Longest high-speed rail line opened in China

Date: 28/12/2012

The journey between Beijing and Guangzhou in China can now be undertaken in eight hours, after the world's longest high-speed rail route has been opened.

Stretching over a distance of 1,428 miles, the new line carries trains which travel at an average speed of 186 miles per hour.

As well as being the longest route, the project, which passes through five different provinces, is the most expensive transport infrastructure to be put in place in the country.

The process of building, testing and opening up the route has seen a number of setbacks, as a bullet train crash killed 40 people and a section of the track collapsed due to heavy rain.

At 9am on Wednesday December 26th the first train on the fully operational line left Beijing for Guangzhou, with another setting off in the opposite direction an hour later.

According to the South China Morning Post, the second train was forced to slow down due to weather conditions including snow, reducing its speed to 114 miles per hour at one point in the journey.

The longest route in the world incorporates routes which were already in operation, as well as new track which has been laid.

A total of 35 cities are served by the route, which will eventually be extended to reach Hong Kong, the state news service, Xinhua reports.

Each day, 155 pairs of trains will run, although they will not replace the older, traditional rail routes between destinations.

Standard seats on the new high-speed trains will retail at £86, which is twice the price of a bunk on the older trains, but still a cheaper option than flying between cities.

China started on the plans to implement high-speed rail in 2007, with the first line between Beijing and Tianjin opening in 2008.

Five years after its initial stages, there are now 5,780 miles of track in place with 10,000 miles expected to be laid by 2020 as the country intends to extend its high-speed network further.

Posted by Nick Anderson

International Transport News and Sustainable Transport News