The Constanța Port Authority officially announced that maritime traffic from the port began as early as December and reached a record high in 2019. Total cargo traffic at Romanian seaports reached 66,603,292 metric tons in 2019, an increase of 8 metric tons, or 64%, compared to 61,303,774 metric tons in 2018—the highest volume of cargo traffic in the history of Romanian seaports.
While mobilitate.eu awaited the official figures, it monitored rail traffic in the Bucharest-Băneasa region, a railway station through which all freight traveling between Constanța and the country’s southern and western terminals passes. We thus created a photo gallery of trains passing through the station, following a video report. The main goods transported are raw materials—grain and containers.
The grain is typically transported to the Craiova area, where we also have a steady flow of freight traffic involving car carriers that transport Ford vehicles from the Craiova plants to the loading area at the Port of Constanța. Also worth mentioning in the passenger car sector are the Ciumești–Constanța shuttles, which, in addition to raw material containers for the Dacia plant in Mioveni, also transport Dacia-Renault passenger cars loaded for export.
Containers are also constantly being transported to terminals throughout the country. A key location is the Yusen Logistic Terminal in the Chiajna region, as well as terminals in the Vintu de Jos, Sfântu Gheorghe, and Craiova regions, and terminals in the western part of the country. Furthermore, the transport of containers and petroleum products that merely pass through the country from the Port of Constanța to the Giurgiu Nord and Curtici borders is not possible. This applies in particular to shuttles operated by Rail Cargo Romania and MMV Rail Romania.
The rail operators that traverse the busiest section between Bucharest Baneasa and Constanța are CFR Marfă, DB Cargo Romania, and Vest Trans Rail. Under normal conditions, the average travel time for freight between Bucharest and Baneasa–Constanța is 5–6 hours.
Knowledge Base on Rail Freight Transport