DB Schenker plans to offer regular block train services between China and Russia, as well as China and Central Asia, over the next two years. Having set up regular block trains from a number of major Chinese cities to Europe starting in 2011, DB Schenker now is working with partners such as Russian Railways and China Railway Corp. The block train service could cut rail cargo travel time between China and Moscow by half, the German company said. A subsidiary of the Deutsche Bahn rail network, DB Schenker ran 250 container trains between China and Europe in 2012. It started its westbound block train service from Chongqing to Duisburg and eastbound from Leipzig to Shenyang in 2011. Bernhard Wiezorek, Director of Rail Logistics and Forwarding of Schenker (China), said that increased financial and environmental awareness, as well as improved product categories, make rail transportation a preferred option. China’s railways used to mainly carrying bulk goods such as coal, steel, ore and agricultural products. DB Schenker has established a field office network of more than 62 offices, 90 warehouses and 5,000 employees in China. “Rail service today is able to offer economic solutions to large international brands with high standards for speed, reliability and safety,” Wiezorek said. The China-Europe rail system’s key clients belong to the electronics, automotive, high-end manufacturing and consumer goods industries. The German carrier was the first company to implement a regular train service on the so-called New Silk Route that runs through Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus to Europe. “Nowadays, there are regular block trains from Chongqing, Chengdu and Zhengzhou to Europe,” Wiezorek said. “They enable door-to-door transport from almost anywhere in China to most European cities in 19 to 22 days.” To connect inland cities, rail often is twice as fast as ships and a fraction of the cost of air, the China Daily reports.