High-speed rail in China

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Current High-speed lines in Greater China.      300+ km/h      250–299 km/h      200–249 km/h      Under Construction      Other railways

The People's Republic of China introduced 430 km/h maglev train service in March 2004 and regular high-speed train services in April 2007. The maximum speed limit for regular train in China is 350km/h in Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Rail by 2008.

In 2009, China announced plans to build 35 high-speed routes by 2012. Around 13,000 km of high-speed railways, capable of handling trains at between 200 and 350 km/hour would be completed and put into service by 2012. China’s railways were among the main beneficiaries of the government's 4-trillion-yuan ($585 billion) stimulus package.

At least five routes are to accommodate trains traveling at speeds of 350 km/h (220 mph). So far, China has built 185 km of track capable of handling 350 km/h trains, including the link between Beijing and Tianjin, which opened last August ahead of the Olympic Games. The five lines include three north-south routes: Beijing-Shanghai; Beijing-Guangzhou (Hong Kong); and Beijing-Harbin (Dalian). The two east-west high-speed lines are Xuzhou-Lanzhou and Shanghai-Kunming. The five lines along with three other lines with a designed speed of between 200 and 350 km/h, will become the trunk lines of China's future high-speed passenger rail network.

Contents

[edit] Non-Maglev High-speed Railways

The main operator of regular high-speed train services in the People's Republic of China is China Railway High-Speed (CRH). The Chinese Ministry of Railways plans to construct 12,000 km high-speed railways with speed limit more than 200km/h by 2020.[1].

[edit] Development Plan

[edit] China High-speed Railway Definitions

According to UIC's standard, China's high-speed railway including 4 parts:

  • Passenger Dedicated Line (PDL), synonymous with High-Speed Rail. A PDL is a high speed rail route which permits speeds of more than 200 km/h. However, the name is misleading in that some lines are not passenger only. For some political reasons, people call it PDL to replace High-speed Rail. As a whole PDL net, four east-west lines and four south-north lines, total 7000 km project is on the plan which is the biggest network of High-speed rail in the world. There are two levels of PDL in China:
    • 200~250 km/h, exactly, this level is not PDL only, it is fort level is used in the important corridors where no railway exists. Further more, in the long-term plan, once new freight dedicated lines are built in the future, there PDLs are able to update to the maximum speed 300 km/h.
    • 350 km/h, this is the top high-speed railway in the world. No freight cars can run on this level PDL after the French railways " TGV Est ".
  • Intercity Line, with the maximum speed 200~250 km/h, built in Megalopolis.
  • Updated conventional railways, some of the main lines of conventional tracks are already updated to the maximum speed 200 km/h, at least three sections are capable to the maximum speed 250 km/h.
  • Some other similar levels rail which doesn't under the name of Passenger Dedicated Line (PDL), these railways are for both passengers and freight with standard 200~250 km/h, which are not included in the long-term PDL plan.

[edit] Passenger Dedicated Line Network

All of the following are currently being prepared for high speed rail services with a MOR of 200 km/h or above. Most of the lines will open with a MOR of 200 km/h, limited by the trainsets and national law, and over time the permitted speeds will be increased up to the maximum allowed for by the track design.

Four north-south lines: (PDL)

Four east-west lines (PDL)

These 8 Lines total 12000 km.

[edit] Construction Schedule
Length (km) Design Speed (km/h) Construction Start Date Open Date
Qinhuangdao-Shenyang 404 200 8/16/1999 10/12/2003
Hefei-Nanjing 166 200 6/11/2005 4/18/2008
Beijing-Tianjin 115 350 7/4/2005 7/1/2008
Jinnan-Qingdao 364 200 1/28/2007 12/20/2008
Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan 190 200 6/11/2005 4/1/2009
Hefei-Wuhan 351 200 8/1/2005 4/1/2009
Wenzhou-Fuzhou 298 200 10/1/2005 6/30/2009
Ningbo-Wenzhou 268 200 12/1/2004 8/1/2009
Wuhan-Guangzhou 989 350 9/1/2005 12/1/2009
Fuzhou-Xiamen 273 200 9/1/2005 12/3/2009
Zhengzhou-Xian 455 300 9/1/2005 12/28/2009
Guanzhou-Shenzhen 105 350 12/18/2005 1/1/2010
Longyan-Xiamen 171 200 12/25/2006 1/1/2010
Shanghai-Nanjing 296 200 7/1/2008 5/1/2010
Shanghai-Hangzhou 159 350 2/26/2009 5/1/2010
Nanchang-Jiujiang 131 200 6/28/2007 6/1/2010
Guangzhou-Zhuhai 364 200 1/8/2007 11/1/2010
Wuhan-Jiujiang 258 200 12/16/2008 12/16/2010
Xiamen-Shenzhen 502 200 11/23/2007 1/1/2011
Changchun-Jinlin 96 200 5/13/2007 5/1/2011
Hainan East Ring 308 200 9/29/2007 9/1/2011
Wuhan-Yichang 293 200 9/17/2008 1/1/2012
Hefei-Bengbu 131 300 1/8/2009 6/1/2012
Guiyang-Guangzhou 857 200 10/13/2008 10/1/2012
Beijing-Shijiazhuang 281 300 10/8/2008 10/1/2012
Shijiazhuang-Wuhan 838 300 10/15/2008 10/1/2012
Tianjin-Qinhuangdao 261 350 11/8/2008 11/8/2012
Harbin-Qiqihar 285 200 11/20/2008 11/20/2012
Nanjin-Hangzhou 251 200 12/28/2008 12/28/2012
Ningbo-Hangzhou 150 200 12/28/2008 12/28/2012
Harbin-Dalian 904 350 8/23/2007 2/1/2013
Beijing-Shanghai 1318 300 4/18/2008 3/1/2013

