On September 24, (reporter ÁõÔ½) in the darkness of the Nanjing railway station station, the evening wind carried the early autumn cold.

French travellers Liz and Jenkins drag a suitcase filled with travel labels, looking in the crowd for the No. 1 wagon of the T8701 Inter-Vietnam International Passenger Train.

This is the final stop of their trip to China and a new starting point for their cross-border journey.From the pleasure of hiking across China to the expectations of opening up the journey to Vietnam, this cross-border train to the ¡°Sunday Destination¡± is precisely the key link between the two countries and the continued growth of travel.

At the Nanjing train station, an international train from Nanjing to Hanoi (Karin) is being repaired.

Passenger transportation is hot, diversity demand is expected

Within two months, Liz and Jenkins travelled from the fireworks of Chengdu to the mountains of Yunnan, from the Red Wall of Beijing to Shanghai's outer beach and rainbow, and now, they will take the train to arrive in Hanoi, Vietnam after a night's sleep.

The two lamented that the first time they had been on a cross-border train at night was a good experience, "Sleep and get there."Jimmy smiled, "It is obvious that China's railway network is much larger than France, but it is surprising to see that China's railway network is so large and the train can go so far."

¡°Chinese trains have a higher accuracy rate than France and are much cheaper than similar trains in France, and train is more environmentally friendly than aircraft and reduces carbon emissions, which is also an important reason why we chose it.¡±

French travelers Lisa and Jimmie are looking forward to their trip to Vietnam.

Liz added that they had heard about this Sino-Vietnamese train as early as five years ago, and it was not until the line was restarted this year that they finally booked tickets, fulfilling their wish for this cross-border train trip.

Different from their fresh experience, Mr. Zong, a businessman from Nanning, has long regarded this train as an "old partner" who has been deeply involved in Sino-Vietnamese trade for more than 20 years.

As an exporter traveling regularly to China and Vietnam, for him, the advantages of the train "Seventh-day to-day" are irreplaceable and there are very few flights from Nanning to Vietnam, if you choose to drive by land, from Nanning to Friendship Customs and then arrive in Hanoi, it takes seven to eight hours, and the whole day has to be delayed on the road. Now in the evening, the next morning arrival, not only does not affect the next day business talks, but also can listen to news in the car, arrange documents, enjoy the difficult night relaxation time. "

"The efficiency of customs clearance is much higher than before. When there are fewer people, the formalities can be completed in half an hour, and there are more and more people in the carriage, such as businessmen, overseas students, visiting relatives, and many international friends. Sometimes chatting in the box is like a small international community, communicating from all over the world, and deepening our understanding of each other."

At the train station in Nanjing, passengers change jobs.

In recent years, China-Vietnam economic and trade cooperation has developed steadily. Since 2004, China has been Vietnam's largest trading partner; since 2016, Vietnam has been China's largest trading partner in ASEAN. China-Vietnam's bilateral trade volume has surpassed $200 billion for four consecutive years, reaching $2606.5 billion in 2024, an increase of 13.5% in comparison.

With the continued deepening of economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, the demand for humanitarian exchanges, such as business negotiations, study exchanges, tourist visits and so on, has also climbed.The railway department carefully implemented the China-Vietnam Joint Statement, and reopened the operation of China-Vietnam international passenger trains at the end of May, providing transportation security to promote the exchanges of personnel between the two countries, economic and trade cooperation and humanitarian exchanges.

The reporter learned from China Railway Nanning Bureau Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the "National Railway Nanning Bureau") that since the resumption of international passenger trains between Beijing West, Nanning and Hanoi (Jialin) in Vietnam on May 25 this year, passenger flow has continued to rise. As of September 22, a total of 8,178 passengers have been sent, of which 2,689 were sent in a single month in August, a month-on-month increase of 89%.

At the train station in Nanjing, passengers change jobs.

For business people, the "Sunshine to the Sun" does not delay the working schedule; for tourists, the slow pace of travel can also relax the mood. In order to match the needs of multiple passenger flows, the National Railway Bureau of Nanjing is constantly grinding on the details of the service. China-Vietnam bilingual broadcast removes the language barrier, the professional trained passengers are familiar with the cultural customs of the two countries, can help Vietnamese travelers to solve the entry policy, but can also recommend travel routes for Chinese tourists, so that the communication in the wagon is more warm.

