A freight train carrying 49 forty-foot containers loaded with auto parts and other goods departed Wednesday from Zhangjiakou in north China’s Hebei Province, marking the official launch of a scheduled rail route linking the city with Central Asia, reported Khovar, citing Xinhua.

The train will cross the border via the Alashankou checkpoint in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and is expected to arrive in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in about 13 days. The total route spans 3,171 kilometers (1,971 miles).

The launch of regular service is expected to help foreign trade companies in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region better track cargo flows, improve production and delivery planning, and reduce logistics costs, supporting more stable trade ties with Central Asia.