A freight train carrying commercial vehicles and auto parts departed from Yantai Port in East China's Shandong province on Tuesday. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A freight train carrying commercial vehicles and auto parts departed from Yantai Port in East China's Shandong province on Tuesday, the service operator China Railway Jinan Group said.

The rail journey is part of a longer multimodal route from Incheon, the Republic of Korea, to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. The containerized cargo had previously been shipped by sea from Incheon to Yantai where it was transferred to the train.

The train will travel to Kashgar in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. From there, the cargo will continue by truck under customs supervision to Bishkek.

A freight train carrying commercial vehicles and auto parts departed from Yantai Port in East China's Shandong province on Tuesday. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The entire sea, rail, and road journey is expected to take about 12 days, five days less than the conventional transport arrangement, according to China Railway Jinan Group.

The route provides a faster transport option for vehicles and automotive components moving from the ROK to Central Asia through China.