WUHAN -- A China-Europe freight train left Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei province on Saturday morning, bound for Italy's Milan, marking the launch of a new extended route for the service.

The X8015 train, loaded with electronic products, auto parts and epidemic-prevention supplies, will travel via China's Alataw Pass and Germany's Duisburg, arriving in Milan within 21 or 22 days, according to Wuhan Asia-Europe Logistics Co Ltd.

The new route will provide customers with distribution services throughout Italy to better facilitate economic and trade exchanges between China and Italy, said the company.

This is the 30th China-Europe freight train that has departed from Wuhan this year, said Shao Dong from the China Railway Wuhan Group Co Ltd.

In 2020, Wuhan witnessed a total of 215 China-Europe freight-train trips. The China-Europe freight-train service has remained a reliable transportation channel amid the COVID-19 outbreak across the two continents.