A train designed to run at a speed of 200 km per hour left east China's Shanghai for Suzhou early Wednesday morning, ushering in a high-speed era for the world's fastest growing economy.
Nationwide, 140 pairs of high-speed trains with a speed of 200 km per hour or a faster speed will begin to hit the railways on Wednesday. The number will increase to 257 by the end of this year.
Numbered D460, the train left Shanghai at 5:38 a.m. and is expected to arrive in Suzhou 39 minutes later.
Wednesday marks the the beginning of the sixth "speed boost" of Chinese railways, which has been hard-pressed to cope with the country's hunger for bigger transport capacity.
Chinese railway officials said last year, China fulfilled a quarter of the world's total railway transport volume on railways accounting for only 6 percent of the world's total length.
"The sixth speed lift will boost passenger capacity and cargo capacity by over 18 percent and over 12 percent respectively," said Hu Yadong, vice-minister of railways.
Jiang Bilin (R1), chief train attendant of D460, gives instructions to the sanitory workers before the train leaves Shanghai for Suzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province early Wednesday morning, April 18, 2007. The train marks the beginning of the sixth "speed boost" of Chinese railways, which has been hard-pressed to cope with the country's hunger for bigger transport capacity.
An elderly couple walk along the platform to board D460, the first high-speed train to hit the rail, in Shanghai early Wednesday morning, April 18, 2007. The train marks the beginning of the sixth "speed boost" of Chinese railways, which has been hard-pressed to cope with the country's hunger for bigger transport capacity.
