Quartz reports that China's "One Belt, One Road" (OBOR) project, which was launched late in 2013, is expensive and inefficient. Logistics experts say the train may cost up to twice as much as already-established sea freight due to added complexities from on-the-ground flaws, such as uninsulated containers. The author highlights the scale of containers that can be shipped on one vessel versus the trains, and the fact that as shipping rates continue to fall, the cost of the railway will only become more prohibitive. In a recent interview with Quartz, Chinese President Xi Jinping said he wants China to build its own high-speed rail network by 2030. Even then, the thermal blankets can only keep the temperature of products within 10 degrees Celsius of the outside cold or heat, Jiménez said. Some question whether the OBOR initiative is more geopolitical than logistical, offering an alternative to what are seen as American-controlled waters, in the possible event of war or blockades.
Quartz reports that China's "One Belt, One Road" (OBOR) project, which was launched late in 2013, is expensive and inefficient. Logistics experts say the train may cost up to twice as much as already-established sea freight due to added complexities from on-the-ground flaws, such as uninsulated containers. The author highlights the scale of containers that can be shipped on one vessel versus the trains, and the fact that as shipping rates continue to fall, the cost of the railway will only become more prohibitive. In a recent interview with Quartz, Chinese President Xi Jinping said he wants China to build its own high-speed rail network by 2030. Some question whether the OBOR initiative is more geopolitical than logistical, offering an alternative to what are seen as American-controlled waters, in the possible event of war or blockades.