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New Recruit
New CRH Sleeper, have a look!
It seems that it can be used as a regular second class compartment during the day, so it can be taken full use 24 hour per day.
View attachment 231055 View attachment 231054 View attachment 231056 View attachment 231058 View attachment 231057
I think this is still D class. The new design is to make full use of cars in the daytime. G sleeper is unnecessary, since even D sleeper has to stop for some time to let passengers not arrive at their destination at 4-5am. Anyway, passengers board the train at 8-10pm and arrive at 6-7am, that's a perfect timetable for businessmen, isn't it?Now this is good。I am a regular user of the overnight sleeper D trains between Shanghai and Beijing。It would be great news if overnight sleeper G trains become available on,say,the Beijing-Guangzhou、Shanghai-Guangzhou、Shanghai-Kunming、Shanghai-Chongqing-Chengdu、Shanghai-Tianjin-Harbin routes。
Sichuan-Tibet railway - - Chengdu to Lhasa
Sichuan-Tibet railway
The length of the existing Qinghai-Tibet railway is 1956 KM; even the shortest train ride from departure city of Xining takes 24 hours to reach Lhasa. Although now China has several Lhasa-bound trains from big cities, like Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Chongqing and etc, yet they all takes more than 40 hours. This pace, however, obviously cannot meet the high-speed development of China--this new economic and political power. So, to build a new railway of shorter distance and higher speed is of great importance.
Against this background, Chengdu, as the biggest city in southwest China as well as a traditional harbor city for commodities and people to enter Tibet, comes into people's view. And now, people have three options to reach Lhasa from Chengdu: flight from Chengdu to Lhasa taking 2 hours; overland journey by National Highway of No 318 taking three days at least; Chengdu-Lhasa train via Qinghai-Tibet railway taking 44 hours, and it only departs every other day, difficult to buy train tickets. However, flight is too expensive though short, overland is too long though beautiful, Qinghai-Tibet railway is too difficult though appears fine.
So, to build a direct railway from Chengdu to Lhasa (Sichuan—Tibet Railway), is very necessary and significant.
The proposed Sichuan-Tibet railway will span 1,629 km, 650 km of which will be in Sichuan province. It is said that, trains will be designed to travel at a maximum speed of 200 km per hour and will take only eight hours to reach Lhasa, the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The railway is expected to be completed in 8 years with an investment of about 54 billion RMB ($US 7.9 billion). But so far, there has been no clear report concerning when will the Chinese government start to build the rail. There was report that the rail had been started from September, 2009, but soon the news was denied by the government.
Compared with building Qinghai-Tibet railway, it is more challengeable to build Sichuan-Tibet Railway, because the landforms across Sichuan and Tibet are more complicated and dangerous than that in northern Tibet where mainly vast flat grasslands are located. The construction of Sichuan-Tibet railway will not only confront the similar problems of permafrost, altitude sickness, environment protection, animal immigration, but also problems of mudslides, underground rivers, earthquakes, terrestrial heat and etc, many more tunnels and bridges have to be used.
No matter how difficult it is, based on China's rich railway construction experience and stable GDP growth, the proposed Sichuan-Tibet railway will start building in near future. On the other hand, construction of the Sichuan-Tibet railway will help propel economic and tourism development along the line too. Eighty-two counties and districts along the line in Sichuan, Yunnan and Tibet boast snow-capped mountains, grasslands, and Tibetan and Buddhist cultures.
The Hengduan Mountains near the line have an abundance of natural resources, including water, vegetation and minerals. The Yulong Copper Mine near the mountain in Tibet has a proven reserve of 6.5 million tons of copper, first among the country's copper mines.
The railway is also designed to open up China's gateway to south Asia for bilateral economic and trade cooperation via land. Presently, Yadong (or Yatung) and Zhangmu connect Tibet with India and Nepal. The Sichuan-Tibet Railway will also open land passages from Central, East and South China to south Asia.