Most of this mega network are still under construction or in plan.[2] The construction schedule for lines (not necessarily operation) is as follows:

Once tracks and lines are ready, testing phase begins, and need to be completed before commercial operation at which maximum operating speeds will be limited by the combination of national law, EMU design, and track design.

Besides those line under construction, the lines follows are at the preparation stage to construction:

[edit] Intercity Line

Intercity Lines are express services between major cities, with the maximum speed (MOR) of 200~250 km/h. Some utilize part or parts of the PDL network, others have dedicated lines.

Among these, Beijing-Tianjin Line and Shijiazhuang-Taiyuan Line has opened. Changchun-Jilin, Nanchang-Jiujiang, Guangzhou-Zhuhai, Shanghai-Nanjing are under construction. Nanjing-Anqing, Nanjing-Hangzhou, Mianyang-Chengdu, Haikou-Sanya are at the preparation stage to construction.

[edit] Other express rail outside PDL network

There are several such railways being built with the same standard of 200~250 km/h level PDL for both passengers and freight which are newly planned outside the PDL network.

[edit] High-speed Railways Currently Operational

[edit] Upgraded conventional railways

China has increased the allowed top speed for trains six times: in April 1997, October 1998, October 2000, November 2001, April 2004, and April 2007. The sixth national speed-up in April 18th, 2007 made it possible to use 6003km of tracks at speeds up to 200km/h. On 848 km tracks the top speeds may reach 250 km/h, most of which are on the newly built Qinshen Passenger Railway. This speedup is mainly achieved by updating the current conventional railways and operation of the newly built CRH series trains. Nationwide, 140 trains can now operate at 200km/h or more, and this is expected to increase to 257 trains by the end of 2007. In addition, speeds have also been raised on 8,000km of the existing network to 160km/h and a further 8,000 km have been upgraded to allow 120km/h operation. This means that speeds have been increased on 22,000km, or 29%, of the national rail network, and the average speed of a passenger train is now 70km/h. Often high speed lines are shared with heavy freight, with as little as 5 minutes headway.[5] During the sixth railway speedup, 280 CRH trains (CRH1, CRH2 and CRH5) are put into service. By the end of 2007, 514 CRH trains would be in operation. [6]

The new train schedule sliced 2 hours off travel times between Beijing and Shanghai with a journey time of just under 10 hours for the 1,463km trip. Journey times on the 1,199km Shanghai - Changsha (the capital of Hunan province) line have fallen by 90 min to 7h 30min, while Shanghai - Nanchang (the capital of Jiangxi province) journey times are halved. In addition to these new high-speed trains, China plans to introduce seven more non-stop intercity services, increasing the number of non-stop express trains to 26. A new non-stop express train between Beijing and Fuzhou, Fujian Province has reduced travel times from 33h 29min to less than 20 hours.[5]

[edit] CRH service

Main article: China Railway High-speed

China Railway High-speed (CRH) (中国铁路高速) is a term used to denote the high speed portions of railways and the trains run on them by China Railways. Any high-speed railway in China whether or not run by China Railways is referred to by the term (中国高速铁路), which means Chinese high-speed rail. In 2007, CRH's service covers the main cities in the east on the upgraded conventional tracks. This by no means implies maximum speed usage throughout the network. However, trains on some lines, such as Guangzhou-Shenzhen Line, are operated at the top speed.

A. Intercity services (typically, listed in schedules as C-series or D-series trains):

B. Long-haul services (typically, listed in schedules as Z-series trains):

[edit] 200 km/h Railways

[edit] 250 km/h Railways

  • Qinshen Passenger Railway(PDL), Shenyang to Qinghuadao the first PDL high-speed line in China opened in 2003
  • Jiaoji Passenger Railway(PDL), Jinan to Qingdao, 360km in length, new passenger or freight double-tracks along existing lines, opened in 12/23/2008
  • Shitai Passenger Railway Shijiazhuang to Taiyuan, 183.93km in length, opened in 1/4/2009 (Newly built railways)

[edit] 350 km/h Railways

[edit] Rolling Stock

CRH1

China Railway High-speed run different electric multiple unit (trainsets), the designs of which all are imported from other nations, CRH-1 through CRH-5. CRH trainsets are intended to provide fast and convenient travel between cities. Some of the trainsets will be manufactured locally through technology transfer, a key requirement for China. The signalling, track and support structures, control software, station design seems to be developed domestically with foreign elements as well, so the system as a whole could be called Chinese.

