Given the growing success of the Green Xpress Network, Lineas, one of Europe’s largest private freight forwarders, is expanding this network further.
This week, the company launched the Lyon Xpress, a new, direct rail product with high frequency and reliability between Lyon and Antwerp. Thanks to a combination of products from the GXN network, cargo from Lyon can be rapidly sent on its way to the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, Slovakia, etc. and vice-versa. The Lyon Xpress also benefits from a connection with the area Fos/Marseille; this enables an improved access to the industrial sites located around the “Etang de Berre”. This new product will undoubtedly constitute a further step towards the modal shift – the mission of Lineas.
Rapid connection between chemical clusters in Europe the Lyon Xpress, the 12th branch in the network, links Lyon, an economic hub with a river port, with other
centres in Europe. The region around Lyon is famous for its commercial dynamism, particularly in the chemical sector. The rapid connection with other chemical clusters in Antwerp, Germany and the Netherlands means real added value for the sector.
Green Xpress Network: A unique concept for an efficient, interconnected network
The innovative principle of an Xpress product consists of combining different types of cargo, from steel, chemicals and consumer goods, to pallets and containers, thereby capitalising on the winning assets of rail, namely transporting large volumes over (medium) long distances. The GXN product is extremely reliable, flexible and rapid because the number of re-marshalling operations is limited to a minimum and the end-to-end transport is controlled by the same operator.
Lyon Xpress, the details
The Lyon Xpress runs twice a week at present, departing from Lyon on Thursday and Saturday with conventional cargo only. The frequency will be increased to three round trips as of April. The aim is to switch over to five round trips as rapidly as possible. As of June, the Lyon Xpress will also accept intermodal cargo to and from Port Edouard Herriot. The trip between Antwerp and Lyon takes 16 hours. This Xpress product is carried out in cooperation with the partner Europorte.
Sam Bruynseels, CCO of Lineas: “Our Xpress products offer a competitive and sustainable alternative. These are services with short transit times, high reliability and flexibility, and we can make the difference more and more on that front in France too. The end-to-end Xpress connections address real customer needs and are consequently convincing more and more companies to opt for rail, with a
positive impact on mobility and the environment to boot. The unique characteristics of the GXN network underpin steady growth of our volumes.”
(Source: Lineas)