Yes, Yunnan-Tibet railway will be easier. Wow, if really constructed, it will be more complicated than any man-made projects ever!Also looking forward to the early approval of construction of the Shangrila-Nyingchi section of the Dian-Zang(Yunnan-Tibet)railway。
Yep, Jingzhou&Jingmen, netizens quarrelled crazily.Bullet trains are cities' jewel in the crown
By Lan Lan (China Daily)
Stations emerging as symbols of civic pride and routes to prosperity, reports Lan Lan.
Towns are just scattered pearls without access to the fastest trains around, but they can become a necklace when there is one.
That is why residents in Jingzhou, Hubei province, think it is essential to have such a line serve their city.
The State Council announced in September that a 2,000-kilometer bullet train project from Shanghai to Chengdu in Sichuan province would be built with a design speed of 350 kilometers per hour. The exact route quickly became a subject of controversy.
The Yangtze River Business Chamber, based in Jingzhou, organized a petition drive in March at which it gathered tens of thousands of signatures in parks, stations and public squares.
Wang Jinghui, secretary-general of the chamber, told China Daily that the chance to have such a facility will not come twice for his historic city, known as the major setting of the Chinese classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
"People of all ages were so enthusiastic about the high-speed rail and they all wanted to contribute. We are so proud of our history and a high-speed rail line could help us regain our ancient glory," said Wang.
The problem for Jingzhou is that an express train that runs 200 km/hour already stops in the city. Jingmen, 80 km to the north, also wants to have a stop on the new line-and it now has no high-speed rail service at all.
Xiong Bing, chairman of Jingmen-based Chang Yuan Science and Technology Ltd, posted a video online, in which he said that "not having a high-speed rail line has hampered the city's development and affected civic pride". That attracted tens of thousands of clicks.
"Jingmen shouldn't be the only prefecture-level city in Hubei province that has no high-speed train or bullet train," he said.
The latest developments look good for Jingmen. Hubei's Party Chief Li Hongzhong said last Wednesday that it has been essentially decided that the railway will run through Jingmen.
"Jingmen will step up planning and research and strive for early implementation of the project with support from both the central and provincial governments," said Li.
"If it can't be built in Jingzhou, it should be built in a place in between the two cities," said Wang, expressing regret at this lost opportunity.
However, Peng Zhimin, an expert with the Hubei Academy of Social Sciences, said that putting a station in the middle of nowhere in the quest for fairness could be a losing proposition. Usually, places like that are not well-developed, which means higher infrastructure investment and a longer payback period for the facility.
As the rail network expands, this tale of two cities has been repeated in many other places. For example, Shangyang and Loudi in Hunan province and Xinye and Dengzhou in Henan province have competed to host high-speed rail facilities.
More similar stories are likely as policymakers ramp up high-speed rail investment. On Monday, the National Development and Reform Commission approved a host of new railway projects with a total investment of 243.58 billion yuan ($39.2 billion).
The government has set a spending target of 800 billion yuan on domestic railway construction this year, about the same as last year. Rail projects, along with highways, in the central and western regions of China, are regarded as a priority.
Guo Xiaopei, director of the Institute of Comprehensive Transportation under the NDRC, said that the government will take public sentiment into account, but the final decision on a rail line should rest on feasibility studies.
High-speed rail lines are technically demanding projects that present many geological and environmental challenges and have strict requirements for safety, Guo said.
But it is also true that local governments have gained a bigger say in such projects as railway financing is opening up to various capital sources including local governments and private investors. With the economy slowing, some cities are experiencing fiscal problems. Such cities do not want to get financially involved in new high-speed lines because of the long payback periods, said Guo.
But for some prefecture-level or county-level cities, a new railway, particularly a high-speed rail line, is still significant, said Guo.
Apart from the convenience it means for passengers and businesses, a new economic center usually forms around a railway station. So a high-speed rail stop can create jobs and alleviate the transportation, housing and education pressures facing many cities.
"A railway can bring prosperity to a city. That's certainly been the experience when it comes to conventional railways," he said.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/busines...t_20767002.htm
Important High-Speed Railway Lines in China
The construction of high-speed railways in China began with the building of the Qinhuangdao–Shenyang High-Speed Railway in 1999. Now the high-speed rail network in China is the largest in the world. As of the end of 2012, there are about 17,000 kilometers of high-speed rail in service, accommodating trains of an average speed of 200 km/h or higher.
