A cargo train with 47 containers holding Chinese-made goods left Harbin for Russia on Feb 27, marking the opening of a new freight route between the two countries.

The new route links Harbin, capital of northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, with Russia’s fourth largest city Ekaterinburg, said sources with Harbin Commerce Bureau.

The train transported $1.46 million worth of bicycle parts and light industrial products, mostly from southern China. It will complete the 5,889-kilometer-journey in 10 days.

Before the route was launched, cargo from southern China to Russia was always transported via Dalian Port in the northeastern Liaoning province for ocean shipping. “A shipment took 40 days on average and was quite expensive, too,” said Meng Qingwen, general manager of a logistics company that provides freight services between Harbin and Europe.