity.

From 1 to 3,600 trains

Deutsche Bahn is making great strides toward its goal of transporting 100,000 standard containers a year by 2020. It expects to reach the 90,000 mark in 2018. What started as a single train in 2008, accumulated to over 3,600 trains in ten years time, the company said.

“Starting this autumn, we will be testing a sea link between Kaliningrad and Rostock in response to many customer requests. This will allow us to distribute goods from the Baltic Sea port to the rest of Europe more quickly and with greater flexibility”, said Doll. Moreover, Doll, Vyacheslav Pavlovskiy – the Deputy CEO of Russian Railways RZD – and DB Cargo Polska signed a bilateral agreement in Potsdam in September to exchange electronic data for greater efficiency for customers, he explained.