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Xiamen expands high-speed rail network

( chinadaily.com.cn )

Updated: 2017-01-11

China Railway opened a new service center for electric multiple unit (EMU) trains, the sleek electric trains used on China's high-speed rail network, in Xiamen, Fujian province on Jan 4.

The opening of the new center, said to be the largest in Fujian, came one day ahead of the implementation of a new train schedule, after which 225 EMU trains will be operating in the Xiamen area every day connecting the southeastern transport hub with the rest of the country.

Xiamen expands high-speed rail network

An EMU train pulls out of the new service center near Xiamen North Railway Station in Xiamen, Fujian province. [Photo by Zhang Xiangtao/Xinhua]

Staff at the center said that the service center will help save a huge amount of time and resources, as EMU trains need examination and maintenance on a daily basis. Previously, the EMU trains serving Xiamen's two railway stations had to go to neighboring Fuzhou or Longyan for inspection and storage overnight, and return to Xiamen the following morning.

The Xiamen service center, located three kilometers from Xiamen North Railway Station, will also offer more comprehensive services than Fujian's three other existing EMU service sites in Fuzhou and Longyan.

The center currently has eight repair tracks, allowing examination and maintenance work to be performed on 16 trains simultaneously. When the second phase of the project is completed in July, another 27 tracks will become operational with the ability to accommodate up to 50 trains.

Xiamen expands high-speed rail network

EMU trains rest ready for inspection at the new service center near Xiamen North Railway Station in Xiamen, Fujian province. [Photo/West Strait Morning Post]

A third phase of the project is scheduled to be completed in November, which will equip the site to service not only highs-speed EMU trains but all passenger trains in Xiamen. A railway turntable will also be added to the 42,000-square-meter site.

Xiamen Railway's newest development

During the New Year holiday, from Dec 30 to Jan 2, Xiamen railway system handled passengers of up to 330,000, similar to the previous year.

Since the end of the holiday, Xiamen Railway has added new EMU services to the scenic area at Wuyi Mountain in Fujian, as well as Hangzhou in Zhejiang province and Nanchang in Jiangxi province.

Xiamen's first high-speed rail service to beautiful Yunnan province was launched on Jan 5, with 200 passengers onboard during the train's first 2,100-kilometer trip to Southwest China.

The new service has cut travel times to the renowned tourism destination to a mere 12 hours and 41 minutes. And the ride is a nice sightseeing opportunity in itself, running across some of China's most beautiful landscapes, including South China's stunning karst mountains, as the train crosses Fujian, Jiangxi, Hunan and Guizhou before reaching Yunnan.

 

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