This first container train is jointly implemented by Ratraco Railway Trading and Transport Joint Stock Company, which is a member unit of Vietnam Railways Corporation and Maersk Group (Denmark).
According to the schedule, this train departs at Yen Vien station (Hanoi) and when it arrives at Zhengzhou (China), the train will be connected to the Asia-Europe train to Liege (Belgium). Here, the container will be forwarded to the road to the destination city of Rotterdam – the Netherlands. The total estimated transit time for the entire journey is from 25 to 27 days.
Goods transported on this train are mainly textiles, footwear, and electronics with 23 containers, which are 40 feet in size. The train runs on a standard gauge of 1,435m.
Currently, the railway system of China and European countries are designed according to the standard track gauge of 1,435mm, while Vietnam’s railway uses a rail gauge of 1,000mm. However, the section from Yen Vien to Dong Dang station is a caged track, which includes both 1,435mm and 1,000mm track gauges.
The successful organization of the train from Vietnam to Belgium is expected to continue to open up rail transport routes deep into Europe in addition to those already operated to Germany, Poland, etc.
International intermodal rail connection – cost-effective and safe
Thanks to the increasingly efficient international rail connection system, rail transport will be the most effective solution to transport goods from Vietnam to European countries, when sea transport is facing many difficult challenges due to the strong outbreak of the Covid-19 epidemic.
Transporting goods by rail helps businesses significantly reduce transportation costs. Because when using rail vehicles, the energy for one ton of goods over a distance of 400 miles only consumes one gallon of fuel. It can be seen that the cost of rail transport is much lower than that of sea or air transport.
Besides, rail transport is the smartest choice if shippers always put the environment first. In fact, trains are 10 times more energy-efficient than trucks per ton/mile.
Currently, Ratraco and Maersk are planning and organizing the transportation of 8 container trains per month departing from Vietnam. The next train is scheduled to run from Hanoi on the 27th of July and in August 2021 container trains to Europe will also continue to be organized.
Phan Quyen
