At 11:00 on October 20, 2026, a whistle sounded at the foot of Xuefeng Mountain. A China Laos train loaded with Rice noodles and engineering machinery accessories from Huaihua slowly left the Huaihua International Inland Port Railway Special Line, and left the country via Mohan Port in Yunnan, heading for Vientiane, Laos. This is not an ordinary train, it is the 1100th international train to be operated in Huaihua this year. Four years ago, only 151 trains were opened here throughout the year.

Acceleration in numbers

Huaihua is located at the confluence of the three major trunk lines of Shanghai Kunming, Jiaoliu, and Yuhuai. It is an important node on the eastern route of the Western Land Sea New Corridor and the only freight gathering center in Hunan facing ASEAN. In January 2022, the first China Laos train in Hunan departed from the Huaihua West Railway Freight Yard, with 151 trains running that year; By 2023, it will increase to 428 columns, a year-on-year growth of 237%; By 2025, it will reach 1220 columns, a year-on-year increase of 21%, ranking second among companies in the 13+2 region of the Western Land Sea New Corridor. In just over 10 months this year, the number of trains in operation has exceeded 1100, more than seven times the total number of trains in 2022. The number of trains between China and Laos has been the highest in the central region for three consecutive years. At present, 7 international logistics channels and 216 transportation routes have been opened here, radiating to 238 ports in 72 countries and regions around the world, undertaking 70% of the cargo transportation task from the Western Land Sea New Corridor to ASEAN.

The cargo in the car box matches well

Behind the breakthrough in quantity is the repeated release of transportation capacity. In January 2023, the Huaihua International Land Port Railway Dedicated Line will be put into operation, and the daily loading and unloading capacity of the Huaihua West Railway Freight Yard will increase from 120 cars to 170 cars. The number of China Laos trains will be upgraded from on-demand to three per week. Changsha Railway Logistics Center is deeply linked with Huaihua International Land Port, with vehicles being inspected and dispatched on time, with 24-hour shifts; Jointly promote convenient customs clearance, with goods loaded upon arrival at the port and leaving immediately after loading; Priority organization, loading and unloading, and inspection will be given to open up green channels, and the maximum fare reduction will be given to trains within the policy scope. Luo Ruifan, the duty director of the Safety Command Center of Changsha Railway Logistics Center of China Railway Guangzhou Bureau, said that whether the trains are operated closely depends on whether the cars, containers, and goods can match the points. They monitor the operation plan 24 hours a day, allocate the container sources, loading and unloading equipment, and manpower to the work site one day in advance, and load and unload the containers as soon as they arrive and leave after they are loaded.

Mountain goods boarded the cold chain express train

The transportation capacity has been released, and the cost has also been reduced. The two-way cold chain trains between China and Laos, as well as China and Vietnam, have been normalized, and the scale of cold chain trains has jumped to the top of inland ports in the country. Special products from Wuling Mountain, such as Qianyang rock sugar oranges, Mayang selenium rich citrus, and Jingzhou Yangmei, are exported to ASEAN and Europe through cold chain trains. By 2025, 3708 TEUs of fruits and vegetables will be shipped, a year-on-year increase of 17 times, and the comprehensive logistics cost will be reduced by nearly 30%. ASEAN fruits can reach Hunan within 48 hours; The 1+2+N port industry system dominated by luggage and leather goods has taken shape.keywords:Dry port logistics news

The difficulties in transportation and circulation back then were the biggest shortcomings in the development of the old area; Nowadays, the linkage of road network connectivity and MTR is rewriting the development pattern of closed and backward mountainous areas. Next, the railway department will rely on the positioning of Huaihua as a national logistics hub for commercial and trade services, continuously optimize channel capabilities, improve organizational efficiency, and provide more solid and convenient logistics support for local enterprises in Hunan to expand their export and foreign trade.Editor/Yang Meiling