China's high-speed rail plans are ambitious, planning to invest $300 billion to construct the largest, fastest, and most technologically advanced high-speed railway system in the world by 2020. It is predicted that the HSR (High-Speed Railway) network will reach 30,000 kilometers when the major rail lines are completed. China's high-speed railway network is made up of four components: upgraded pre-existing rail lines that can accommodate high-speed trains, a national grid of mostly passenger dedicated HSR lines (PDLs), certain regional intercity HSR lines, and the Maglev High-Speed Line.
It is becoming a trendy thing to take high speed rail for travels. Our app, China Train Booking, allows you to catch up and turn your smartphone into a ticket office.
Mostly-Passenger-Dedicated High-Speed Rail Grid
The main high-speed rail network in China is like a grid, which mainly consists of 8 long-distance high-speed rail lines: four north–south HSR lines and four east–west HSR lines. Except for the Qingdao–Taiyuan HSR, all HSR lines of the rail grid are longer than 1,000 kilometers. In 2012 the total length of HSR lines in the main grid reached 12,000 kilometers. The PDLs accommodate trains of a speed of up to 300 km/h; and mixed passenger and cargo lines serve trains of a speed of between 200 and 250 km/h.
The Four Main North–South HSR Lines
Beijing–Shanghai (Fully Operational)
Distance:1,433 kilometers
Design Speed:350 km/h
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Beijing South, Langfang, Tianjin West, Cangzhou West, Dezhou East,Jinan West, Taian, Tengzhou East, Zaozhuang, Xuzhou East, Bangbu South, Dingyuan, Chuzhou, Nanjing South, Zhenjiang South, Danyang North, Changzhou North, Wuxi East, Kunshan South and Shanghai Hongqiao.
D317 stops at all stations, and most G trains stop at several of them, taking 8 hours and 50 minutes. The fastest train G3 takes 4 hours and 48 minutes, with one stop at Nanjing South.
Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong (Partly Operational)
Distance: 2,260 kilometers
Design Speed: 350 km/h
It is the longest passenger dedicated high-speed rail line in the world, consisting of the Beijing–Shijiazhuang HSR line, the Shijiazhuang–Wuhan HSR line, the Wuhan–Guangzhou HSR line, the Guangzhou–Shenzhen HSR line, and the Shenzhen–Hong Kong HSR line(to be opened in 2016). It is a main north–south high-speed rail line, connecting North China, Central China, and South China.
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Beijing West, Baoding East,Shijiazhuang, Handan East, Hebi East, Zhengzhou East, Zhumadian West, Xiaogan North, Wuhan, Yueyang East, Changsha South, Heng Mountain West, Hengyang East, Laiyang West, Chenzhou West, Guangzhou South, and Shenzhen North.
Three G trains service the route: G71, G79, and G81. G71 stops at all the stations. The latter two trains only go as far as Guangzhou South. The fastest train G79, traveling from Beijing to Guangzhou, takes 8 hours, with stops at Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou East, Wuhan, and Changsha South.
Though Shenzhen–Hong Kong high-speed railway is under construction, conventional trains from Shenzhen to Hong Kong are available. Online schedule search and booking fortrains to Hong Kong is not available in China. It is exclusive to train ticket offices. Though it is much harder to buy train tickets to Hong Kong, we at China Highlights will do our best to purchase the tickets for you. You only need to email us with the travel date and passengers’ information, and we will do the rest.
Beijing–Harbin (fully operational)
Distance: 1,700 kilometers
Design Speed: 350km/h
It connects Northeast China with the national capital Beijing. The railway has two branch lines: from Shenyang to Dalian and from Panjin to Yingkou.
Stations on the Main Line (vary between services): Beijing, Tangshan North, Beidaihe,Shanhaiguan, Suizhong North, Jinzhou South,Shenyang North, Tieling West, Kaiyuan West, Siping East, Changchun West, Shuangcheng North and Harbin West.
D25 stops at all stations, taking 8 hours and 12 minutes. The other three high-speed trains traveling on the route are D29, D101, and D27, which stop at 11 stations, taking 7 hours and 50 minutes.
Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,600 kilometers
It consists of the Hangzhou–Ningbo HSR line, the Ningbo–Taizhou–Wenzhou HSR line, the Wenzhou–Fuzhou HSR line, the Fuzhou–Xiamen HSR line, and the Xiamen–Shenzhen HSR line(to be in service in 2013), connecting the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. The Hangzhou–Ningbo section is passenger dedicated, with a design speed of 350 km/h. The rest is for passenger and cargo mixed utilization, with a design speed of 250 km/h.
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Hangzhou East, Shangyu North,Ningbo East, Ninghai, Linhai, Taizhou, Wenling, Yandangshan, Wenzhou South, Ruian, Aojiang, Cangnan, Fuding, Tailaoshan, Xiapu, Ningde,Fuzhou South, Fuqing, Putian, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, and Xiamen North.
D3209 stops at all the stations and the journey is 7 hours and 29 minutes. The fastest trainD3117 stops at 5 stations less than D3209, and takes 6 hours and 53 minutes. Other D trains travelling on the route stop 1 to 5 stations less, and take about 7 hours.
The Four East–West HSR Lines
Qingdao–Taiyuan (Partly Operational)
Distance:770 kilometers
Design Speed: 200 to 250 km/h
Qingdao–Taiyuan HSR line consists of the Qingdao–Jinan HRS line , the Jinan–Shijiazhuang HSR line (opening 2016), and the Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan HSR line.
Currently you can travel from Qingdao to Jinan in one and a half hours by the fastest train G196 with a stop at Weifang. Non-stop trains from Shijiazhuang to TaiyuanG91 and D2009 only take 1 hour and 17 minutes to complete the journey.
Shanghai–Wuhan–Chengdu (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,600 kilometers
The Shanghai–Chengdu HSR line consists of the Shanghai–Nanjing HSR line, the Nanjing–Hefei HSR line, the Hefei–Wuhan HSR line, the Wuhan (Hankou)–Yichang HSR line, the Yichang–Wanzhou HSR line, the Lichuan–Chongqing HSR line, the Chongqing–Suining HSR line, and the Suining–Chengdu HSR line.
High-speed trains on most of the route have an average speed of 200 to 250 km/h, except on the line from Yichang to Wanzhou (160 km/h), because of the curves in the track needed to get around the landforms in the area.
Until the line from Lichuan to Chongqing is in service you can travel from Shanghai to Yichang, from Yichang to Wanzhou, and from Chongqing to Chengdu by high-speed trains. Taking a Three Gorges Yangtze cruise between Chongqing and Yichang would be a nice way to break up a high speed journey if you have time to take in the scenery.
There are 18 stations on theShanghai–Yichangroute: Shanghai Hongqiao, Kunshan South, Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Danyang, Zhenjiang, Nanjing South, Quanjiao, Hefei, Liuan, Jinzhai, Macheng North, Hankou(Wuhan), Tianmen South, Qianjiang, Jingzhou, and Yichang East.
Two high-speed trains travel between Shanghai and Yichang every day: D3072(stopping at all stations, and taking 8 hours and 15 minutes) and D3006 (stopping at 13 stations, and taking 7 hours and 48 minute).
Inonlytwo hours, you can travel from Chongqing to Chengdu. There are 17 high-speed train services on the route, at intervals of one to two hours.
Xuzhou–Lanzhou (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,400 kilometers
Only one part of the route is in service: the line from Zhengzhou to Xi’an. The rest is under construction: Xuzhou–Zhengzhou (open date: December 2016), Xi’an–Baoji, and Baoji–Lanzhou (open date: 2017).
It provides 26 G train and D train services every day at intervals of one hour. You only need 2 hours to travel from Zhengzhou to Xi’an by the fastest non-stop train G97. The other G trains and D trains take 2½ to 3 hours.
Shanghai–Kunming (Partly Operational)
Distance: 2,080 kilometers
Design Speed: 350 km/h
The Shanghai–Kunming HSR line is partly operational from Shanghai to Hangzhou. The Hangzhou–Changsha line (open date: 2014) and Changsha–Kunming line (open date: 2017) are under construction. It will connect East China and Central China with Southwest China after its completion.
