|
BEIJING REVIEW |
|
The world's longest high-speed rail line, which
spans over half of China, began operating Wednesday, further cementing the
country's high-speed railway development ambitions.
Two trains departed from stations in Beijing and
Guangzhou at 9 a.m. and 10 a.m., respectively, to mark the opening of the
2,298-km line.
Running at an average speed of 300 km per hour,
the new route cuts the travel time between Beijing and the southern metropolis
from more than 20 hours to around eight.
A total of 155 pairs of trains will run on the
new line each day, and alternative schedules have been made for weekends and
peak travel times, according to the Ministry of Railways (MOR).
"The opening of the Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed
line shows that China's high-speed railway network has started to take shape,"
said Zhou Li, director general of science and technology of the MOR.
With the opening of the Beijing-Guangzhou
high-speed line, China now has more than 9,300 km of high-speed railways in
operation.
The country aims to create a high-speed railway
backbone featuring four east-west lines and four north-south lines with a total
operating mileage of more than 120,000 km by 2020, according to government
plans.
(Xinhua News Agency December 26, 2012)
|