A new China-Europe freight train route linking Pingdu and St. Petersburg, Russia has been launched in Pingdu, a county-level city in Qingdao, Shandong province.

The launch ceremony for the train's inaugural trip was held on June 28.

The launch ceremony for the train's inaugural trip is held on June 28 in Pingdu. [Photo/Guanhai News]

The train service starts at Pingdu West Railway Station and ends in St. Petersburg, Russia. The total journey is more than 9,000 kilometers, and is expected to take 16 days.

It will mainly transport tires and other goods in 50 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) containers. The train will pass through Dezhou, Saiyu, Wubao, Dingbian, Anbei and other stations in China, exit the Alashankou port in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, and then reach St. Petersburg directly.

The China-Europe freight train service is an important measure for Pingdu to actively integrate into the Belt and Road Initiative, expand the logistics agglomeration effect, speed up the construction of the multimodal transport logistics center, and promote interconnection with regions along the line, according to Pingdu officials.

A China-Europe freight train loaded with goods in 50 TEU containers departs from Pingdu on the new route to St. Petersburg, Russia. [Photo/Guanhai News]

Pingdu West Railway Station can now send more than 300 freight trains each year with more than 20,000 TEUs of containers and more than 500,000 metric tons of cargo thanks to the establishment of its freight function.

The new freight train service will add new impetus into the development of the export-oriented economy in Pingdu, according to local officials.

From January to May this year, 357 China-Europe freight trains departed from Qingdao, with a year-on-year increase of 37.3 percent, ranking first in the province.