Wei, a Vietnamese student from Guangxi University of Science and Technology, said that this train is the "best solution" for him to come to China to study, which is safe, convenient and economical; Mr. Zhao, a coffee merchant who is based in Vietnam and took Vietnamese coffee and dried fruits to Nanning to attend the ASEAN Expo this time, even called this line the "getting rich line": "This railway line connects the economic development of the two countries, and I hope China and Vietnam will develop better and better."

Lan Qiushuang, conductor of China-Vietnam International Passenger Train in Nanning Passenger Transport Section of Nanning Railway Bureau, said that since the resumption of China-Vietnam International Passenger Train, cross-border passenger transportation has become busier and busier, and the passenger flow is mainly for business, tourism and students, among which Chinese and Vietnamese passengers account for a relatively large proportion. In addition, passengers from more than 30 countries such as Myanmar, Thailand and Italy have been transported, which has become a link connecting friendly exchanges between China and foreign countries.

Goods transportation channels, tight cross-border cooperation network

The vitality of the China-Vietnam Railway is not only reflected in the crowd of passenger wagons.

As the core channel of China-Vietnam cross-border logistics, Guangxi launched China-Vietnam freight shipping line also delivered a bright response.According to the National Railway Administration of Nanjing, since September 22, Guangxi launched China-Vietnam shipping line has accumulated export goods 2.6 thousand boxes, compared to the growth of 173%, exceeding the total yearly volume of 33% in 2024, injecting strong momentum for regional supply chain stability and economic trade.

In the Nanjing International Railway Port, the machinery is operating.

Since the beginning of this year, the Nanning Bureau of the State Railway has negotiated with the Vietnamese railway department to increase the traction tonnage of inbound and outbound freight trains from 1,000 tons to 1,300 tons, and the frequency of operations has also been encrypted from 5 to 14 trains per week. Special freight trains such as China-Vietnam New Year freight trains and China Post ASEAN cross-border freight trains have also been launched to accurately match the freight needs of different industries.

Up to now, 16 enterprises have shipped goods through China-Vietnam trains, of which 3 enterprises have an annual shipment volume of over 2,000 TEUs. Among them, Sinotrans Guangxi Co., Ltd. took advantage of the high efficiency and stability of trains. From January to August this year, the cumulative shipment volume reached 8,722 TEUs, and the freight volume exceeded the total volume of last year several months ahead of schedule.

At Pingxiang Station, Guangxi, Ma Jinping, assistant translator of Nanning Depot of Nanning Bureau of State Railway, is checking the train before leaving the country. Photo by Liu Yue, Zhongxin. com

At the same time that the continuous improvement of freight capacity and rich characteristics of freight products, the National Railway Administration of Nanjing also focuses on optimizing the efficiency of cross-border logistics, through the innovative customs model for cross-border transport of goods "accelerating and reducing burden". at present, China-Vietnam line adopted the "Railway Fast Customs" model, Guangxi started China-Vietnam Banjing Nanjing South Station to Vietnam-Nanjing Station full transport time at the fastest 14 hours, can realize the goods on the day of departure, the day of arrival, the day of clearance.

At the same time, relying on the upgrading and improvement of the infrastructure of the Nanjing International Railway Port, China-Vietnam line cross-border transportation services accelerated towards the development of the direction of optimization, diversification and digitalization.At present, China-Vietnam line transportation goods cover electronic products, mechanical equipment, chemical products, agricultural by-products, daily goods and other categories, the name of goods reached 412, the source of goods radiation to the domestic 25 provinces, China-Vietnam line has become an important land route to connect China with Vietnam and other countries of ASEAN economic and trade.

The train shuttling between China and Vietnam is like a flowing bridge, which not only connects the geographical space of the two countries, but also connects countless people's life trajectories, career dreams and cooperation opportunities in series. When the train finally stopped at Hanoi (Gia Lam) Station and greetings in different languages came from the platform, a new story began at this moment. The economic and trade prosperity and cultural integration carried by this railway line will continue to write a new chapter of win-win cooperation between China and Vietnam day after day. (End)