XI'AN -- Xi'an, capital city of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, saw a surge in China-Europe freight train trips this year, the city government told a press conference Monday.

This year, the Chang'an China-Europe freight train service had operated 3,004 trains as of Sunday, 1.8 times that of the same period last year.

During the period, the train service transported more than 2.3 million metric tons of cargo, 1.5 times that of the same period last year.

Both the volume of cargo and number of train trips ranked high among major Chinese cities.

Since its launch in November 2013, the Chang'an service has opened 15 cargo routes linking Xi'an with destinations in Asia and Europe.