A train designed to run at a speed of 200 km per hour left east China's
Shanghai for Suzhou early this 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 am 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.
