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Bullet trains set to join fastest in the world
By Xin Dingding (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-04-23 14:30 With the sixth railway speedup starting April 18, China has joined the ranks of countries with high-speed rail services. Trains will be able to run at speeds of up to 200 kph on some 6,003 km of track, and on some sections, the maximum speed will increase to 250 kph. "That length (6,003 km) exceeds the total amount of rail lines capable of accommodating trains at that speed (200 kph) in nine European countries," said Vice-Minister of Railways Hu Yadong.
"And raising the speed to 200 kph on so much track in only one move is also rare in the world." As of today, trains will be able to run at speeds of up to 160 kph on 14,000 kilometers of track and up to 120 kph on 22,000 km of track. The 6,003 km of track capable of accommodating the fastest speeds will serve both high-speed passenger and heavily loaded cargo trains, which travel at slower speeds. Railway operators will have to address the speed gap between the two kinds of trains to make sure they both run safely. He Huawu, the ministry's general engineer, said the ministry had drafted an operational chart to allow trains to run at an interval of "only five minutes". He added that it was rare for a rail operator to run such a tight schedule. (For more biz stories, please visit Industries)
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