  • CRH1 derived from Bombardier Regina
  • CRH2 derived from E2 Series 1000 Shinkansen. In 2006, China has unveiled (CRH2), a modified version of the Japanese Shinkansen E2-1000 series. An order for 60 8-car sets had been placed in 2004, with the first few built in Japan, the rest in China.[7]
    • CRH2B, a modified 16-cars version of CRH2.
    • CRH2C, a modified version of CRH2 has maximum operating speed up to 300 km/h by replacing two intermediate trailer cars with motored cars.
    • CRH2E, a modified 16-cars version of CRH2 with sleeping cars.
  • CRH3 derived from Siemens ICE3
  • CRH5 derived from Alstom Pendolino ETR600[8]

CRH1, CRH2, and CRH5 are designed for maximum operating speed (MOR) of 200 km/h and can overspeed up to 250km/h. CRH3 and CRH2C designs have an MOR of 300 km/h, an overspeed up to 350km/h, and a top testing speed more than 380km/h. However, in reality, design test speed as compared to maximum operating speed is of little consequence as maintenance, comfort, cost, and safety are critical factors, making the train go impracticably fast is of little use as there are other limiting factors.

[edit] Maglev Train

[edit] Maglev Line in Operation

Transrapid maglev train in Shanghai, PRC. At MOR (maximum operational speed) of 431 km/h (267 mph), the Shanghai maglev is the world's fastest commercial train.

Shanghai Maglev Train, a turnkey Transrapid maglev project imported from Germany, capable of a top operational speed (MOR) of 430 km/h and of a top non-commercial speed of 501 km/h, has connected Shanghai Longyang Road Station and Shanghai Pudong International Airport since March, 2004. It is the first, fastest, and largest commercial operation of a maglev. However, it has not been without its problems, as it has caught fire. The line has plans to be extended.

[edit] Additional Maglev Lines

In the year 2006, prolongation project of maglev was approved by Central Government. This project will link from Shanghai Longyang Road Station through Shanghai South Railway Station to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, together with a length of 160 km from Shanghai South Railway Station to Hangzhou East Railway Station (Shanghai-Hangzhou maglev line).

However, a big debate has been raised on whether the Chinese people really need this form of expensive transportation. Obstacles also come from Germany - on whether they can transfer enough technology to China. Currently, only the project to link the two airports in Shanghai from Longyang Road Station to Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport is in progress. The project to link Hangzhou to Shanghai has been postponed.

[edit] Fastest Train in China

Main article: Fastest trains in China

Shanghai Maglev Train holds the record of the fastest train in China, which has a top operation speed of 431km/h and top testing speed of 501km/h. However, due to the short distance (only 30km maglev tracks), the average operational speed for the maglev train is 245.5km/h.

For regular high-speed trains, China Star held the top speed record from Dec 2002 to 2008 with a top speed of 321km/h during a test run on Qinshen Passenger Railway. This record was broken by a series of testing runs in early 2008 on the newly built Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Rail. During a run in June 2008, CRH3 set the top speed record to 394km/h.

After the sixth national speed-up in April 2007, the new CRH trains and the high standard rails of Qinshen Passenger Railway made trains D21 and D27 between Shenyang Bei and Qinhuangdao the fastest (non-Maglev) rail service by then, which have a start to stop average speed of 197.1 km/h.[9]

The newly opened Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Rail has a speed limit of 350km/h. This made trains C2018, C2032, C2066, and C2070 the fastest train services in China by 2008. They travelled between Tianjin and Beijing South Railway Station with an average speed of 240 km/h.

[edit] See also

[edit] External Links

[edit] References

  1. ^ China's high-speed rail network set to take off [1]
  2. ^ a b "Passenger Dedicated Lines will spearhead CR's inter-city speed-up". Railway Gazette International. 2007-08-01. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2007/08/7675/passenger_dedicated_lines_will_spearhead_crs_inter_city_speed_up.html. 
  3. ^ Anhui-China, "Trial run on Hefei-Nanjing railway"
  4. ^ "Beijing-Shijiazhuang railway under construction". Xinhua. October 7, 2008. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-10/07/content_10159285.htm. Retrieved on October 20 2008. 
  5. ^ a b International Railway Journal - Rail And Rapid Transit Industry News Worldwide
  6. ^ CCTV International
  7. ^ "High speed trainsets take shape". Railway Gazette International. 2005-08-01. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2005/08/5011/high_speed_trainsets_take_shape.html. 
  8. ^ "China's high speed fleet expands steadily". Railway Gazette International. 2007-08-01. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news_view/article/2007/08/7738/chinas_high_speed_fleet_expands_steadily.html. 
  9. ^ Railway Gazette International World Speed Survey 2007
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