More China-made high-speed trains to hit the rails

[JF17Fighter]

BEIJING, April 12 (Xinhua) -- China will put more than 500 China-made high-speed trains into operation this year after boosting the speed limit for rail traffic for the sixth time, the Ministry of Railways said on Thursday.

The speed boost will start on April 18, said Hu Yadong, the ministry's vice minister, at a press conference held in Beijing.

Hu said 280 high-speed trains will be put into operation on April 18 and a total 514 such trains be in use by the end of this year.

Hu said raising the speed limit will help to boost passenger and cargo capacity on the nation's 77,000-km railway lines by 18 percent and 12 percent respectively.

Travel time between major cities will be slashed by up to 50 percent as the trains will travel at speeds of up to 250 kilometers per hour, said Hu. Currently, express trains in China travel at an average of 115 kilometers per hour.

He Huawu, chief engineer of the ministry, said the upgrade of 6,003 kilometers of track has cost an estimated 29.6 billion yuan (3.8 billion U.S. dollars).

The high speed trains show that China has mastered technology that was once held by Japan, Germany and France, said Zhang Shuguang, the ministry's deputy chief engineer.

 

[kvLin]

I'm taking the urban train to Shenzhen tomorrow,it's much comfier than two hours drive.

the GS express train (Guangzhou-Shenzhen) has run at 220kmh for many years,and the improvement makes the journey only 10mins shorter.

In Shanghai there are Maglev trains running at 431kmh (max),sitting inside the carriage you dont feel very fast, like an aircraft passenger.

But for long distance journey the improvement may risk lapse of passenger because of higher carfare. people can also take airplane at discountable prices which are not much more expensive than a train ticket.

 

[MirBadshah]

500 high speeed trains..............lol

 

[kvLin]

BEIJING, May 2 (Xinhua) -- China's first genuinely fast locomotive capable of traveling at 300 kilometers per hour is scheduled to enter service at the end of the year, Xinhua learned Wednesday from the Ministry of Railways.

The CRH-3, the latest model in the country's China Railway High-speed (CRH) Series, is expected to come off the production line at the end of the year.

About eighty percent of its parts and components are domestically produced.

The Beijing-Shanghai high-speed track and the Wuhan-Guangzhou passenger-only route will be the first to see the CRH-3 as China moves resolutely into the era of high-speed train travel.

Zhang Shuguang, chief of the Ministry's Transportation Bureau, said that 700 CRH trains would be put into service by 2010.

About 52 of the earlier, slower CRH series -- able to travel at200 kilometers per hour -- are already in service.

Another 68 high-powered locomotives are pulling cargo trains at120 kilometers per hour on the Beijing-Shanghai and Beijing-Guangzhou lines, he said.

"By the end of this year, 160 CRH motor unit trains and 448 high-power electric locomotives will be in operation," Zhang said.

The CRH series includes the CRH-1, CRH-2, CRH-5 and CRH-3. Each of them has been developed by local companies and foreign partners from Canada, Japan, France and Germany.

 

[Neo]

The cabin looks quite comfortable, don't like the color scheme though.
Article says 700 trains to be in service by 2010, thats a lot man!

 

[overseer]

The cabin looks quite comfortable, don't like the color scheme though.
Article says 700 trains to be in service by 2010, thats a lot man!

China has 1.3 billion people. That's 1300 million people. Or 1,300,000,000 people!
Now, does 700 trains sounds like a lot now?

 

[Neo]

Lol...I was more thinking about production lines, production rate and infrastructure mate.

 

[kvLin]

over-population is a big headache Neo. In China,a golden week holiday was just ended today, see what was happening below:

A ticket office is crowded with passengers queuing up to book tickets at Suzhou Railway Station, east China's Jiangsu province, May 6, 2007. According to the Ministry of Railways, a record 5.16 million people travelled on trains on last Monday alone, and from April 28 to May 7, some 45 million people will take trains, up 8 percent year-on-year.(Xinhua Photo/Wang Jiankang)

btw, production could be ensured since high-speed train is now a mature technique in China and there're competing manufactories in Changchun, Shenyang,Chengdu and Nanjing.

 

[overseer]

Lol...I was more thinking about production lines, production rate and infrastructure mate.

Those trains are to be produced locally. So it shouldn't be a problem. The problem is how to organise these trains. It must be a nitemare to do this as more trains are added to the congested railroad.

 

[overseer]

btw, production could be ensured since high-speed train is now a mature technique in China and there're competing manufactories in Changchun, Shenyang,Chengdu and Nanjing.

I have rarely seen people use the word "manufactories" hehe.. you are the first actually..(and it is a correct use of word)

 

[kvLin]

I have rarely seen people use the word "manufactories" hehe.. you are the first actually..(and it is a correct use of word)

why kidding pal, most members here are posting in better English than I do.

Those trains are to be produced locally. So it shouldn't be a problem. The problem is how to organise these trains. It must be a nitemare to do this as more trains are added to the congested railroad.

I dont worry about this. it's replacement,not adding in. but the real problem does emerge with railway betterment, as how we suffered from delays on GS express way in the past 3 months.

 

[overseer]

why kidding pal, most members here are posting in better English than I do.

Hehe, no problem KvLin. That word you use is correct. It is just not often used. People usually use the word "factory".

I dont worry about this. it's replacement,not adding in. but the real problem does emerge with railway betterment, as how we suffered from delays on GS express way in the past 3 months.

Betterment?.. do you mean railway "improvement"..?? Yeh it can be a big problem I would imagine.

 

[kvLin]

BEIJING, May 8 -- Bullet trains that can travel at up to f 200 kilometers per hour provide a new and popular travel alternative during the May Day holiday.

Chinadaily.com.cn recently conducted a survey and found that about half of the respondents said they would like to try the trains during the week-long holiday.

More than 2,100 people responded to the website's question of "Will you try these bullet trains during the golden week in May?"

About 45 percent said "yes", 37 percent "no", and the rest had "no comment".

"I will try it," said a netizen named Dongting. "It is not as expensive as an air ticket, and cuts journey time."

However, Sissi felt ticket prices for the trains were a bit steep and that might could deter travelers.

"I shall try it one day, but not during the Golden Week. I always want to try something new, if I can afford it."

Meanwhile Nile advised people "not to spend money on transport that has experienced delays, making actual travel time longer".

Tickets for the trains, however, have been selling fast across the country.

"Can I please have a ticket for today or tomorrow to Shenyang?" asked a woman traveler at the Beijing Railway Station on Sunday.

"We only have tickets for May 8 or later," replied a ticket seller.

There are 256 bullet trains that traverse the country daily, including 26 that set off from Beijing, but there are almost no seats to be had.

"Tickets for bullet trains during the holidays were all sold out," Yu Xuejin, an official with Beijing Railway Station, was quoted by CCTV as saying.

Housewife Sun and her family were off to visit relatives in East China's Shandong Province during the holidays and said it was a good way to travel.

"It's wonderful, it cuts journey time, the trains are comfortable, and service excellent," she said.

Railway departments have been handling an average of 4.26 million passengers daily during the holiday period, exceeding that of the Spring Festival, according to an article on the Ministry of Railways website.

Source: China Daily

 

[ahussains]

A very huge task to made 500 trains ... Tooo Big to imagine in just 3 to 4 years of time ....


Pakistan also to take some assistance from chinees to improve there Trains infrastructre toooo ... we are far Behind

 

[kvLin]

Believe that the Chinese would always like to help improving Pakistani infrastructure.
I also believe Pakistan will ease into rapid growth coz you have talented and hardworking people.