First Full-Timetable China-Europe Railway Express Service Launches on Xi'an-Budapest (Hungary) Route

 

 

XI'AN, November 23(Chinanews.com) - by Zhang Yuan

On the evening of November 22, the X8159 China-Europe Railway Express, operated by China Railway Xi'an Group Co., Ltd. (previously referred to as Xi'an Railway Administration), sounded its departure whistle and slowly departed from Xi'an Guojigang Railway Station, laden with 45 containers of electronics, auto parts, and general merchandise, beginning its westward journey to Budapest, Hungary. The launch marked the successful inauguration of the first full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express on the Xi'an-Budapest route. It establishes Xi'an as the national leader in operating three full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express routes on a regular basis, with a weekly schedule of "six depatures and three returns".

 

 

Image: The X8159 train preparing for its inaugural journey from Xi'an to Budapest. (Photographer: Sun Jixiang)

 

 

As Xi'an's third full-timetable route following Duisburg and Prague, this service operates on a "five fixed mode" of fixed route, fixed station, fixed train number, fixed time and fixed price, enabling high-frequency, bus-like operations."Budapest serves as a key logistics and distribution hub in Central and Eastern Europe," stated Li Baozhou, director of the Command Center at Xi'an West Railway Stationunder the China Railway Xi'an Group. "The regular operation of this route will not only facilitate trade between China and Hungary but also extend its reach to neighboring countries such as Slovakia, Austria, and Serbia. It opens a “fast track” for “Intelligent Chinese Manufacturing” products to enter the European market while smoothing the entry of high-quality European goods into China."

A full timetable service enables the China-Europe Railway Express freight trains to run according to pre-arranged train numbers, routes, and schedules, as well as departure/arrival times at its domestic origin, border crossing, and overseas destination, under an agreement among the countries along the route. This coordination ensures an integrated schedule across the China's standard-gauge, the CIS wide-gauge and the European standard-gauge sections. Such precise scheduling allows for tight control over processing times at every leg of the journey, significantly boosting transit efficiency and reliability. Ultimately, this helps enterprises engaging in import and export cut logistics costs and boost overall supply chain performance. The inaugural Xi'an-Budapest full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express will commence regular operation with weekly departures from November 22, setting off every Saturday at 23:00 from Xi'an Guojigang Railway Station. After clearing Customs at Alashankou Port in Xinjiang, the train will traverse Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia before reaching its destination in Budapest, Hungary.The total journey time is estimated to be approximately 10 days and 23 hours, cutting transit time by around 30 percent compared to standard rail freight services.

Xi'an has built a mature system for full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express operations. It launched its first service to Duisburg in October 2022, achieved regular operation of "two departures and one return" per week in 2023, and further expanded its regular schedule to "four departures and three returns" in 2024.The launch of the Prague route on November 19, 2025, was followed just three days later by the Budapest service. In the short span of four years, the full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express (Xi'an) has built a total of 657 trains, winning widespread acclaim from clients at home and abroad for its operational efficiency, reliability and superior service.

The high efficiency in transportation is underpinned by a comprehensive, full-chain operational system. At the smart-field operations of Xi'an Guojigang Railway Station, China Railway Xi'an Group implements an operational protocol of "priority allocation of empty containers, priority loading/unloading, priority Customs inspection, and priority dispatch", where unmanned gantry cranes and an intelligent container positioning system has boosted handling efficiency by 40 percent and achieved a peak daily loading capacity of 1,530 wagons. "We have front-loaded logistics planning, addressed process bottlenecks, and ensured swift, seamless integration from accepting and shipping, through inspection, to transfer," said Liu Shunli, Duty Director of the Xi'an Guojigang Railway Station Logistics Business Department, under the logistics center of China Railway Xi'an Group. "This enables the full-timetable China-Europe Railway Express to achieve a fully integrated, end-to-end service model."

Looking ahead, China Railway Xi'an Group will partner with Xi'an Chanba International Port and China Railway Container Transport Co., Ltd. Xi'an Branch to further refine train operations, strengthen multilateral international cooperation, and elevate service performance. This enhanced collaboration is set to broaden and deepen economic and trade ties between Shaanxi and European nations, injecting fresh momentum into Shaanxi's development as an inland hub for reform and opening-up, smoothing domestic-international dual circulation, and advancing high-quality Belt and Road Initiative cooperation.

 

 

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