Six years ago, China had to slow trains across the country following a crash in the eastern Zhejiang province killing over 30 people involving the world’s fastest train. The speed of the train, which is at 350 km/hr, was just too fast, hereby reducing it to 250 km/hr with 300 km/hr tops.
Now China has already restored the world’s fastest train service, and they are faster than ever. Still running at 350 km/hr on average, it could now reach a maximum speed of 400 km/hr. And as a lesson learned from the crash, there is now a monitoring system inside the train which automatically slows the train down in case of emergency.
Photo by Reuters
According to the South China Morning Post, the said train service operates under the name “Fuxing” which means rejuvenation. The seven pairs of bullet trains under this train service, which model is new and homegrown, traverse the Beijing-Shanghai line. Operations started on September 21.
It makes 14 return trips a day, shortening the nearly 820 mile journey by more than an hour, to 4 hours and 30 minutes.
The restoration is part of the “Belt and Road Initiative,” wherein the government seeks to stay ahead globally in its rail services.
As of writing, China holds the world record for the longest railway network, accounting for around 60% of the global total. Twenty-nine of the Chinese provinces and regions are served by high-speed rail with only the regions of Tibet and Ninxia in the northwest yet to be connected. A report by the Associated Press indicated that the country has spent $360 billion building the network of high-speed rail, the largest in the world.
Sources: NDTV | Business Standard