66 G train and D train services travel between Shanghai and Hangzhou every day at intervals of 10 minutes to one hour. The journey is 47 minutes by the fastest G trains: G7535 and G7509 have one stop at Jiaxing South, and G7555 has one stop at Haining West.
Regional Intercity HSR LinesRegional intercity HSR lines are short-distance, passenger-dedicated high-speed lines connecting cities in the same province, area, or regional. They are independent from the national high-speed rail grid, with an average speed of 200 to 250 km/h, sometimes up to 300km/h. Operational intercity HSR lines in China are listed below:
HSR Line Distance Design Speed Duration
Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Railway 115 350 33 minutes
Chengdu–Dujiangyan Intercity Railway 65 220 35 minutes
Shanghai–Nanjing Intercity Railway 301 350 1 hour and 35 minutes
Nanchang–Jiujiang Intercity Railway 131 250 1 hour
Hainan Eastern Ring Railway 308 250 1 hour and 34 minutes
Changchun–Jilin Intercity Railway 111 250 40 minutes
Guangzhou–Zhuhai Intercity Railway 117 200 59 minutes
Nanjing–Hangzhou Intercity Railway 251 350 1 hour and 35 minutes
Maglev High Speed Rail
Shanghai's Maglev Train was the first magnetically levitated high-speed train line in operation the world. It is owned and operated by Shanghai's city government. All other high-speed trains in China are owned and operated by the China Railway Corporation.
Shanghai's Maglev Train, launched in 2004, has the maximum speed of 431 km/h. It runs between Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai's Longyang Road Metro Station at intervals of 15 to 20 minutes. The journey is only about 8 minutes, and a one-way ticket is RMB 50.
Important High-Speed Railway Lines in China
The construction of high-speed railways in China began with the building of the Qinhuangdao–Shenyang High-Speed Railway in 1999. Now the high-speed rail network in China is the largest in the world. As of the end of 2012, there are about 17,000 kilometers of high-speed rail in service, accommodating trains of an average speed of 200 km/h or higher.
China's high-speed rail plans are ambitious, planning to invest $300 billion to construct the largest, fastest, and most technologically advanced high-speed railway system in the world by 2020. It is predicted that the HSR (High-Speed Railway) network will reach 30,000 kilometers when the major rail lines are completed. China's high-speed railway network is made up of four components: upgraded pre-existing rail lines that can accommodate high-speed trains, a national grid of mostly passenger dedicated HSR lines (PDLs), certain regional intercity HSR lines, and the Maglev High-Speed Line.
It is becoming a trendy thing to take high speed rail for travels. Our app, China Train Booking, allows you to catch up and turn your smartphone into a ticket office.
Mostly-Passenger-Dedicated High-Speed Rail Grid
The main high-speed rail network in China is like a grid, which mainly consists of 8 long-distance high-speed rail lines: four north–south HSR lines and four east–west HSR lines. Except for the Qingdao–Taiyuan HSR, all HSR lines of the rail grid are longer than 1,000 kilometers. In 2012 the total length of HSR lines in the main grid reached 12,000 kilometers. The PDLs accommodate trains of a speed of up to 300 km/h; and mixed passenger and cargo lines serve trains of a speed of between 200 and 250 km/h.
The Four Main North–South HSR Lines
Beijing–Shanghai (Fully Operational)
Distance:1,433 kilometers
Design Speed:350 km/h
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Beijing South, Langfang, Tianjin West, Cangzhou West, Dezhou East,Jinan West, Taian, Tengzhou East, Zaozhuang, Xuzhou East, Bangbu South, Dingyuan, Chuzhou, Nanjing South, Zhenjiang South, Danyang North, Changzhou North, Wuxi East, Kunshan South and Shanghai Hongqiao.
D317 stops at all stations, and most G trains stop at several of them, taking 8 hours and 50 minutes. The fastest train G3 takes 4 hours and 48 minutes, with one stop at Nanjing South.
