Ministry apologizes for delays on railway

BEIJING - Authorities plan to inspect the recently opened Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway to ensure its safety after equipment on it failed on three separate occasions in four days, a railways official said on Thursday.

During an online chat, Wang Yongping, spokesman for the Ministry of Railways, said the spate of equipment failures has prompted the ministry to call meetings to better understand the causes of the malfunctions.

The operators of the high-speed railway, construction companies and train manufacturers are being encouraged to take measures to guarantee the line will run in a safe and orderly fashion, he said.