Economy

Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail runs trial operation

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-12 09:03

China Railway High-speed (CRH) trains are seen stopping at Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station in Shanghai, east China, May 11, 2011. China launched the test run for the high-speed railway between Shanghai and Beijing here on May 11, 2011. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING -- The Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail line began a one-month trial operation on Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Railways.

The 1,318-kilometer-long high-speed rail line will cut travel time between China's two major metropolises to about five hours, the ministry said. The line is scheduled to go into commercial service at the end of June, according to the ministry.

Fault simulations and emergency drills will be carried out during the one-month trial, the ministry said.

Some sections of the rail line have already started trials. One section between the city of Zaozhuang in Shandong province and the city of Bengbu in Anhui province began trails on Nov 15, 2010, according to the ministry.

Trains on the line will run at two speeds, 300 kilometers per hour and 250 kilometers per hour, with different ticket prices depending on the speed of the train. A precise ticket price scale has yet to be approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planning body.

The line will use 90 pairs of bullet trains after it goes into service, with the ministry vowing to optimize the use of its trains to provide the best service possible for prospective travellers.

China plans to invest 2.8 trillion yuan ($431.7 billion) to build about 30,000 kilometers of new rail lines over the next five years.The total length of China's railways is set to exceed 120,000 kilometers by the end of 2015, railway minister Sheng Guangzu said last month.

A China Railway High-speed (CRH) train is seen going to its debut test on the high-speed railway between Shanghai and Beijing at Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station in Shanghai, East China, May 11, 2011 [Photo/Xinhua]