Beijing–Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong (Partly Operational)
Distance: 2,260 kilometers
Design Speed: 350 km/h
It is the longest passenger dedicated high-speed rail line in the world, consisting of the Beijing–Shijiazhuang HSR line, the Shijiazhuang–Wuhan HSR line, the Wuhan–Guangzhou HSR line, the Guangzhou–Shenzhen HSR line, and the Shenzhen–Hong Kong HSR line(to be opened in 2016). It is a main north–south high-speed rail line, connecting North China, Central China, and South China.
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Beijing West, Baoding East,Shijiazhuang, Handan East, Hebi East, Zhengzhou East, Zhumadian West, Xiaogan North, Wuhan, Yueyang East, Changsha South, Heng Mountain West, Hengyang East, Laiyang West, Chenzhou West, Guangzhou South, and Shenzhen North.
Three G trains service the route: G71, G79, and G81. G71 stops at all the stations. The latter two trains only go as far as Guangzhou South. The fastest train G79, traveling from Beijing to Guangzhou, takes 8 hours, with stops at Shijiazhuang, Zhengzhou East, Wuhan, and Changsha South.
Though Shenzhen–Hong Kong high-speed railway is under construction, conventional trains from Shenzhen to Hong Kong are available. Online schedule search and booking fortrains to Hong Kong is not available in China. It is exclusive to train ticket offices. Though it is much harder to buy train tickets to Hong Kong, we at China Highlights will do our best to purchase the tickets for you. You only need to email us with the travel date and passengers’ information, and we will do the rest.
Beijing–Harbin (fully operational)
Distance: 1,700 kilometers
Design Speed: 350km/h
It connects Northeast China with the national capital Beijing. The railway has two branch lines: from Shenyang to Dalian and from Panjin to Yingkou.
Stations on the Main Line (vary between services): Beijing, Tangshan North, Beidaihe,Shanhaiguan, Suizhong North, Jinzhou South,Shenyang North, Tieling West, Kaiyuan West, Siping East, Changchun West, Shuangcheng North and Harbin West.
D25 stops at all stations, taking 8 hours and 12 minutes. The other three high-speed trains traveling on the route are D29, D101, and D27, which stop at 11 stations, taking 7 hours and 50 minutes.
Hangzhou–Fuzhou–Shenzhen (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,600 kilometers
It consists of the Hangzhou–Ningbo HSR line, the Ningbo–Taizhou–Wenzhou HSR line, the Wenzhou–Fuzhou HSR line, the Fuzhou–Xiamen HSR line, and the Xiamen–Shenzhen HSR line(to be in service in 2013), connecting the Yangtze River Delta and the Pearl River Delta. The Hangzhou–Ningbo section is passenger dedicated, with a design speed of 350 km/h. The rest is for passenger and cargo mixed utilization, with a design speed of 250 km/h.
Stations on the Route (vary between services): Hangzhou East, Shangyu North,Ningbo East, Ninghai, Linhai, Taizhou, Wenling, Yandangshan, Wenzhou South, Ruian, Aojiang, Cangnan, Fuding, Tailaoshan, Xiapu, Ningde,Fuzhou South, Fuqing, Putian, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, and Xiamen North.
D3209 stops at all the stations and the journey is 7 hours and 29 minutes. The fastest trainD3117 stops at 5 stations less than D3209, and takes 6 hours and 53 minutes. Other D trains travelling on the route stop 1 to 5 stations less, and take about 7 hours.
The Four East–West HSR Lines
Qingdao–Taiyuan (Partly Operational)
Distance:770 kilometers
Design Speed: 200 to 250 km/h
Qingdao–Taiyuan HSR line consists of the Qingdao–Jinan HRS line , the Jinan–Shijiazhuang HSR line (opening 2016), and the Shijiazhuang–Taiyuan HSR line.
Currently you can travel from Qingdao to Jinan in one and a half hours by the fastest train G196 with a stop at Weifang. Non-stop trains from Shijiazhuang to TaiyuanG91 and D2009 only take 1 hour and 17 minutes to complete the journey.
