On the ancient Silk Road, the sound of camel bells and the constant flow of merchants and traders; Today on the Eurasian Continental Bridge, the sirens are blaring and trains are speeding. As an important landmark achievement of the "the Belt and Road" initiative, the "iron and steel camel train" of China Europe Express is reshaping the economic, trade and logistics pattern of the Eurasian continent with unprecedented efficiency and vitality. The Urumqi International Land Port Area, located in the heart of the Eurasian continent, has become an indispensable core hub on this modern Silk Road with its unique location advantages and continuously upgraded software and hardware facilities. It is constantly writing a new chapter of opening up and win-win cooperation day and night.

A China Europe freight train loaded with domestically produced new energy vehicle parts is ready to depart and is about to sound its horn and head west. When it comes to the development and changes in the land port area, Zhu Maolin, the general manager of Xinjiang Zhongteng International Supply Chain Co., Ltd., has a deep feeling: "Nowadays, the business volume continues to grow, and customers need to book half a month in advance before they can ship

Since its entry into the Land Port Area in November 2023, this company's main business of automotive parts disassembly, transportation, and export has ushered in a new model. Zhu Maolin introduced that in the past, whole vehicles were mostly dismantled outside Xinjiang and transported to Urumqi West Station for transfer. Now, with the normalization of the operation of the land port China Europe freight train, more and more car companies choose to transport whole vehicles to Urumqi for local dismantling, loading and export, significantly reducing transportation costs.

Standing in the distant view of the land port office building, the gantry crane keeps up and down, the containers are neatly stacked, and the transport vehicles shuttle back and forth, presenting a busy scene. However, there is no queue at the railway freight acceptance window. Cheng Yaxu, the freight duty officer of Urumqi Railway Logistics Center Wuxi Branch, smiled and said, "Window queuing? That's the past. Now, through the 95306 online platform of the railway, customers can easily handle business. Currently, about 2 trains of China Europe freight trains are shipped daily, with an average of 30 to 60 trains per month

The "Smart Railway Port+Local Rapid Customs Clearance" reform launched in May this year achieves real-time sharing of railway and customs data through a digital port system, compressing export cargo operation time by over 80%.

At the Alashankou Port, the howling wind cannot hide the sound of train formation whistles. The station dispatcher Xiang Xinrong compared the comprehensive train operation room to the "central nervous system": "We can real-time grasp the dynamics of the train from the timetable, clear the line in advance, and ensure the smooth arrival of the train." After the train arrives, the ticket runners and railway staff work closely together to complete customs clearance through the 95306 digital shore platform, and the whole process only takes 3 to 4 hours.

Over the past 18 years, locomotive crew member Bai Jianfeng has experienced the development and changes in the country: "In the early years, we mainly transported shoes, hats, and clothing, but now electronic products, precision instruments, and new energy vehicles have become frequent customers." The "acceleration" of the China Europe freight train is not only reflected in the increase in cargo value, but also in the density of operations - from his team pulling 12 trains per day when he first joined, to now stable at 16 to 17 trains.

In the Alashankou Comprehensive Bonded Zone, Zhou Jingjing, a staff member of the Investment Promotion Office, showed impressive results: since being approved as the first comprehensive bonded zone in Xinjiang in 2011, it has attracted over 800 enterprises to settle in, and the import and export trade volume will reach 38 billion yuan in 2024. The industries in the comprehensive bonded zone are gradually shifting from the previous channel economy to the landing economy and developing towards industrial economy. Merchant He Haiyan has a deep understanding: "The China Europe freight train has brought about changes in the development of Alashankou. Now we can both buy globally and sell globally

In the twilight, another China Europe freight train departed from Alashankou, its red locomotive pulling long cargo boxes, like a steel camel caravan marching on the ancient Silk Road. From the gantry crane in Urumqi dry port area to the railway hub at Alashankou, from the "acceleration" of the China Europe train to the transformation and upgrading of the port economy, this steel silk road across Asia and Europe is witnessing China's firm pace of opening up to the outside world with its increasing efficiency and expanding radiation, and writing a new chapter of win-win cooperation in the "the Belt and Road". Editor/Xu Shengpeng