Shanghai–Wuhan–Chengdu (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,600 kilometers
The Shanghai–Chengdu HSR line consists of the Shanghai–Nanjing HSR line, the Nanjing–Hefei HSR line, the Hefei–Wuhan HSR line, the Wuhan (Hankou)–Yichang HSR line, the Yichang–Wanzhou HSR line, the Lichuan–Chongqing HSR line, the Chongqing–Suining HSR line, and the Suining–Chengdu HSR line.
High-speed trains on most of the route have an average speed of 200 to 250 km/h, except on the line from Yichang to Wanzhou (160 km/h), because of the curves in the track needed to get around the landforms in the area.
Until the line from Lichuan to Chongqing is in service you can travel from Shanghai to Yichang, from Yichang to Wanzhou, and from Chongqing to Chengdu by high-speed trains. Taking a Three Gorges Yangtze cruise between Chongqing and Yichang would be a nice way to break up a high speed journey if you have time to take in the scenery.
There are 18 stations on theShanghai–Yichangroute: Shanghai Hongqiao, Kunshan South, Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Danyang, Zhenjiang, Nanjing South, Quanjiao, Hefei, Liuan, Jinzhai, Macheng North, Hankou(Wuhan), Tianmen South, Qianjiang, Jingzhou, and Yichang East.
Two high-speed trains travel between Shanghai and Yichang every day: D3072(stopping at all stations, and taking 8 hours and 15 minutes) and D3006 (stopping at 13 stations, and taking 7 hours and 48 minute).
Inonlytwo hours, you can travel from Chongqing to Chengdu. There are 17 high-speed train services on the route, at intervals of one to two hours.
Xuzhou–Lanzhou (Partly Operational)
Distance: 1,400 kilometers
Only one part of the route is in service: the line from Zhengzhou to Xi’an. The rest is under construction: Xuzhou–Zhengzhou (open date: December 2016), Xi’an–Baoji, and Baoji–Lanzhou (open date: 2017).
It provides 26 G train and D train services every day at intervals of one hour. You only need 2 hours to travel from Zhengzhou to Xi’an by the fastest non-stop train G97. The other G trains and D trains take 2½ to 3 hours.
Shanghai–Kunming (Partly Operational)
Distance: 2,080 kilometers
Design Speed: 350 km/h
The Shanghai–Kunming HSR line is partly operational from Shanghai to Hangzhou. The Hangzhou–Changsha line (open date: 2014) and Changsha–Kunming line (open date: 2017) are under construction. It will connect East China and Central China with Southwest China after its completion.
66 G train and D train services travel between Shanghai and Hangzhou every day at intervals of 10 minutes to one hour. The journey is 47 minutes by the fastest G trains: G7535 and G7509 have one stop at Jiaxing South, and G7555 has one stop at Haining West.
Regional Intercity HSR LinesRegional intercity HSR lines are short-distance, passenger-dedicated high-speed lines connecting cities in the same province, area, or regional. They are independent from the national high-speed rail grid, with an average speed of 200 to 250 km/h, sometimes up to 300km/h. Operational intercity HSR lines in China are listed below:
HSR Line Distance Design Speed Duration
Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Railway 115 350 33 minutes
Chengdu–Dujiangyan Intercity Railway 65 220 35 minutes
Shanghai–Nanjing Intercity Railway 301 350 1 hour and 35 minutes
Nanchang–Jiujiang Intercity Railway 131 250 1 hour
Hainan Eastern Ring Railway 308 250 1 hour and 34 minutes
Changchun–Jilin Intercity Railway 111 250 40 minutes
Guangzhou–Zhuhai Intercity Railway 117 200 59 minutes
Nanjing–Hangzhou Intercity Railway 251 350 1 hour and 35 minutes
Maglev High Speed Rail
Shanghai's Maglev Train was the first magnetically levitated high-speed train line in operation the world. It is owned and operated by Shanghai's city government. All other high-speed trains in China are owned and operated by the China Railway Corporation.
Shanghai's Maglev Train, launched in 2004, has the maximum speed of 431 km/h. It runs between Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai's Longyang Road Metro Station at intervals of 15 to 20 minutes. The journey is only about 8 minutes, and a one-way ticket is RMB 50.